In the world of traditional quilting, a quilt block is a precise and rigidly defined geometric shape that must be repeated. While this sense of structure can be comforting to the creator of the quilt, it doesn’t hurt to try something a bit more spontaneous from time to time. Enter another, less predictable form of quilt making: crazy quilting. As the name suggests, you’re free to be as creative and zany as you see fit while patching together these works of art.

Crafting a visually appealing crazy quilt isn’t as simple as stitching together a few random patches. There should still be a method to your madness. Keep a rough design of the finished product in your mind at all times, focusing on creating a stark contrast between patches. You can use ribbons, lace and even buttons to embellish the quilt along its stitching.