Improvisational quilting is freeing! It’s just you, a pile of fabric, no pattern and sometimes even no plan. You’ll cut pieces, sew them together, then step back and see what the quilt asks for next. It’s true intuitive quilting.
Or you might still use a pattern as a base, and let go of control and accuracy a little. This might look like switching out techniques, letting go of perfection, and making creative choices each step of the way.
If you’ve come across the term and wondered what it really means, we've got you. Here’s our take on what improvisational quilting is, how it differs from following a pattern and a few ways you can try it yourself.
Improvisational quilting is quiltmaking without a set pattern. Instead of working towards a design you've planned in advance, you build it as you go. That allows you to choose fabrics and arrange pieces in response to what's in front of you, so your own creative instincts do the steering versus blindly following a pattern.
The term is often shortened to 'improv' - sewing fabric together without measuring and cutting precisely - and the technique is known as improvisational piecing.
The improvisation can carry into your stitching too. Some quilters draw lines, shapes and even images across the surface with free-motion stitching, where it’s like you’re almost drawing with thread, by moving the fabric freely under the needle.
Overall, it’s a bit like playing jazz music, where you know the basics, but what happens next depends on what you've just done.
Traditional quilting usually follows a pattern, with blocks cut to exact measurements and pieced to match the design on the page. There's a lot to love about that, from the skill and precision to the sense of carrying a tradition forward (especially when it’s a loved family tradition passed down!).
A pattern also helps you prepare, as it tells you how much fabric to buy and roughly what the finished quilt will look like, whereas an improv approach leaves both wide open.
With no template to match, the process matters as much as the finished quilt, and the decisions happen along the way. Neither approach is better than the other; they simply ask different things of you, and plenty of quilters enjoy moving between the two.
Improvisation has deep and varied roots, so it's hard to pin down a single starting point. Many contemporary quilters, especially improvisational quilters, are deeply inspired by the beautiful quilts of Gee's Bend in Alabama. Here, quilters went beyond traditional patterns, embracing and working with the tools and fabric they had on hand at the time.
Today, you'll find improvisational piecing in modern quilts, often through bold colour and plenty of open space (known as negative space), as well as in art quilts, where improvisation is a recognised style. It's a way of working rather than a category of its own, so a single quilt can be both improvisational and modern!
While improv quilting is freeing, it also draws on real skill. In an article in Collector’s Weekly, the late quilt collector, Eli Leon, who championed improvisational quilts, noted that although they look spontaneous, they take technical know-how.
“Improvisational quilts are not crazy at all. They often have a number of patterns in one quilt. They may even be the same pattern on the whole quilt, but it doesn’t necessarily look that way because the pattern keeps varying.”
– Eli Leon
Every quilter does improve a little differently, but the process goes something like this:
Gather your fabrics, from humble scraps to the favourite pieces you've been saving.
Start sewing before every piece is measured, joining shapes together and seeing how they look side by side.
Add, trim and rearrange, because each new piece changes what the quilt needs next.
Let the design grow, even if it ends up looking nothing like your first idea, which is half the fun!
Layer the quilt and stitch through the layers, either following your pieces or stitching freely across them to add your own marks, then bind the edges.
I’m not experienced, and I’m planning to give it a try. The good news is quilters of any level can have a go at improvisation, although the basics, like sewing a straight seam, pressing and trimming, still apply, so a little sewing know-how helps.
You’ll need the usual equipment, like a sewing machine, rotary cutter (a rolling blade for fabric), ruler and mat, or a needle and thread can work if you prefer to stitch by hand. With no templates to learn and no seams to line up perfectly (yes!), it can feel like a relief, and experienced quilters often find it a fresh way to use the skills they already have.
If it sounds a bit scary, start small (I will be). Mini quilts, pillow covers and table runners are popular first projects because you can experiment without committing to a bed-sized quilt.
If you'd like to try it, here are a few ideas to get started:
Start small with combinations of fabrics that you like. That’ll help you identify what works, before going big.
Work with what you've got, because scraps and fabric you already have take the pressure off. Just don’t go straight in using your favourite / most loved cloth.
Limit your palette to a small handful of colours, which makes the choices feel less overwhelming.
Lay your pieces out on a table or the floor and step back to see how they relate to each other before you sew.
Try stitching freely on a small test piece, on the machine or by hand, to see how your stitching looks on your fabrics.
Don’t be afraid to unpick stitches, because changing your mind is part of the process.
The best part of improvisational quilting is that there’s no wrong place to start. Gather a few scraps, make that first cut and see what the quilt asks for next. Some pieces will surprise you and others might not work out, but each one teaches you something for the next. Whatever you end up with, it will be entirely yours.
Explore improvisation furtherIf you'd like guidance while you explore, we have two courses that explore improvisational quilting from different directions. In Fabric Freedom: Improvised quilts, Amanda Nadig shares an intuitive, hand-stitched approach using repurposed fabric and scraps, embracing chance and letting surprises guide each decision. In Gesture, Colour, Quilt: Abstract making, Julian Jamaal Jones starts with your own sketches and colour palettes, then shows you how to compose and piece a quilt without a pattern, and use stitch as mark making. |