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| Broken Herringbone Quilt |
The Broken Herringbone Quilt block is a great block to add to your list of “must makes” if you're a fan of the modern cloth and like to create quilt blocks that say a lot with not much effort. This bold geometric pattern was created by modern quilting giant Violet Craft as part of her Madrona Road fabric collection, but was delightfully adapted into an easy-to-quilt 12.5-inch block tutorial by play-crafts' Rachel Kerley.
The Broken Herringbone block is so great because of the ingenious way fabric strips and negative space are used. The pattern has a lot of very detailed sharp angles that may seem daunting at first glance, but the genius here is how it is constructed. You need not use difficult foundation paper piecing or bias-cut triangles to create the block – just sew together 2.5″ strips of your favorite feature fabrics with clean, narrow 1” sashing fabrics.
The movement and the “broken” effect are created by carefully taken 45° sub-cuts and a most ingenious “quilt-as-you-go” method of assembly. You basically cut pairs of strips, cut them at exact angles, and use the strips cut off to create the bottom corners of your block. It's a very rewarding, little to no waste technique and great for chain piecing.
The pattern is all about contrasting lines, so it's the perfect place to work with colors. For that signature mid-century modern style, try high contrast palettes of bright pinks, citrus oranges and chartreuse lime greens on an off-white background. Or, you could use complementary colors in three different sets of strip sets to make an amazing, cascading rainbow color gradient in the top of your quilt!
The Broken Herringbone pattern offers perfectly geometric designs, and a wonderfully approachable method; whether you're ready to cut through your favorite fat quarter bundles or you're seeking a striking, modern block for your next quilting bee exchange. Grab those fabric strips, dust off all your 45 degree markings and prepare to love this modern classic!
