DIY Network

Brooklyn Bridge With its architectural design, this traditionally pieced quilt is anything but traditional looking. From "Uncommon Threads" episode DUCT-117

Stephannie Behrens combines her engineering background with quilting to create the Brooklyn Bridge. She'll talk about how she created the pattern and show how to use paper piecing to join the parts of the design.

Editor's note: We will provide downloadable patterns for this project as soon as they become available. We apologize for any inconvenience.

advertisement

Materials:

Brooklyn Bridge

100% cotton fabric fabric, as follows:
23 pieces blue, all different patterns, each piece measuring approximately 4"x8"
1/8 yd. (tower and roadway)
1/2 yd. gray (cables)
6"x20" (sky)
5"x20" (water)
1/2 yd. (backing and binding)
20"x20" cotton batting (I use Warm and Natural Brand)
2 pieces vellum paper, measuring 11"x17"
ruler
extra-fine-point permanent marker
paper scissors
fabric scissors
sewing machine with an open-toe presser foot
cotton machine-sewing thread in medium gray (I recommend Aurifil cotton 50-weight in a mid-grey tone)
blue thread for machine quilting
decorative thread for quilting of waves
90/14 sharp sewing-machine needle (or other thick needle)
very fine pins (0.5 mm shaft)
Animas Quilts Publishing Binding Miter Tool

1. At your local copy store, enlarge the pattern by 300% using a copy machine. Have one copy on regular paper and a second copy printed onto vellum. This is a reverse image of how the quilt will ultimately look.

2. Cut apart the vellum copy only along the bold lines. Do not cut apart all of the pieces. Take care to cut exactly on the lines (this is one of the times in life to "stay within the lines"). This will cut the pieces into major sections: A, B, C, D, E, F, G, Sky 1 and Sky 2.

	Figure A
	Figure B
	Figure C
	Figure D
	Figure E

3. Shorten the stitch length in your machine to about half its normal size.

Each section is numbered from 1-6. This is your piecing order. You will piece 1 to 2, then 2 to 3 and so forth.

1. Place the back of the paper template to the wrong side of fabric 1 (figure A).

2. Place fabric 2 right sides together with fabric one and arranged so that when you sew the seam and flip fabric 2, it will fully cover its piece.

3. Pin fabric pieces and the paper together (figure B).

4. Sew along the 1-2 line, starting a few stitches beyond the line at the beginning and the end (figure C).

5. Repeat steps 2-4 for each of the remaining fabrics for each section. Follow the picture for color placement.

6. Sew each section together in alphabetical order (A to B, B to C, C to D, etc.). Take care with each section to line up all of the intersecting lines and pink as necessary (figure D).

7. Sections H and I will be curved seams. Use the registration points to pin, and clip 1/8" into the seam allowance to ease the curve (figure E).

8. Make a quilt sandwich by layering the quilt on top of the batting, on top of the backing fabric. Baste all of the pieces together. Quilt by stitching in the ditch for the bridge portion and create free-motion waves with a darning or embroidery foot.

9. From the remaining backing fabric, cut 2-1/2" strips for binding. Fold the strips in half length-wise, right sides facing out. With the raw edges of the binding strip lined up with the edge of the quilt and the fold of the binding facing inward, sew a strip of binding to the front of the quilt using a 1/4" seam allowance. Stop sewing 1/4" from the end of the quilt. Following the mitering instructions that come with the Binding Miter Tool to finish up the binding. Hand-stitch the binding to the back of the quilt using a tack stitch.

RESOURCES :

Aurifil cotton thread (Mako 50-wt.)
Website: www.thatthreadshop.com

Schmetz 90/14 sharp sewing machine needles
Website: www.joann.com

Warm and Natural cotton batting
Website: www.joann.com

Vellum paper
Website: www.officemax.com

GUESTS :

Stephannie Behrens
E-mail: stepho@silanastitchworks.com
Website: www.silanastitchworks.com