Dresden Tips

I think Dresden’s are delightful in all their many ways.  I enjoy making them and have learned a few tricks to make them easier and thought I would share.

I really like my EZ Dresden ruler though you can find templates on line here.  With the ruler you just cut a strip the size you want your blades and then start cutting.  Just flip the ruler back and forth so you don’t waste fabric.  For the project I’m working on now I used 5″ and 3″.

You will need 20 blades for each plate using the EZ ruler.

Next I press my blade in half with right sides together.

Sew 1/4″ along the top and trim on the fold side.

Finger press your seam open.

I use a chopstick to get a nice pointy point and line up the center of my seam with the pressed fold line.

I like to layout my plate before I start sewing.

I sew my blades together starting at the point side.  This gives you wiggle room in case your blades are not quite the same size.  The appliqued circle will cover any mistakes.

I press my seams open to distribute bulk

and continue around the circle until it’s complete.

Center on your background

Stitch down.  I top stitch mine.

Measure the diameter of your inner circle and add 1/2″ to 3/4″ to cover seem allowance.

Using my perfect circle applique cut out your circle this size and follow the directions.  Center this on your plate and stitch down.

If you are wanting to do a Dresden with curved edges you can use my tutorial here.  Hope this is helpful.  If you create a Dresden project I would love to see.  Let me know they make me very happy.