Hi ,

We're piecing a Dainty Dresden Plate today and experimenting with cutting tiny petals with fusible edges.

Preparations and Piecing for Dresden #9

This Dainty Dresden Ring is cut with Template #5 of our Dresden Ring set and the 2-inch and 3-inch circle templates. I used Lite Steam-A-Seam 2 Fusible Web to fuse the back of the petals and ended up with fusible edges on the inside and outside of this Dresden Ring.

Here are the fabrics you'll need for this block:

Dresden Plate Petal Preparation & Piecing

Follow the instructions in the video on cutting your petals and preparing them for this block. You'll need 8 petals cut in both colors.

How to Piece Dresden Ring #9

We piece this block together in sets of 4. Make sure to align and piece from the inside edge of the petals.

The outside edges will not line up. That's okay! Piece all the way to the end of the longer petals. This stitching line will help you fold over the seam allowance neatly.

Press the seam allowance towards the longer petals.

How to Cut the Center Circle

You could create a Dainty Dresden Plate by placing a circle applique on top of this shape.

But I liked the idea of cutting out the center circle using the 3-inch circle template. This size of circle perfectly fit the fusible web so the ring would have fusible web all around.

To cut the circle, I marked it with the circle template, then cut it out with my favorite scissors. Because of the piecing and seam allowances, I would NOT try to cut this center circle with a rotary cutter.

How to Secure Your Dresden Plate

Fold your background fabric square in half and press to create crease lines running through the center in both directions.

Now for the super tedious part - peeling off all the paper backing from our fusible web.

Yes, this is time consuming and yes, it can easily distort your block! Take your time peeling all the paper away and then you'll be ready to fuse the ring in place:

Follow the instructions on your fusible web pack to fuse your Dresden Ring applique in place.

Finish the Dresden Ring with a bit of stitching around the inner and outer edges. I like to use a straight stitch, 1/8 inch away from either the raw or folded edge of the fabric. I’ve decided to use white thread throughout to make securing the 1930s fabrics down quick and easy.

I love experimenting with all the different types of Dresden Plates and Dresden Rings we can make with the Dresden Template Set. Pick up your set today from our online store and begin piecing along with me.

Free Motion Design Split Petal Flower

For our blast from the past Free Motion Quilting design this week we're going back to the early days of the FMQ Project and staying on the "petal" theme with Split Petal Flower.

(Please note this is an "oldie" youtube video from 12 years ago! Hence the low resolution and audio.)

That's it for this week, . 

We're getting some very nice cooler weather as we fall into fall here in the foothills of North Carolina, and we're forecast for some pretty heavy rain this weekend as the aftermath of Hurricane Ian is projected to come our way. It's been dry here so we could definitely use the rain!

Let's go quilt,

Leah Day (and Betty enjoying the cooler weather in our front yard)