A Dresden Journey
Just finished piecing the first Dresden on the Pfaff and adhered it to fusible batting. Turned it inside out and getting ready to quilt it on the Bernina!
Where do I start! Lol…. I watched a video a year ago from the Fat Quarter Shop and got very inspired to attempt to make a Dresden. After ordering a specific Creative Grids ruler that FQS sells through their brand “it’s sew Emma” I waited to have the courage to make one of these pieces. In the summer of 2022, I went to my favorite Quiltshop up in Door County, Barn Door Quilts and picked up 8 fat quarters for this awesome holiday fabric called Cheer and Merriment, put out by Moda. The designer, Fancy that Design House, became a fan favorite with their awesome Slow Stroll, which I could not get enough of. I guess that how we find a favorite Moda designer. Anyway, I fell in love with this color way and wanted to see them in a project together. So a couple weeks before Christmas, I decided to dive in and make two Dresden Table centers! Thought it would make a great gift for Mom, if they turned out.
Cheer and Merriment yardage from Fancy That Design House. Aren’t the colors fun?
So this project took a year for me to complete and a 1/2 year to get inspired with a fabric choice. LOL…. What’s the longest period of time when you decided to make something and then finally executed it? Leave a comment below!
I’ll include a link below of the YouTube video I followed to make these two Dresden table centers. This was the first time I starched my fabric and realized that it’s essential when cutting on the bias of any quilt fabric. After realizing I had an Asthma attack on a scented version, I switched to Flatten and didn’t have as bad of a reaction. It was nice to have mask around while doing this processes.
I used my Pfaff to do the piecing of the Dresden circle and the Bernina to do the Quilting. I used a 10D foot to sew on the circle appliqué and couldn’t believe how easy it was to sew in a circle with that foot! I need to get one of those for the Pfaff now as well. As you know, I follow in the foot steps of Kimberly Jolly from the Fat Quarter Shop and almost exclusively use Aurifil color 2000. It seems to match most of my fabric choices, unless the fabric is bright white or dark in color. For the top stitch quilting I used 40 weight thread, instead of the 50 weight I normally use for piecing. The 40 weight gives a little more visual stitching pleasure to the eye at a 3.5 stitch length. I’ve used this weight in thread for my quilted table runners as well. Only for quilting, not for the piecing. Bobbin stays at 50 weight at all times.
For the appliqué, I used thin muslin scrap instead of interfacing and used Steam A Seam Light 2 to adhere to the center of the Dresden circle before top stitching. I love that product so much!
I was super pleased with the results! Please see the photos below and let me know what you think? I did have to pick up my backing and appliqué fabric from my friends at Patched Works in Elm Grove, WI. That’s where the above photo was taken. Was so excited they had this yardage on hand, so I could complete this project before Christmas. The staff at that store are absolutely amazing!
Thanks for reading and joining me on this journey!
Leave some comments below!
Big Hugs,
Scott