Icicles Quilt Along- Week 3- Appliqué the dresden plates
Hello, Everyone! Welcome to week 3 of the Icicles quilt along!
If you didn't see the information post that I wrote about this quilt along, you can find that here. The Icicles quilt pattern can be found in my book- Season to Taste: Quilts to Warm Your Home All Year Long-
You can buy it from: Amazon
This week, in week 3, we will appliqué the dresden plates to the background squares and also appliqué the dresden centers to the block.
To begin, cut out the background blocks for your dresdens. Take one background block, fold it in half vertically, and press it. Open it up, fold it in half horizontally, and press it. Open it up and press it from right side. The background block will now lay flat but you can still see the vertical and horizontal pressing lines. These lines will be your guidelines for centering your dresden plate.
Lay the dresden plate on top of the background block. Center it using the guidelines. Pin the dresden plate to the background block. If you are going to hand appliqué, I'd recommend using appliqué pins to hold it in place. If you are going to machine appliqué, you can use regular pins.
Appliqué using your choice of either hand appliqué or machine appliqué. I am not using hand appliqué this time around. I'll share my method for machine appliqué with you.
To machine appliqué, choose a starting point to begin stitching. I like to backstitch at the beginning and the end so I try to pick a spot that is where my backstitches won't stand out too much.
Stitch around the entire dresden. At each point and crevice, lift your pressor foot, with the needle down, and pivot your work, then continue stitching.
To make the dresden center, use the template in the Icicles pattern.
Let me share with you my method for preparing the dresden center. I like to use mylar template to prepare my dresden centers. Cut the exact template out of the mylar.
Cut the fabric about 1/2" to 1" bigger all the way around the mylar template.
With a 1/4" seam allowance, sew all around the fabric you just cut. Use an increased stitch length- I usually use a 6. Leave the thread tails long at the beginning and then end here.
Place the mylar template in the middle of the fabric. Gently pull the one thread from the beginning and one thread from the end to tighten the threads around the mylar template.
Keep gently (so you don't break the threads) pulling until the fabric is formed tightly around the mylar.
Spray the fabric with starch. Then press in small sections all the way around the dresden center. Hold the iron and press, moving the iron from the edge of the mylar toward the center of the dresden center. In doing this, you are pressing the wrinkled portion away from the edge and toward the middle. Make sure there are no wrinkles directly on the edge. If there are some wrinkles on the very edge, spray with starch and begin again. You will see the wrinkles from the front if there are right on the edge.
Let the dresden center cool completely from pressing. Next, start to trim away the extra fabric (where its wrinkled) and leave behind 1/4" seam allowance.
Slip the mylar template out of the fabric.
Press from the back and press from the front.
Center the dresden center on the block and secure with pins. Machine appliqué or hand appliqué using the same process as earlier when appliquéing the dresden plate.
The first dresden plate block is completed!
Repeat these steps to appliqué all 16 dresden plates and all 16 dresden centers.
See you back here next week for week 4! You can the hashtags #iciclesquilt #seasontotastequiltbook and #jessicadayonpatterns to share your progress. Happy sewing!
Jessica
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