A Tutorial: How to Sew a Dresden Plate

Happy Monday, friends!

I detoured from my Heading South quilt this weekend and finished up a couple Dresden plates I had been working on.

I ran across this minty Dresden plate quilt on Pinterest a while back. It was a little inspiration that pushed me to try something new. I did a bit of research on sewing Dresden plates, and after a few tries, I was able to narrow down a method that I think works best for me.

Tutorial, How to sew a Dresden Plate

My biggest challenge was finding a Dresden plate template with a rounded edge and one that created a plate larger than twelve to fourteen inches. The one I found and purchased finishes a plate that’s approximately sixteen inches in diameter. I bought the set pictured above off Amazon, but I see it is also available on Etsy.

1. Cut twenty petals. For me, tracing the rounded edges with a fabric pencil and cutting the straight edges with a rotary cutter worked best. These petals are not very wide, and I have learned they are ideal if you are looking to use up some relatively small scraps.

Tutorial, How to sew a Dresden Plate

2. Sew all twenty petals into ten sets of two.

Tutorial, How to sew a Dresden Plate

3. Sew the pairs of petals into a plate consisting of twenty petals.

Tutorial, How to sew a Dresden Plate
4. Cut a square of interfacing a bit larger than your Dresden plate.  Interfacing is a thin fabric that, once heated with an iron, is sticky on one side. It’s fusible and often used to add a layer of strength to fabric to help it keep shape. (Warning: do not accidentally put your iron right against the sticky side. I’ve never done this, but I hear it creates a bad sticky mess on your poor iron.)

Lay your interfacing flat on a table with the sticky side facing down.

Lay the Dresden plate on top of the interfacing also facing down.

Pin your Dresden plate to the interfacing and slowly stitch an eighth of an inch around the perimeter of the Dresden plate. (See picture below.)

Tutorial, How to sew a Dresden Plate

5. Trim around the interfacing.

Tutorial, How to sew a Dresden Plate

6. Gently pull the interfacing through the hole in the center of the Dresden. This will turn it all right side out. Carefully put your hand in the center if you need to push out any of the rounded edges. Some of them may get tucked or rolled in a bit.

Tutorial, How to sew a Dresden Plate

7. Let’s move on to the little circle in the middle. Using the template (or a small bowl or cup), trace a circle onto your desired piece of fabric.

Tutorial, How to sew a Dresden Plate

8. Cut the circle out.

Just like above with the plate, lay a small piece of interfacing face down (sticky side down) on a table. Lay the circle on top of the interfacing, also face down.

Stitch around the edge of the circle.

Tutorial, How to sew a Dresden Plate

9. Cut a small hole in the interfacing and flip the circle right side out.

Tutorial, How to sew a Dresden Plate

10. Take out your Dresden again.  Once you are positively sure all the rounded parts are pushed out, iron the Dresden plate. This will adhere it to the fusible interfacing. Folks, there is no turning back once you fuse these two with your iron. Really, you will not be able to pull them apart again. And DO NOT run your iron over that center hole.

Take your circle and ensure all the sides are neatly rounded and pushed out. Iron your circle also to adhere the fabric to the interfacing.

Tutorial, How to sew a Dresden Plate

11. I machine appliqued the circle to the center of my Dresden.

Use your Dresden on a quilt block, a place mat, a baby blanket, a homemade napkin. Anything that strikes your fancy.

Rumor has it that one of these Dresdens is going to show up on a pillow cover in my Etsy Shop tomorrow.

Tutorial, How to sew a Dresden Plate

These Dresdens were all made with scraps of vintage sheets I’ve collected over the last year. See this post for a few tips on sewing with vintage sheets.

I’ve also been impressed with the sheets I’ve ordered from A Little Shabby Shack on Etsy. If you are running low on good thrift store finds, you may want to check her shop out.

Source for vintage sheets. A Little Shabby Shack.

(Please note that affiliate links have been used in this post.)

Tutorial, How to sew a Dresden Plate

5 thoughts on “A Tutorial: How to Sew a Dresden Plate

  1. Thanks for such an informative tutorial. I just ordered a set of templates from Amazon thanks to your information, with different sized petals. I will be beginning a new project when I receive them. Will use your fine tutorial for guidance when needed. Thanks again.

  2. I am making a quilt for my granddaughter with pieces my grandmother sewed by hand in dresden plate. I am unsure how to proceed from here I have the middle done and sewn in place but not sure what to do with the outside edge of each piece, do I need to sew it on interfacing the sew the top strips of material on the quilt batting then the back.

    1. Hey there Cora! This sounds like a really special quilt. 🙂 For the outside edges, I use a fusible interfacing (or a Heat N Bond type product) to take care of the raw edges. Lay the Dresden plate facing up and then lay the fusible interfacing face down. Sew around the perimeter. Cut a small hole in the interfacing and flip the Dresden right side out. Carefully iron the sides of the Dresden in. The interfacing will adhere to the back of the Dresden.

      I believe there are multiple ways to sew a Dresden plate, but this is how I’ve done all of mine! I hope that’s a bit helpful! 🙂

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