Dresden Time

I haven't forgotten (of course not), in fact I have been looking forward very much to sharing the finished Dresden Plate quilt with you. It was a brilliantly enjoyable quilt to make from start to finish.

I was admiring my neighbour Jane's garden and asked her if I might borrow it for a little photo session. She thought I was a bit batty but hey ho! Her garden looks beautiful. Her little cottage is attached to ours, it's single storey and it is thought that it was once the pound for the animals (it is believed our cottage was once part of a farmhouse, built circa 1500-1550). She has really made something of both the house and garden in the long time she has lived there. I do enjoy her garden rather vicariously.

Anyhow, back to the Dresden. Here it is! I used plain white cotton for the background, plain delphinium blue for the sashing (both quilting weight cotton from my local shop), and Amy Butler solids in pink for the corner stones. The much-desired yellow for the flower centres came from The Cotton Patch.

The plates are made with my beloved 1930s/'40s reproduction prints. I used 55 different designs! Golly, from where did those all come? I buy these mainly from America (Fat Quarter Shop, Calico Cottage Quilt Shop) and also the fairs and quilt shops I visit here in Blighty. My sister buys me a fair few on her travels too.

The quilt is entirely machine pieced, appliqued (using a tiny blanket stitch) and quilted. I love the look of hand pieced quilts, I just don't have the patience! I did spend a while on the quilting: outlining a quarter of an inch inside each block, round each Dresden Plate, round each central yellow circle and finally in a cross through each pink cornerstone. Not as easy as straight forward ditch quilting (not that I am saying that's easy to do perfectly) but I like the effect and am getting better the more I practise, of course.

To keep with the traditional feel, it is backed with the same white cotton and I used the delphinium blue for binding. I have washed it already and it has gone deliciously crumply!

It hasn't eclipsed the spiderweb quilt as my favourite but I am very pleased with it.

Might I just say a very heartfelt thank you to the many of you who took the time to leave a comment or email me following my nan's death recently. I did enjoy sharing all of your own reminisces about your grandmothers and it's clear we all agree, they always have a special place in our hearts.