A Dresden Mini Quilt

I’m popping in to show you a little something I made for a friends birthday gift. It started out as this fabric pull of blues and pinks that I literally dreamt up ( funny, I know!). I added some spicy mustard yellow into the mix to give it a more grown up look.

I think the added pop of color did the trick of pulling these prints together. They are mostly Amy Sinibaldi prints along with some Sevenberry and of course my go to Liberty Of London. Oh, and a gorgeous Rifle Paper print as well.

I used my machine to sew the Dresden down and then set to work hand stitching using my favorite Tulip Hiroshima embroidery needles in size 8 and a 28 weight thread from Aurifil. Perfect combo for smooth stitching!

So here she is, all finished! I was going for a balance of modern-vintage, the fabrics being more modern and the hand quilting adding that older style feel. I have taken to visiting antique shops lately and have been so inspired by the old quilts and hand sewn items I find, and rather then going broke buying them all, I try to bring some of that “old, well loved” feel to the things I am making now.

I completely winged it with my Dresden sections and had to add the corner quarter circles almost as an after thought. Do you ever get so caught up in making something that you completely forget to plan a few key pieces? Just part of learning as I go and flying by the seat of my thread covered pants!

I went back and forth on whether to add more stitching or colored stitches or just scrap the whole thing (ah, the phases a maker goes through in the course of one small project!), but in the end I just really love all the white space on this mini.

My stitches are not perfect or exact but this was the most enjoyable hand sewing I think I have ever done and that counts for a lot in my book. I could have gone on forever, it’s a little addictive.

I really like how this mini looked on my bathroom wall, I might just have to make another to keep for myself!

So there you have it, my humble little gift. My friend, by the way, is Jenni. We have yet to meet in person but we text almost daily for about two years now. You just never know who God will bring into your life (in any way or form, thank you Instagram!), to encourage and bless you just when you need it most. And you never know how something as simple as reaching out to say hello might just be the start of a blessed friendship.

Thank you for stopping by! I hope you leave here inspired. Make sure to come back on Monday March 6 to see some more of the hand quilting I’ve been up to.