Making the plate
- Cut strips the width shown. Lay the template across a strip, ends on the edges, and cut along its sides. Turn it end over end for the next blade.
- For pointed tips, sew and turn the point of each blade first, as the pointed tips answer below explains.
- Join the blades along the dashed lines. For pointed blades, start a seam allowance below the top and backstitch to the edge for a neat inner point. Press the seams open.
- Turn under the center circle's allowance, place it over the narrow ends and stitch the plate and circle to the background.
How the template is drawn
Each blade is a wedge of 360° divided by the number of blades. The sewing lines run straight out from the plate's center, and the cutting lines run parallel to them one seam allowance outside. The published Quiltmaker templates are drawn the same way.
A pointed tip comes from the fold, so the point sits on the sewing line across the top and is always a right angle. Rounded tips are an arc cut one allowance outside the finished curve.
Example: a 12 in plate of 20 pointed blades with a 3 in center needs 5 1/8 in strips. A 40 in strip gives 23 blades, so one strip of each fabric is plenty.
Questions
How many blades are in a Dresden plate?
As many as you like: 360 divided by the blade angle. 16 blades are 22.5°, 20 are 18°, 24 are 15° and 36 are 10°. More blades make narrower blades and a busier plate.
How do I make pointed Dresden tips?
Fold the blade in half lengthwise, right sides together, and sew across the wide end with your seam allowance. Trim the folded corner, turn it right side out, center the seam on the fold and press. The point forms on the sewing line, so the template is one seam allowance longer than the finished point.
How do I make rounded tips?
Cut the curve on the solid line. Crease along the dashed curve (a blunt needle run round a card template works), turn the allowance under and appliqué the plate to the background.
What width strips do I cut?
The blade's full length, shown as the strip width. Turn the template end over end for each cut so neighboring blades share a cut.
How big should the center circle be?
Big enough to cover the blades' raw narrow ends, which sit one seam allowance inside it. Cut it one seam allowance bigger all around to turn under.
Why is my plate a different size from a ruler's chart?
Charts differ in where a blade's narrow end sits. The Creative Grids 18° ruler chart lists a 10 1/2 in plate for a 4 in segment. Here a 4 in blade with a 3 in center makes a 9 7/8 in plate, because the narrow ends sit deeper so the center circle covers their corners with a seam allowance to spare. Type the plate size you want and the strip width follows.
How do I know the printout is the right size?
Measure the square at the top right of each page: it must be exactly 1 in (or 25 mm). If not, print again with Scale at 100% or Actual size, not Fit to page. From a phone, save a PDF and print that at 100%.
Why won't my Dresden plate lie flat?
Small seam errors add up round the circle. Sew an exact seam, press the seams open and steam it flat. If it still ripples or cups, adjust a seam or two.
Sources: Quilting Daily, Dresden plate how-to and Quiltmaker templates; Creative Grids 18° Dresden Plate ruler instructions; Bunny Hill Designs, Scrappy Plate Club part 1 (Easy Dresden).