Thursday, February 1, 2024

Dresden Stars, Sashing & Triangles

I'm piecing Dresden Stars from a kit. The 18 dresden blocks are appliqued and trimmed. The next step is sashing, cornerstones and side triangles.

The sashing is a very pretty blue. The corner stones were supposed to be a little darker blue and the side triangles is this very pretty maroon/red print fabric. 

I cut the maroon/red print into squares then laid the ruler on top to make the diagonal cuts. The pattern didn't run correctly if I cut triangles! You would see the rows run crooked. I'm not a perfectionist but crooked rows are something I do notice.



I dug around in my civil war tub and found this fabric. It was large enough to use for triangles with plenty leftover so I decided to use this same fabric for cornerstones. I thought the red was a better choice than the darker blue fabric.

But since the outside cornerstones would be against the triangles, I decided to use the darker blue fabric for those cornerstones.

I admit I wasn't very excited about this quilt but now I am. The blue sashing and the red triangles really bring that dreary beige fabric to life!

Unfortunately using the darker blue fabric for the outside cornerstones was not a good decision. You can't even see that fabric in the above picture but the red at the points of the triangles distinctly show.

You can see the blue when you are closeup.

The next step of this quilt is supposed to be a narrow border around the center. That darker blue fabric was supposed to be the border.

I don't think so. I've been digging in my civil war fabric tub again and I've come up with a better choice of fabric.

In my quilt, the next border is not going to be a narrow border. Remember, I want my quilt to be bed sized, not a throw. As of now, the center is 59.5" by 77.5". 

Edyta's pattern has us set the blocks on point which is what I did but I always cut the triangles larger so I have some room to play. The edge of triangles extend 1.75" from the outside points. I can trim some of that extra fabric to make pieced borders work. Now I just need to come up with a design. To make it more challenging, the side borders need to be wider than the top and bottom borders. 

I took the picture of the quilt in the snow first. Those spots that show in the above picture come from melting ice dripping off the trees.

Click here for a link to the Dresden Star pattern designed by Edyta Sitar.

Linking to Midweek Makers, Wednesday Wait LossNeedle & Thread Thursday, Put Your Foot DownTGIFF!, Whoop Whoop Party, Finished or Not  Friday, Off the Wall Friday, Beauty Pageant, Hugs & Kisses, Patchwork & Quilts

18 comments:

Donna said...

Beautiful!

Julie in GA said...

I love your Dresden Stars quilt! That off-grain print would have driven me crazy too.

Podunk Pretties said...

This is a gorgeous quilt. The added wedges on the dresdens has a sparkle effect. I need to make on someday. Can't wait to see your borders.

Jennifer Fulton Inquiring Quilter said...

Lovely so far! Can't wait to see what kind of pieced block you choose for the borders to enlarge the quilt. Thanks for sharing on my weekly show and tell, Wednesday Wait Loss.
https://www.inquiringquilter.com/questions/2024/01/31/wednesday-wait-loss-365

Denise said...

This is really beautiful Gretchen, cant wait to see it finished. Thank you again for sharing in Put your foot down.

Linda said...

That is such a pretty quilt! Your choices are spot on.

time4stitchn said...

This has turned out to be such a great quilt. What a combination of fabrics in the kit. I look the colors and agree that your sashing and setting triangles make it pop! You have made such great progress!

Anne-Marie said...

Gorgeous!

Linda @ kokaquilts said...

This looks amazing Gretchen. Love your colour choices.

dq said...

Ooh - wow! This quilt is gorgeous! I love the colors and the block design.

Lin said...

Looking gorgeous. Shame about that first fabric but crooked lines would annoy me too. xx

Vicki in MN said...

I love the red as the setting triangles, it shows off the dresdens beautifully.

Alycia~Quiltygirl said...

Oh wow!! you are right - the reds and blue make those blocks SHINE!! this is a stunner!!

Lisa England said...

The dresdens are lovely! And though that beige fabric may seem dreary on its own, as a background with the colors you chose, it really works!

Frédérique - Quilting Patchwork Appliqué said...

You really have a sense for colors and combinations! I love your choices, and how the dresden blocks pop and shine, beautiful! With a large border, your quilt is going to be very unique, and gorgeous!
Thank you so much for sharing it!

Susan said...

That is one lovely Dresden Stars quilt - it really sparkles!

Rose Marie said...

The dark red setting triangles make it sing now. Beautiful!

PaintedThread said...

I love how this turned out!