Dresden Wedges Mug Rug Tutorial { Made Using A Bliss Candy Bar by Moda Fabrics }

I was contacted last week by Jill, a member of the Denver Sewing Collective, a community group in Denver, Colorado. Currently 130 members strong, the Collective proudly promotes community, shopping local and the wonderful art of sewing. They meet 2-3 times a month doing various projects or often times just to sew and get together with like-minded sewing fanatics. Their group consists of beginner to advanced level seamstresses engaging in quilting, crafting and garment sewing.

Jill saw some of my Mug Rug photos on flickr and wanted to know if I'd be willing to put together a tutorial for her group to follow. They're having a meeting on the 18th of November to sew for about 3 hours and needed a quick project they could finish in one sitting. I am really honored that they contacted me for a tutorial.

Jill promised to take pictures at their meeting and I will be sure to share them with you (along with some of the items they make) here.



This quick to piece mini quilt is a great project to use up scraps you have on hand and is suitable for a beginner. Measures approx. 9.5" x 6" when finished.

Materials Needed

7 Scraps of fabric that measure 2.5" x 5" (dresden wedges)
2 Strips of fabric that measure 1.25" x 6" (borders)
2 Strips of fabric that measure 1.25" x 8" (borders)
1 Rectangle of fabric that measures 11" x 7.5" (backing)
1 Rectangle of low loft batting that measures 11" x 7.5"
1 Strip of fabric that measures 2.25" x 38" (binding)
1 Easy Dresden Ruler (optional)
Basic quilting supplies including sewing machine, rotary cutter, mat, etc.

For this project I used a Moda Candy Bar in Bliss by Bonnie and Camille. A candy bar is a charm pack of 40 rectangles that measure 2.5" x 5" (perfect for this project). You can make 5 mug rugs using 1 Moda Candy Bar.





Constructing the Mug Rug

1. Begin by stacking your 2.5" x 5" scrap rectangles evenly (around 4 at a time). Place your dresden ruler over top of the stack making sure to align the 5" line along the top edge. Using your rotary cutter, carefully trim along the edge of the ruler on both sides. Repeat until all 7 rectangles have been trimmed.

If you do not have an easy dresden ruler, CLICK HERE for a dresden template. Be sure to select print preview and change print scale to a custom size of 45%. The top of the template should measure 2.5" across.



Now would be a good time to determine the layout of your wedges. You can line them up in alternate directions once you are happy with the layout.



2. Join the dresden wedges by lining them up right sides together, in opposite directions, and stitching along the edge using a 1/4" seam. Press the seam to one side and repeat the process until all seven wedges have been joined.





3. Using your rotary cutter, mat and ruler, carefully square up the sides and edges of your dresden wedge unit. The rectangular unit should measure about 8.5" x 4.75".



4. Complete the top by sewing your 4 border pieces around the outside edge of your center rectangle using a 1/4" seam. I attached the top and bottom strips, pressed them to one side and trimmed them up. I then attached the left and right side strips in the same manner.















5. Layer your top, batting and backing. Quilt as desired, bind and enjoy!

Using my walking foot, I machine quilted my mug rug by following the seams between the dresden wedges.





This tutorial is copyright 2010 by Ryan Walsh, all rights reserved. Please respect my copyright and give me proper credit when sharing a link to this tutorial.

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Happy quilting,