HALLOWEEN

Halloween is just around the corner!  It is such a fun holiday to decorate for.  I love all the scariness, but with so many grandchildren I have to tone it down a bit.  I wanted and “needed” a new table topper for Halloween, so I decided why not make a candy corn one using the Dresden Plate block. 

You will need the following to complete this table topper:

White, orange, and yellow fabric scraps for wedges

Fabric scrape for center

Easy Dresden ruler by Darlene Zimmerman

Low Loft Batting

Peltex(r) 2-sided Fusible Heavy Interfacing

Wonder Under® or a double sided fusible lightweight interfacing of your choice

Fabric for back

Thread

I went through my stash and found scraps in the colors that I wanted.  You can buy yardage and 1/8 yard would be more than enough.  You will cut the white, orange, and yellow fabric as follows:

White       2-1/8” wide strip

Orange     4” wide strip

Yellow       3” wide strip

 

These measurements worked using my Easy Dresden ruler which measures 8” by 1”.  Gave just a bit of wiggle room....

 

 

Sew your strips together using a ¼” seam allowance.  

 

 

Press your seams open.

Take your Easy Dresden Ruler and cut 20 wedges!  REMEMBER to always have the narrow end of the ruler on the white fabric.  This will waste some of the fabric, but you can keep for other projects.

 

 

 You should have a stack of wedges . . .

 

 

Lay out the wedges in a pattern that you like and begin sewing them together using a ¼” seam allowance.  Press seams open.

 

 

 

When joining the wedges together be sure to pin the two seams making sure that they meet….

 

 

 

Now this is ½ of the circle . . .

 

 

 

 And this is the full circle…

 

 

Now I give this circle a good PRESSING and STEAMING to make it lie flat as possible.  DO NOT IRON . . . MOVING IRON BACK AND FORTH.  Just Press up and down using steam to avoid stretching the fabric.  Lay the circle onto a piece of low loft batting and quilt as desired.

You will see that I straight-lined quilted mine.

 

 

 

Not sure if you can see the quilting, but I quilted down all of the wedges on both sides and around the circle of the orange and yellow on both sides.

 

Find a piece of fabric that you like and that will enhance your Dresden circle.  Using a circle object (I used a bowl), trace onto paper side of fusible interfacing, press to wrong side of fabric, and let cool.  When cool, cut it out, peel backing, and fuse to the center circle area of your Dresden circle.  I satin-stitched around my circle, but you can choose whatever method you like or you could even do a needle-turn applique circle instead.

 

Take your finished circle and fuse to the Peltex and backing fabric.  Cut our around the Dresden Circle and satin stitch around the edges.  You could skip this step and just use a backing fabric and bind your table topper if you would like.

 

My finished table topper ready for my table . . .

 

 

My friends know that I LOVE Peltex® and use it for a variety of projects.  I liked the idea of doing a spider candle mat so I found a die-cut spider some black fabric, Wonder Under®, orange fabric, Peltex®, and backing fabric.  I drew out the spider web onto the orange fabric and then satin stitched over the lines with a narrow stitch width and then fused the spider to the bottom.  Quilt as desired.  Affix to Peltex® and backing fabric, quilt some more, and satin stitch the edges.  For this particular little quilt, I used felt for the backing fabric.

A little glitter glue for eyes and hourglass and I had a cute little candle mat.

 

 

Whatever you choose to do, remember HAVE FUN!  And don’t sweat the small stuff!!