Giant Dresden Bee Quilt

I’ve been having so much fun working on a giant Dresden bee quilt using a bee collection called Honey & Lavender by Deb Strain for Moda Fabrics. I first tried out the Dresden Plate Template for 10″ Squares from Missouri Star Quilt Company when I made my quilt project organizer bag which I talked about before HERE>, and I completely fell in love with it. I knew right then that I had to make a full-sized quilt using these oversized Dresdens.

Fabric link:

Fabric: Honey & Lavender still available HERE> and at Missouri Star Quilt Company at the time of me writing this. However, if they’re no longer available, check out this page HERE for all the bees fabric to make your own bee quilt.

These large Dresden’s remind me of sunflowers, and with the soft lavender and golden yellow tones in this fabric collection, it feels like the perfect mix of warmth and calm. And the bees! I can never resist a good bee-themed fabric, which is why I always find myself drawn to bee quilts.

Since I had already used part of my layer cake for my organizer bag, I managed to get four full Dresden blocks for this quilt. I’m keeping it simple with a plain background to let the Dresdens shine. After pressing and basting them down with the center circle, I’ll be appliquéing them in place. I actually plan to quilt-as-I-go while doing this, just like I did with my organizer bag. It worked really well for that project, so I figured, why not do it again?

Now, with only four giant Dresdens, I knew I needed something extra to balance out the quilt. That’s when I thought of using a panel from the Honey & Lavender collection! It comes with six small square illustrations, and I’m planning to use five of them, alternating with my Dresden blocks. To make everything fit together, I’ll be adding borders to the panel squares so they match the Dresden block size. The sayings on the panel are all beautiful, but my favorite is: “Kind words are like honey, sweet to the soul.” It just feels so fitting for this soft and cozy quilt, and it perfectly captures the sweetness of this bee quilt.

I’m also considering adding an outer border to bring everything together, but I’ll decide once I lay out all the blocks. Right now, I’m just enjoying the process—pressing, arranging, and dreaming about how I’ll quilt it. Maybe some free-motion swirls or even little bee motifs? We’ll see!

Quilting Tools and Notions I used:

• My trusted workhorse, Janome Horizon Memory Craft QCP8200
• I used Superior Thread Snow for piecing this quilt
• My favourite Ergonomic Rotary Cutter – this have saved my wrist a lot!
• Large cutting Mat
• Dresden Plate for 10″ Squares
• Wool ironing Mat (I have no issues with the smell, but sometimes it can burn if the iron is way too hot and no steam)
• Oliso Pro Iron (I love this Iron, it lifts as you let go, saving the wrist from too much work and it gives a good heat and steam)
• Portable Design Board
• Quilter’s Clapper
• Wooden Seam Roller
• Diagonal Seam Tape –  the tape I have on my machine to guide my 1/4″ seams and diagonal stitching. Game changing! Buy the original, it’s worth it and it will last for a very long time.
• This set of super sharp Pins 

Till then, Hope you have some fun quilting time this week! I’ll share more progress soon—can’t wait to see this one come to life!

Linking to Design Wall Monday, Monday Musings, Ninasayers, Put Your Foot Down #275, Wednesday Wait Loss,