Originally Posted by Prism99

I would make a dresden plate first in a size you think you will like. Then I would cut just a few background pieces (maybe 4) and cut them considerably larger than the 2" you mentioned. I would probably cut them *at least* 3" bigger all around. Remember you will need some background fabric for seam allowances, plus appliqueing to a background fabric sometimes draws up the background fabric to a smaller size. I would applique four plates to four background squares before deciding on how large to cut the remaining background squares. When doing applique, I ***always*** cut the background squares larger than I want the finished blocks. This is because the first time I did applique I cut them exactly the size the pattern called for and ended up with backgrounds only 1/4" away from the edge at some points in the blocks. Cured me of cutting background squares too small! If you cut too large, you can always trim not only to size but also to absolute accuracy so the blocks go together easily.