I am doing a Dresden Plate quilt for my daughter. I had all the blocks placed on my sewing table ready to sew together. My son showed up with his 5 children and I shut the sewing room and didn't worry. Wrong thing to do. Somehow one of the children got into the sewing room unnoticed and took a pair of scissors to one of my blocks. I found it today after they had gone home. I saved most of the Dresden and I have plenty of that fabric but I am afraid the block background may be gone. My problem is this---I don't have any more of this fabric and it is a white Kona Cotton. White is sometimes hard to match. Most of the damage can be hidden under the plate but there is a cut about an inch long on one of the edges. NATURALLY. Does anyone have an idea if I cannot match and replace the background?

Can you change the sashes any?

Take bigger seams when putting together?

A creative little something placed.

I don't have any clue how to help you out but I'm so sorry that happened!

One time I had to fuse a tiny piece over a cut (w/the same fabric) Think I used Steam-A-Seam.
It was close to the seam line, and when the top was quilted, it was only noticeable if you searched hard for it. Best of luck!

I'd try to find some more of the background...white Kona cotton is pretty much a staple for most shops...take one of your blocks with you for comparison. Go to plan B and replace 4 blocks...perhaps the corners? Go to plan C and redesign your setting to include some open space for a fabric that accents and could be used for corners and/or binding as well? Just do what we always do...make lemonade out of lemons...you'll come up with something...this is just a hill, not a mountain... I'm really wishing that this hadn't happened, of course, but I sense that you are going to make the best of it! Sending a hug to you!

I would fuse a small piece of the same (or similar) fabric underneath the cut on the edge. Steam-a-Seam would be a good choice because it is very stable but does not change the feel of the fabric too much. SAS also allows you to reposition, so you can get the placement exactly right before you permanently fuse.

If anything still shows afterwards (and perhaps to protect the cut from fraying years down the line), I would place a small applique over the cut. Depending on the total design, you might be able to scatter small appliques in other places on the quilt so they look as if they were intended.

If you really do not want the appliques to show, do them in matching Kona cotton white so they are very subtle. You can just quilt over them, if you like, to further imbed them in the background. For a Dresden plate, I would probably make small flower shapes.

Oh, and I think the idea to put this block in a corner is great! You could decorate each corner block with a few of the appliques so it looks planned.

That's too bad, especially when you have worked hard. Do make lemonade from it - possible tea dye the whole thing so any new fabric matches??

Have you tried to put some fusible interfacing underneath the cut area and fuse it back together. Then pray that the machine quilting will hide anything else?

Thank all of you for your suggestions. They give me hope. I love this board!