Times are a-changing...flowers in the snow

With the time change here in Ohio this weekend,
there comes to me, not just a 'spring forward' on the clock,
but a change in perspective, too...

Whilst there is still snow covering the landscape,
drifted high against the wrought iron fence that is my rose trellis,
I feel that there is the warmth of Spring coming:

Snow drops, a rambling rose (or three), daffodils and tulips,
fruit ready to bloom and birds ready to chirp...
all kinds of signs of the Spring-to-come in the melting snow:

Winter IS slowly melting away, and though I don't have the hanging-sleeve stitched down to the backing, I feel that I've a finish for the coming season.

 Even the local wildlife came to inspect,

when they saw flowers in the snowy garden:

Our Flower Garden: a Hot Pad Quilt

The backing fabric was the main inspiration for my design...

 isn't it gorgeous??

I just fell in love with the 
faded pink and coral colors of the large floral print, 
which then made me think 

I NEEDED TO MAKE A QUILT FOR. THIS. FABRIC. !!

So, with the fabric of Rouenneries by French General in my mind,
for my own pattern design, 
I took inspiration from both
the blocks of an 1850's New York album quilt,
and the block setting style of Sally Post in her 1854 New York quilt
(Sally Post quilt pattern available from Gay of Sentimental Stitches) .
I came up with my own garden of faded, pink flowers, 
finished in the Hot Pad method used in Civil War times, 
and it all started because of that WONDERFUL French General floral!!

I designed the four-part pattern (of three blocks each) for this quilt
for a beginner's four-month quilting class,
The first two classes were methods of applique,
followed by accurate piecing techniques, and finally
with the finishing method in the Civil War Hot Pad method 
(The Hot Pad method is finishing each block individually, 
including binding, then whip-stitching the finished little quilts together).
The gals in the class were so taken with 
the finished little quilts of the Hot Pad method,
that I designed a fifth, bonus pattern (of four blocks) 
so they'd end with 16 blocks.
Each block measures about 14 inches,
so this sixteen block finish is 56 inches square.  
I designed it so that if the student wanted to make a queen quilt, 
they could make each block of the pattern
(in different colorways) twice plus 4 blocks, to end with a 96-inch finish
(or make the pattern three times, plus one block,  and end with a king-sized, 112-inch quilt).

If feels good to have the last of the stitches 
in this quilt as the time changes.
Springing forward, 
flowers in the snow!

Thanks for visiting, and
Happy Stitching!!