Concerning tulips

I have a lot of 'big' WIPs going. A whopping three quilts (two in the quilting stage, one being pieced), a couple of knit sweaters and a shawl, and of course more things in the planning stage. I really just wanted a quick to-do the other night.

I have had this paper piecing pattern from Charise for just about a year. I filed it away for "someday when I know what I'm doing" and forgot about it. I love tulips. Like, LOVE tulips. When I got back from New York last week, Dave had a vase full of tulips on the table to welcome me home, "just like we did in Amsterdam" he said. He knows me so well. But I digress. When I was looking for a small, quick project to try out I thought of this pattern and decided, why not? I've learned so much about quilt block piecing over the past year that I felt ready to tackle the challenge of the teeny fiddly bits in this pattern.

This was not the first time I paper pieced, but it certainly was the first time the piecing really drew a picture rather than just a simple motif. I had fun digging through my scraps for prints to use in this. I'm amazed at how far those little cuts can go! The only "stash" fabric I used was the white background which is a pretty tone-on-tone print that I seem to have a lot of and have been enjoying using lately. Paper piecing was especially good for those odd small scraps I had saved but wasn't ever sure I would use.

I may have made the flower a little bit too light compared to the crazy pot, but I am betting I can embellish it somehow to make it stand out more. Embroidery, perhaps. I'm not really sure what I am going to do with this block now that it is finished. Originally I was thinking pillow cover. I should probably stick with that so it can be finished in time to welcome Spring.

Linking up to Work in Progress Wednesday at Freshly Pieced