The story of the Provincial Wildflower Quilt

How the quilt came to be

The Provincial Wildflower Quilt first appeared in our August 1985 issue. The bright design featured the 12 official flowers for the provinces and territories. Sandra Small Proudfoot came up with the quilt’s design in 1984 after finishing a wallpaper course. She had spent an entire semester drawing flowers. "I said to my husband, 'If I have to draw another flower I'm going to throw up,'" she says. "He said to me, 'I wonder if you might ever consider drawing a provincial flower and putting it in a quilt.’ That's all it took. I went to the library took out a pile of books, took them up to the cottage, and within three weeks, I designed the quilt."

A Canadian Living tradition

The Provincial Wildflower Quilt was an instant hit and sold over $100,000 in paper patterns. It was so popular we brought it back for our 20th birthday in 1995—as a special gift we offered the pattern for just $19.95. And now 20 years later you can still buy this amazing textile. Purchase your own Canadian Wildflower Quilt from the Dufferin County Museum.

Meet Sandra Proudfoot

Sandra (far left) has been quilting for over 50 years and has made many a quilt in her time. But there’s one pattern she’s never made. "I have a confession to make," she says. "I've never made the Wildflower quilt." Sandra was at school at the time and didn't have time make the quilt for our August 1985 issue. So a friend whipped up the gorgeous quilt we used in our shoot.

The flowers

The Wildflower quilt is a timeless pattern, Sandra says. But there’s just one issue—Nunavut didn't became a territory until 1999. So Sandra had to add its official flower to the pattern. Sandra called the government offices and they told her the official flower of Nunavut would be the Arctic poppy. A few years later she found out it was actually the Purple Saxifrage. But Sandra still features the Arctic poppy in the pattern. "It is such a pretty flower," she says. "Quilters don't care necessarily about being totally accurate when they see a pretty flower." Have you made the Provincial Wildflower Quilt? We’d love to see it. Send us a picture at letters@canadianliving.com.