I'm thinking she may have been taking out the pink edges on the Dresden or she ran out of the pink before they were finished. It is frayed so much now that I think I would take it all off and just applique the plate to a background.
I agree that the other block is an Improved 9 Patch and that they were 2 different projects. I don't think the blocks would work well together and I don't think the pink on the red & green Dresden works, either. If the pink was gone--I think it would make a great Christmas quilt.