Monica's Seven Sisters

I loved this story from Meade County, Kentucky. Monica Brown brought the actual quilt with her, and as I dodged a particularly fierce "attack rooster," she told its story:

“My grandfather’s farm is just across the way. My Grandma Livers came to live there when she took care of his first wife; then they got married. He was fifty-four years older than her.

When my husband, Larry’s mom became pregnant, they were neighbors, and my Grandma Livers gave her a quilt top—a 1930s quilt top from feed sacks. You couldn’t live without feed sacks back then; they used them for everything.

So my grandma gave Larry's mama--we call her Mamaw--this quilt top. With running the farm and taking care of six children, she never finished the quilt. She had told me about it and told me about it, and I said, ‘Mamaw, I really think you oughta give that to me!’ About three years ago, she finally did, and I quilted it to the best of my ability.

So this was a baby quilt, pieced by my Grandma Livers and given to Larry’s mom—Mamaw. She sewed the feed sacks together and put the back to the quilt, and I finished it. It passed from my family to his family to our family.”

The intricate quilt block is called Seven Sisters. Monica says, “Larry doesn’t have seven sisters, but I have seven brothers, so I feel as if it was meant for me. The block is so detailed; they say, ‘Oh you can’t see all of the little bits of color from the road,’ but it’s for me to enjoy.”

More From Morgan County

Back in Atlanta after my brief trip west.

I do believe that the sunflower to the right is the world's tallest quilt square--WAAYY up in the sky. The company processes sunflower seeds. Doesn't the "flower" (which is really part of a fan, but we're not telling) look a bit like the company logo?

Random bits from Morgan County--I couldn't figure out why Farmer Keith Bath kept mentioning Tim Tebow--the former quarterback of MY Florida Gators. What can I say? I don't follow the guys after they leave college--didn't know Tim was a Denver Bronco now.

Along with a classic movie theater, Fort Morgan has a JC Penney store on its main street. I thought for sure they they existed only in malls and online!

Another colloquialism--Nancy told me that when a young couple ventured alone into the pasture, they were said to be out in the "gimme weeds." I didn't have to look that one up!

Throughout my travels I have heard the upper portion of the barn--which I had always thought was a loft--referred to as the hay mow (rhymes with cow). In Colorado, it's a hay loft. They never heard of a mow. Go figure.

I posted a photo on Facebook of a barn with sunflowers; here is another pretty one. I do love these "weeds."

Sagebrush and Sunflowers

OK true confessions time. I thought Denver was in the mountains. A mile high, after all. But no, it's near the mountains, and there are no foothills like we have in the south. Just flat prairie that runs right up to those magnificent Rockies.

Driving the 80 or so miles on the interstate to Fort Morgan, I thought, "OK, where the heck IS everything?" Nothing but wild sunflowers--with which I became quite enchanted--and sagebrush. Not all all what I expected. But I was headed for Colorado's barn quilt country, so I couldn't complain.

Nancy Lauck is a one-woman army, bringing over 100 barn quilts to Morgan County. That's us with 92 year old Harvey Achziger. It was a perfect day; for once I didn't bring rain, but as Nancy's husband, Bill, pointed out, this is really an irrigated section of desert, so there wasn't much chance. I learned a lot about water rights--a new farming subject for me.

Don't tell my orthopedist--who let me begin wearing shoes eight weeks after Achilles tendon surgery only after a solemn promise to walk only on pavement. Nevermind my standing one-footed on the edge of the car to get a photo with flowers in the foreground--check out the Facebook page for that one! Speaking of the ground, I stepped in a batch of sandspurs--ouch! (they call them burrs here). I thought they only grew in Florida and that I had escaped them when I moved north!

Nancy and I had a great day, though I got a bit worried when she said she was going to take me out to the "toolies." What the heck? After a bit of conversation, it became clear that she meant way out into nowhere--what many of use would call the boondocks.

This sign cracked me up--nothing like old fashioned farm humor. We needed a chuckle after such a long drive; the county is 36 by 36 miles!

I really craved this trip out into barn quilt world, as I muster the energy to complete this revision. This was the perfect trip. Add to that a real bath in a clawfoot tub and cool enough weather to sleep under quilts--it doesn't get much better.

An Illinois Farmer's Daughter

A week or two ago, LuAnn Reinagle sent me this photo of the barn quilt that she recently completed.

LuAnn writes, "I began my barn quilt project last year and finally got it hung Sunday. I've been a quilter for about 4 years and when I heard about the barn quilt trails, I decided I was going to put a quilt block on my barn.

The hardest part was deciding on the block pattern as I had already decided to use a patriotic color scheme. I finally chose the "Farmer's Daughter" block.

My grandfather moved to the farmstead as a tenant farmer in 1927. Four generations of our family have been involved in farming the land. My mother said that every winter there would be a quilt on a frame in their dining room and the neighbor ladies would come help quilt it.

Mom said that she hated it because the room was off limits to the kids until the quilt was completed. She also said that one of the quilter's stitches were too big and would get torn out and redone once the lady had gone home.

I have many fond memories of visiting my grandparents and staying on the farm. I purchased the farmstead in 1995 and my niece and her family now live there. It's located on Route 24, east of Piper City in Ford County, Illinois."

I do believe that all of the folks who have worked so hard to build quilt trails in their communities have done amazing work. But I'm glad to have the chance to showcase a few solo barn quilters as well.

Thanks for sharing, LuAnn.

Barn-less Quilting

Part of the reason that we use the phrase "American Quilt Trail" is that there are so many quilts on surfaces other than barns.

Yes, I am partial to the sight of a beautiful painting on a farm structure such as a barn or corncrib, but sometimes folks who have no barn want to play, too.

Mary Wingfield of Birchwood, Minnesota sent me this great photo of her garage doors. The doors are slightly oblong, so the quilts don't extend to the edges, but didn't she do a great job? I love the reversed colors!

How much fun would it be to come home to these every day?

Help Wanted

OK I know you probably didn't check this page looking for a job opportunity, but if anyone knows of a young person who is passionate about making a difference, here is something to pass along:


Know someone who would like to work developing the Quilt Trail in NE TN? Advertising a one year AmeriCorps Position working in Jonesborough. Low pay/ BIG on experience/opportunity doing something great. $11,800 living allowance/$5,350 Educational award. Will also work developing greenways & trails 25% of time. Contact: Roy Settle-423-753-4441x4 roy.settle@tn.usda.gov Deadline: Sept. 15 - start date Oct. 1.


Here is a photo from the Northeast Tennessee trail; I wouldn't want to disappoint. This is a fabulous barn, and the quilt on which the block is based lives on the property. I do love to see the cloth originals of these painted beauties. You can also look back to October of 2009 in my archives for other photos and info on this wonderful trail.

A Tennessee Treasure

I've been writing about Iowa but couldn't resist this great barn and quilt in Tennessee that Paula Stover sent my way.

I had the pleasure of touring the Upper Cumberland area of Tennessee last summer, and Overton County was just getting started. Paula, who lives in Overton and is working on the quilt trail there, reports that there are about 25 quilts now, with more going up every week--great progress!

This Tree of Life is a replica of a quilt that Paula's mother made for her when she was about 10 years old.

Paula writes, "Our barn and farm have their own stories. The barn was built from houses that were torn down when they built Dale Hollow Dam in 1943. My father and grandfather bought the houses, demolished them and built the barn. This was just before my father entered WWII. Our farm is a Tennessee Century Farm. It has been continuously in our family for over 150 years. I am the 5th generation to live on this farm called 'Ivy Hill Farm."

Everything's Rosy

This one was a real find--also in Fayette County, Iowa. I passed by the barn and then hit the brakes and backed up for a closer look. The sounds of new age music seemed to emanate from the dozens of rose bushes; it was quite the unusual barn quilt experience!

Brad Mackenzie was strolling through his gardens, enjoying what his wife, JoEllen, calls "our little hobby farm."

The farmhouse borders a valley where deer, turkeys, coyotes, and eagles can be seen from the deck overlooking the spring-fed pond stocked with perch.

The MacKenzie’s twenty-two acres might be called more of an “environment” than a farm, and passersby on Highway 18 often stop to take a second look at some of the 350 varieties of roses that Brad MacKenzie raises, or the peacocks that roam free on the property.

The Rolling Star barn quilt completes the tableau. The idyllic setting has been carefully created, and JoEllen declares, “I don’t think we will ever be moving!”

If they do, she has promised to let me know. I could definitely live here!

Back to Iowa

Today I am back in Iowa. Not physically, but I am going over that chapter and remembering my single longest--twelve day--barn quilting adventure in June of 2009.

I spent an entire day photographing barns quilts in Fayette County and had interviews set for the next day. Unfortunately, storms and hail came through and chased me east--right into Wisconsin! Fayette has some great barns and quilts, though.

The one at the above left caught my eye because of the silo; I couldn't figure out what the heck it was made of. That information would come later in the week. Above right, though it's a bit hard to make out, is a windmill square--an apt choice for this farm. The last one--I don't know--the little barn, the grass, the sky all seemed just "picture perfect' to me.

Kentucky Memories

I did mean to head out into barn quilt world this summer, but a ruptured Achilles tendon has had me laid up for the past six weeks and left me with nothing but my memories. Good thing I have a lot of great memories!

Scott County, Kentucky has a fabulous quilt trail--a full day's worth of beautiful quilted black barns.

This particular barn has a quilt on each end, both based on the same cloth quilt, which hangs from a railing inside. It seems that the woman who owns the quilt always thought that the pattern was five blocks, so she wanted the barn quilt painted that way. Her husband said no, he saw four squares!

What to do but to have one painted on each end of the barn, in the two different configurations? (Though, to match the quilt, the 4 squares would have to be hung on point)

The barn is visible just outside the window, so you can see both the cloth quilt and the painted quilt at the same time. Guess which quilt square is on the end of the barn facing the house? Well, it's her quilt, after all.