It’s as if barn quilts are contagious. They can now be found in great swaths across Canada and the United States and they continue to spread. There are hundreds in Ontario alone.
And they aren’t limited to barns anymore; you’ll find them at museums, churches, schools and historical landmarks. And smaller versions are cropping up on cottages, gates, fences and sheds.
A barn quilt is a piece of wood or sign board that’s been painted to look like a quilt block.
What exactly is a barn quilt? In simple terms it’s a piece of wood or sign board that’s been painted to look like a quilt block. And just like quilters have been showing off their creativity for years, the folks who are making barn quilts are doing the same. While some barn quilts are replicates of traditional quilt block patterns, others are unique designs featuring a favourite dog, type of livestock or a farm logo. The only limit is your imagination and what you are able to create with paint.
Barn quilts tell stories about individual farms, historical events or communities while also adding visual interest to the countryside and increasing rural tourism. They can come in a range of sizes. The ones on barns usually measure at least eight feet square so they can be viewed at a distance while those on a gate could be as small as one-foot square.
In some areas, neighbours and communities have come together to create barn quilts around a theme which together form a Barn Quilt Trail.
Mary Simpson and Denise Corneil (also known as The Barn Quilt Ladies) from southwestern Ontario have been involved with barn quilts since 2009 when the village of Wardsville created a barn quilt trail to commemorate the village’s Bicentennial. They maintain a website (www.barnquilttrails.ca)with maps of the various barn quilt trails in Canada and useful information on how to make a barn quilt or start a community trail project.
The Huron Barn Quilt Trail which features 166 barn quilts is the most recent barn quilt trail to be added to the dozen found on The Barn Quilt Trails website. Huron County, host of the 2017 International Plowing Match (IPM), held a Barn Quilt Competition as part of its Beautification Competition. The 2017 IPM was particularly noteworthy as it took place during not only the 150th anniversary of Canadian Confederation but also the IPM’s 100th anniversary. The Huron County Barn Quilt Trail map (http://www.barnquilttrails.ca/trails/huron-barn-quilt-trail/) lists each barn quilt along with the owner, a photo and an explanation of why the design was chosen.
The roots of modern-day barn quilts can be traced back to 2001 when Ohio’s Donna Sue Grover got the idea of brightening up the plain tobacco barn on her farm by combining her love of quilts and old barns. From there it spread throughout the US and into Canada.
The barn quilt movement has been growing steadily in Ontario since 2009, when the Earlton International Plowing Match (IPM) Committee spearheaded a barn quilt trail project with 200 barn quilts installed on barns and historic landmarks. The following year, the village of Wardsville celebrated their Bicentennial with the installation of 30 barn quilts to tell the story of the village’s founder. To commemorate key events of the War of 1812, the counties of Middlesex, Brant, Oxford and Elgin created 100 barn quilts in 2011-2012.
Barn quilt maker Cheryl Gardiner is from Ilderton, Ont. A former sign painter, she has made hundreds of barn quilts.
Cheryl Gardiner, owner of Gardiner’s Gate Custom Handcrafted Barn Quilts north of London, Ontario has made hundreds of barn quilts. A former sign painter, Gardiner now focuses her business entirely on making barn quilts and she is busy.
She made her first one in 2012 when she was commissioned by Heeman’s Strawberry Farm to make a barn quilt featuring a large strawberry at its centre. Since then her barn quilts have found their way to several Canadian provinces and American states and as far away as England and Australia. You can see samples of her work on her website at http://gardinersgate.wixsite.com/home and on Facebook and Instagram.
To make barn quilts, Gardiner recommends using Medium Density Overlay (MDO) panel, a paintable surface made of plywood with a weather-resistant resin overlay bonded to the wood by heat and pressure which resists water, weather, and degradation. MDO is available at some hardware stores and lumber yards. Gardiner purchases pre-primed MDO from a graphics supply company.
If you’re making one that will be viewed at a distance such as on a barn, Gardiner recommends keeping the design simple. “People won’t be able to see a lot of detail when they are driving by.”
Choose simple patterns and bright colours for visibility, limit the number of colours (the more types of paint you’ll need the more expensive it will get).
In general, choose simple patterns and bright colours for visibility, limit the number of colours (the more types of paint you’ll need the more expensive it will get), and beware of copyright infringement when using company logos.
Gardiner uses “1 Shot” brand enamel paints that she relied on during her 30-year career as a sign maker because she knows these will stand up to the weather. For ease of use, others are using high quality exterior latex paints and sealer.
Simpson and Corneil continue to “coach, cheer and mentor” those interested in barn quilts. In addition to the Barn Quilt Trails website, they maintain YouTube, Facebook and Pinterest sites for those who want to learn more about barn quilts.
Choose simple patterns and bright colours for visibility, limit the number of colours (the more types of paint you’ll need the more expensive it will get).
- Helen Lammers-Helps