How did Ohio Barn Quilts come to be? Well just like all fabric quilts tell a story, there is a story here.
I have been a fabric quilter for many years first inspired by my Kentucky mother-in-law who made more fabric quilts than I could possibly count. She at first, hand quilted all her quilts and these I treasure beyond measure. Later in life she learned the art of machine quilting and oh boy did she ever quilt!
Being a purist, I hand quilted all my quilts making me a much less prolific quilter than she was. I especially liked finding vintage hand pieced quilt squares or tops in antique stores or garage sales and completing the quilt using historic fabrics and of course hand quilting it. I have completed some quilt tops lovingly created by unknown craftswomen from the late 1800’s through the mid 1900’s.
When my mother-in-law passed away in 2015 she left a legacy of beautiful quilts. As keeper of the quilts I quickly shared them with her children and grandchildren, each picking their favorite quilts to treasure. It brought tears of love. That’s when it came to me that sharing these quilt patterns with motorists passing by on the road would bring joy to them too!
Since we live in Ohio on 10 acres and had just put up an equipment barn, it was still “naked” and just begging for a barn quilt. I painted an Ohio Star for our barn which was soon viewed by friends and family who loved it so much they asked for a barn quilt for their barns and houses and garages. Hence, Ohio Barn Quilts was born!