Nancy Stevens

Collage will supersize if double-clicked

Bonnie's Barn

Original free pieced design by Nancy M. Stevens

Glenside, Pennsylvania

http://nancynearphiladelphia.blogspot.com

Free motion quilting by Chris Ballard

18.5" wide x 31" long - Shown here before quilting
Photo will supersize if double-clicked

Nancy writes:  

When Julie invited us to make barns, I felt intimidated.  

Free piecing is SO not my thing.  

But sometimes others know things about us 

that we don’t know about ourselves, 

and I was eager to learn and try something new.

There aren’t many barns in my part of Near Philadelphia, 

but there sure are a lot out in Lancaster County.  

I began looking online for barn photos similar to the Lancaster barns.  

There were some nice ones, but not THE barn. 

As I continued searching for just the right inspiration barn, 

I discovered one that took me back to a night several years ago 

when my sister Bonnie and I had driven out to Lancaster County, 

become lost (as is our custom) and wandered around trying to find our destination.  

It was a full moon night in October.  

That harvest moon in the dark sky over the Amish barns 

was just gorgeous – and immense.

I made my process more complicated by choosing striped fabric, 

but it really seemed to be the right choice.  

I had the inspiration to piece some stars for the sky, 

but the most fun was piecing the wheat field.  

When my own stash didn’t yield enough varieties, 

I knew exactly what to do:  I raided by sister’s stash!

Shown here after quilting - Photo will supersize if double-clicked

DESIGN NOTE:  

Be patient.

Avoid compromising your vision, 

and always listen to your heart.

QUILTING NOTE:  

Outline stitching defines the subtle stars near the moon.  

Linear stitching creates shingles on the barn’s annex roof.  

Stylized stitching unifies and energizes

 the already magnificent shimmering wheat field 

and a gentle meander adds texture to the night sky.

Read Nancy's blog hop posts about Bonnie's Barn 

by following these links:

BLOG HOP Post 1 HERE

BLOG HOP Post 2 HERE

BLOG HOP Post 3 HERE