California joins national quilt trail

shared by vsparish
 
Kelseyville — At the heart of Lake County is the largest natural lake in California.  Clear Lake is surrounded by rolling hills and lies in the shadow of Mt. Konocti, an extinct volcano.
 
Now, Lake County has become the first location in California to create a barn quilt trail. A barn quilt is an 8' x8' wooden panel painted with a traditional quilt block design and hung outside where it can be readily seen.  With seed money from the Kelseyville Pear Festival, thirteen vibrantly colored quilt blocks inaugurated Phase One. Every block was specifically designed and painted entirely by volunteers. Quilt blocks were hung on pioneer barns, pear packing sheds, winery tasting rooms, an orchard ladder manufacturing facility, and even an exhibit hall on the Lake County Fairgrounds. Each unique square on the Lake County Quilt Trail is selected to connect with the history of the building, honor farming, or celebrate the family, as well as pay tribute to the generational history of beautiful quilts.
 
"The barn quilts are public art that celebrate the place people call home." Donna Sue Groves said, "They make people feel good about themselves and where they live."
 
Colorful quilt squares began adorning the barns of Adams County, Ohio in 2001. The idea came from Donna Sue Groves who painted and hung the first quilt square on her barn honoring her mother, Nina Maxine Groves, an expert quilter, and to celebrate the shared Appalachian agricultural heritage of Ohio.  Donna Sue's early vision was to create an imaginary clothesline of interconnecting barns decorated with quilt squares across Ohio.  The idea caught on like wild fire, and her dream of linking that region has expanded to 27 states and 2 Canadian provinces creating a large network of organized trails of over 2,000 barn quilts just waiting to be discovered. 
 
The Kelseyville Pear Festival celebrates ‘The Pear' and the agricultural heritage of the county.  The Lake County Quilt Trail now joins the celebration. The Festival, held the last Saturday in September each year, transforms downtown Kelseyville.
 
For more information, go to: http://www.kelseyvillepearfestival.com/.  Map and driving directions at,: http://www.kelseyvillepearfestival.com/docs/quilt-map.pdf.