Gary Barn Designs Archives - Gray Barn Designs

Every year, my guild makes a quilt to give to a family receiving a Habitat For Humanity sponsored home. These quilts are a lot of fun to make because each of our guild members contributes her talents (and fabrics!) to this worthy cause.

Below is the quilt we are finishing up. I volunteered to make the hanging sleeve and binding and sew them to the quilt. Mission accomplished! Some of my fellow guild members LOVE to tack down quilt bindings so I will pass this task off to them.

We always use the same basic pattern but change around the locations of the houses, trees and community buildings so every quilt is different. Three layers of fabric “bricks” is our standard to add more color and texture to the outer border.

Each guild member is assigned to make a building and/or a tree for the quilt. It’s always fun to see the creativity each person brings to the quilting table. I like the school, it’s a happy color!

This little log cabin is a favorite of mine. It’s soft and fuzzy, 3 dimensional and has a cute curtain in the window.

I always notice roof lines because my husband is a contractor! This roof line is just plain cute, don’t you think?

The church windows are made from scraps of iridescent fabric that resembles stained glass. We all ooo’d and ahhh’d over this one. How about that cute little french knot for the door knob?

One of our guild members took a thread painting class and made this life like tree. It’s a nice addition to our standard pine trees!

In January, this quilt will be part of our guild show. After the show, we will present the quilt to a family starting a new chapter in their life story. It’s nice to be part of their story!

When our ship docked in Juneau, the weather greeted us with a misty, cold rain. No problem…we made lemonade from lemons…especially while on vacation!

Port of Juneau, Alaska

Since Juneau is the capital of Alaska, we decided the Alaska State Museum might be a good place to escape the rain and spend some time immersed in Alaskan heritage. A recreated life size eagle’s nest greeted us just inside the entrance…nice start! Things just kept getting better!

Alaska State Museum Exhibit, Juneau

The exhibits inside the museum include tributes to the Native peoples of Alaska who have rich, diverse histories and cultures. The colors in these masks were striking and beautiful.

Alaska State Museum Exhibit, Juneau

These woven baskets were exquisite! The colors and designs were bright, cheery and looked a bit quilty!

Alaska State Museum Exhibit, Juneau

After spending several hours in the museum, I found the Changing Tides Fabric & Needle ART Gift Store where I encountered the art of Barbara Lavallee for the first time. After just visiting the museum and then seeing Barbara’s work, I was totally enchanted by her designs! Her depictions of Eskimo women celebrating every day life events are colorful and joyful!

Barbara’s prints have been translated into fabric panels and complimenting fabrics for quilting. The Changing Tides shop had a nice selection of Barbara’s panels and after much deliberation, I decided to make a wallhanging from the fabrics in the Eskimo Snow Collection.

I can’t wait to start working on my wallhanging! Every time I look at the fabric, I smile as I remember a rainy but dreamy day in Juneau.

Museum + Fabric…what a winning combination! Here’s one more picture to bring color and joy to your day!