Have you ever been driving around and noticed huge, quilt-like squares hanging on the sides of barns?
Those are called barn quilts, and just as fabric quilts tell stories with what's stitched into them, so do these wooden quilts.
Just outside Ludington, 72 year-old MaryfrancesPhillippi lives with her husband Gene on a 30 acre farm. When a friend told her about a barn quilt trail forming in Mason County, she thought, “I could do that.”
Maryfrances’ quilt is called “Circle of Angels” and features 6 angels of all different skin colors in a circle and holding hands. It doesn’t have traditional quilt patterns to it, but it still tells an important story.
“I got a Christmas card a long, long time ago and it said, ‘If only all the hands that reach could touch,’ and I thought, ‘Wow!’”
After completing nursing school, Maryfrances spent her 21st birthday stationed at a hospital in Vietnam. This was during the war and she says after that experience, she knew she could live through anything.
“There [are] lives that you touch whether it be as a nurse or a person who makes angels— and you don’t realize it. So, you have to be careful how you step every day.”
Here are a few barn quilt trails in northwest lower Michigan:
Mason County
Old Mission
Wexford and Missaukee Counties
Plus, the Earthwork Harvest Gathering is celebrating it's 15th year this weekend, in Lake City, Michigan.
The weekend get together takes place on the farm that singer-songwriter Seth Bernard grew up on.
He says what started out basically as a pot luck with some friends, has now grown into an event which draws between 2,500 and 3,000 visitors, and features artists from all over the country, even the world.
“I always say, check the schedule ahead of time, find some bands that you want to experience for the first time, and look at the workshops,” says Seth.
“See if there’s anything there that suits you and your interests. There’s a lot of opportunities to come aways feeling inspired and connected with like-minded people.”
Check out this year's Harvest Gathering lineup.
