It was a beautiful December, day so I decided to take a drive to Winterset (Iowa) and have lunch at the Northside Cafe. Now--with a full tummy, I needed a little exercise so I took a stroll around the block. Just south of the courthouse, I discovered the old J.C. Penney Building was now occupied by the Iowa Quilt Museum. I have been to a lot of museums in Iowa small towns, but this one was a new adventure in Iowa history for me. This entire building is dedicated to home made quilts. It only costs six bucks to go inside--let's check this out!
And he told them this parable: "The ground of a certain rich man produced a good crop. He thought to himself, What shall I do? I have no place to store my crops." Then he said, "This is what I'll do, I will tear down my barns and build bigger ones, and there I will store my grain and goods." And I will say to myself, "You have plenty of good things laid up for many years. Take life easy; eat, drink and be merry." But God said to him, "You fool! This very night your life will be demanded from you. Then who will get what you have prepared for yuourself? This is how it will be with anyone who stores up things for himself but is not rich toward God." (NIV) (Luke 12: 16-21)
VIEWS OF A FARM BOY
QUILTSNBARNS
JANUARY--2020
RETURN TO HOMEPAGE>>>>
I had great tour guides! The two older ladies at the desk told me this current exhibit is the artwork of the two ladies (right) who grew up in Winterset. They went on to be authors of best selling quilt books and were inducted into the Quilters Hall of Fame. One host lady pointed to a beautiful quilt on the wall and said, "I believe that is my favorite--what is yours?" I needed a quick answer so I replied, "Yes, you are so right--that is my fave, too!" But wait till the end--I later discovered my real favorite!
This was my first visit to a quilt museum--but I have visited many quilt barns throughout Iowa. In this case, the quilt is actually a large wooden block with a quilt design mounted on a barn. Here are a few examples of quilt barns in Iowa. Memories here--these pictures were from my Ragbrai days.
Now it's my turn! I took some of the Winterset Iowa Quilt Museum photos and "nailed" them to some of my old Iowa barn pics. Now you know my secret--you know why I called this "QUILTSNBARNS"
"QUILTSNBARNS" I think I'm getting to be a quilt connoisseur and here is my all time favorite. Upper middle--a true "barn quilt." The barn scene was actually on the quilt. What beautiful Iowa farm art--a barn surrounded by an evergreen tree windbreak and a silo for grain storage. Now focus on the barn--this lady put her own "barnquilt" on this quilt. I am sure glad she did the pine tree windbreak because this one just blows me away!
My View for the Month: Today was a good day! Sometimes I start out on a little adventure--then suddenly change horses in the middle of the stream. That is what happened today. What started out as a lunch outing turned into an adventure of learning and enjoying a new experience. Of course, that includes visiting with some very nice people I had never met before! Now don't get me wrong--I'm not going to take up quilting, but very soon I will head out for another Iowa small town adventure. Wherever the road takes me--it will be another good day!
