Of the 4,600 barn quilts we have painted at Tweetle Dee over the past five years by far our most loved is the Orchard Star. It is an original design and is now in the shop for order with a pattern releasing soon. Adapted from our beloved Harvest Star, this star has a deep Old Crow background and colors from our Prairie Paint collection.
Each of the colors in this design were inspired by the fruits and colors of the orchard on my family's farm. In the spring and summer, berries bursted with colors of reds, purples, and blues. In summer, the golden to red apples would appear after the delicate pink and white blossoms disappeared. Soft yellows and peach toned colors are the colors of heavy plums that gave us sweet wine and jams all through the winter. The tall grasses were every shade of green and during apple picking season, their greens faded to tans and yellows as we knelt down to pick up fallen apples for cider.
The grey pieces around the star were the slate stepping stone path that was laid around our favorite apple tree's base. There was a thinking bench and stones that laid deep into the soft cool dirt, covered edges of moss pushed back the blades of grass. These stones were the markers where our most loved pets were laid to rest. The apple tree grew into a huge tree with a saddle that was perfect to climb into to dream and read during the long summer days.
This tree was grafted, pruned, supported and loved. On one of our trips to NY our youngest daughter came along and finding her great-grandmother's journals in the family library she went outside to read. My cousin's and Aunt looked out the window toward the orchard and to amazement, she found our favorite apple tree and had climbed up in it to read those pages not knowing that same spot had been sat upon for generations. I tip toed out the back door of the house and around to the orchard to get a picture of her reading in that moment. It is one of my prized photographs and a testament to the peace felt in that orchard and this special tree.
The tree has now fallen to age and the wood was saved by my cousin. We hope to make something special with that wood for all of us to keep a piece of it in our hearts. The orchard between the farmhouse and the barn was where I first felt peace and looked to the stars to see there was more to our existence than where I stood.
As with most of our original barn quilt and quilt designs there is a lot of thought and meaning that goes into the design and the choice of colors. The Orchard Star has some of my most favorite Prairie Paint colors. We are writing this pattern and gathering it into a kit for those of you who like to paint your own barn quilts.
Designing is a gift. Truly, to create something that comes from the heart and has it's symbols and significance. The Orchard Star is my personal most loved barn quilt I've ever painted. We've painted over 4,600 of them and this one is mine.
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