“A vibrant blast of color.” How better to describe the effect of seeing blocks along the Lake County Quilt Trail than with these words by Vicky Parrish-Smith? Painted by artist Annette Higday, the bright red, white and blue of “Square in a Square” attracts my attention as I drive along Highway 29 just south of Kelseyville.
“Martha”s Vineyard” on the Wildhurst Tasting Room looms above Main Street in Kelseyville. And I enjoy catching glimpses of “54-40 or Fight” across the lawn and through the trees at Steele Wines on Thomas Drive in Finley.
Blocks have been hung throughout the spring and summer at historic agricultural sites around Kelseyville as well as at the Lake County Fairgrounds in Lakeport and Tulip Hill Winery in Nice. Parrish-Smith”s articles in the Lake County Record-Bee contain detailed histories of each quilting block pattern as well as the sites at which they hang.
Each block is part of a Lake County Quilt Trail that connects California to a National Quilt Trail in more than 24 states. The project is spearheaded locally by the Kelseyville Pear Festival committee.
Festival founder and committee chair Marilyn Holdenried was introduced to the concept at an International Storytelling Festival in Jonesborough, Tenn. “I was totally hooked,” Holdenried said in an earlier article. “We needed this project in Lake County.”
According to Parrish Smith”s compiled history, quilt trails started in 2001 in Ohio with Donna Sue Groves who was honoring her mother, Nina Maxine Groves, who was a prolific quilter. Colorful quilt patterns that had passed down through generations were displayed on old barns. “Underlying is the belief that combining a barn with a quilt square pattern honors quilting and farming, two important aspects of American life since colonial times.”
Lake County is rich in historic sites, as Parrish Smith”s articles attest, and quilting continues to be a rich tradition practiced by Lake County residents.
The 17th annual Quilt and Textile Exhibition is currently on display at the Lower Lake Historic Schoolhouse Museum. A variety of textiles are being featured during the month-long exhibition, including tapestries by Sheila O”Hara and her students along with work by members of the Sheep Thrills Spinning and Weaving Guild.
Handmade crafts are also featured this month at the Lakeport Library. The exhibits were made with instructions out of books from the Lake County Library. See its facebook page for photos and details.
The Lake County Fair will include textile entries Sept. 2 to 5 in Lakeport.
The Kelseyville Pear Festival, of course, takes place on Sept. 25. A quilt show is part of planned festivities.
Later this year, the Falling Leaves Quilt Show will feature more than 200 quilts. Hosted by the Ladies of the Lake Quilt Guild, the event takes place Oct. 2 and 3 at the Lake County Fairgrounds. The guild”s “quilted car,” which is seen in Lake County parades, is a colorful promotion for its annual show.
Lake County is blessed to have so many opportunities to view beautiful handmade quilts.
I always marvel at the quilts and other textile creations that I see at these events. The artist begins with scraps of fabric or with skeins of thread and ends with a brilliant creation. Of course, the down side is that I know few occasions more frustrating to me than to observe breathtaking textile works that I believe to have been under-judged. They all deserve blue ribbons to me.
For more information about the Lake County Quilt Trail, visit www.kelseyvillepearfestival.com/quilts.asp. For information about the textile exhibit at the Lower Lake museum, call 995-3565.
For more information about the Lake County Fair, visit www.lakecountyfair.com/ and for more information about the Falling Leaves Quilt Show or about the Ladies of the Lake, visit www.LLQG.org.
Cynthia Parkhill is the focus pages editor for the Record-Bee and editor of the Clear Lake Observer-American. She can be contacted at ObserverAmerican@gmail.com or 263-5636 ext. 39.
