Barn Quilt Sampler: A Barn Quilts Fabric Art Exhibit

A sampler quilt is, by nature, a gathering of ideas—and Lori's Barn Quilt Sampler turns that variety into a remarkably cohesive composition.

Rather than working from one complete quilt pattern, Lori Kennedy curated individual blocks from The New Quick & Easy Block Tool! by Liz Aneloski for C&T Publishing, selecting a collection of forms that range from bold stars and geometric designs to the wonderfully unexpected house at the center of the quilt. Each block has its own personality, yet together they read as one intentional work.

What gives the composition such strength is the framework surrounding them. The vivid blue sashing creates a confident grid that gives every block its own visual space, almost like individual works displayed within a larger gallery. Tiny patterned cornerstones punctuate the intersections, adding another layer of detail and echoing the quilt-block imagery found throughout the fabrics.

The Barn Quilts collection, designed by Steve Baker and Debra Edwards for Northcott Fabrics, feels particularly at home in this setting. Warm rust, burgundy, ochre and cream are balanced by clear blues and turquoise, while the collection’s printed geometric motifs quietly reference the very quilt-block tradition the finished piece celebrates. In several areas, the fabric becomes more than color or texture—it becomes part of the conversation between the blocks themselves.

The broad outer border gathers those colors and motifs once more, visually containing the sampler without diminishing its variety. Mary Garmany’s quilting then travels across the entire surface with relaxed movement, softening the strong geometry of the piecing and allowing the individual sections to become part of a unified whole.

Perhaps that is what makes Barn Quilt Sampler especially fitting for this exhibit. It does not ask twelve different blocks to become identical. It gives each one room to remain distinctive while showing how color, repetition, placement, and thoughtful selection can create harmony from difference.

It is a quilt built from choices—and a beautiful reminder that curation itself can be an act of artistry.