Early on in the pandemic, Langenburg Centennial Special Care Home Recreation Director Carol Schaab noticed that resident Darby Readman needed something to keep his mind busy. Carol salvaged a pile of pre-cut 2×2 square plywood pieces that Darby turned into an art installation, titled, “Pandemic Quilt”.
“I guess they wanted to give me something to do besides walk the hallways,” Readman said.
Prior to living at the care home, Readman said he hadn’t painted anything other than a building or two. He was more used to using a hammer than a paintbrush.
“Once you start you kind of get hooked, so that’s kind of the good thing about it,” he said. “It’s been quite an enjoyment.”
Now, Darby is busy creating barn quilts.
Barn Quilts are painted quilt squares usually fashioned on boards and then mounted on barns or other buildings.
While cloth quilts are usually made up of a series of squares of the same pattern placed together, a barn quilt is almost always a single square. The pattern for a particular barn quilt may be chosen for a myriad of reasons.
Often, the barn quilt is a replica of a painted quilt that resides on the property or honors a loved one.
Sometimes, the barn quilt is simply one whose pattern is appealing.
For Darby, it is more often a choice of what he prefers and finds appealing. The staff sit with him and an iPad to pick through an assortment of choices.
He then paints a base coat. Activity staff then draw and tape the pattern. Darby then gets to work painting the different squares on a daily basis. Two coats are needed for the project so it is quite time consuming.
Darby’s favourite part, besides painting, is pulling off the tape and seeing the exact pattern come together.
The buildings are often a conversation piece with both residents and families who visit in the backyard of the care home.
Barn quilts are very popular out in eastern Canada where there are even barn quilt trails. Thanks to Darby and the Activity Department, Langenburg Care Home now has their own barn quilt trail.
