Karen Lyon and Steve Martin and their family hung several barn quilts, each with a special meaning, at Ivy Hill Farm, including“ An Apple a Day,”“ Stars and Stripes”( opposite, top) and“ Blazing Star”( opposite, bottom).
Adding CHARM to the Barn
AT IVY HILL FARM, THE MARTIN FAMILY EMBRACES THE BARN QUILT MOVEMENT AND CREATES LASTING FAMILY MEMORIES. by Kourtney Lowery + photos by Chris Jackson
Smithburg’ s Ivy Hill Farm has been in the Martin family for six going on seven generations, but it is a embracing a new trend: barn quilts. No, not the sort of quilts that keep you warm at night, but a form of decorative art displayed on the outside of the barn. Traveling down Route 64, anyone can spot the large, colorful squares that adorn Steve Martin’ s farmer’ s market. The idea came from his sister Karen Lyon, a skilled quilter now living in Norfolk, Va., who saw the idea in a magazine that showcased the trend in Ohio. There is now a barn quilt trail in Garrett County, but the Martins are the first and only farm so far to hang barn quilts in Washington County.
Each quilt has significance to the farm and family. The star-like“ Barbara Fritchie” square celebrates the area’ s Civil War history. The“ Stars and Stripes” quilt takes a patriotic twist honoring all those who have served our nation( Karen’ s husband, Charlie, has served in the Air Force for more than 30 years). The 4-by-4, green, yellow and red“ Arrowhead” is a nod to the Native American history prevalent on the farm. There have been archaeological digs by Catholic University that uncovered arrowheads, which Steve and his siblings also found as children. The“ Blazing Star” is a favorite of Jeanne Martin, Steve’ s mother. The largest barn quilt is the 8-by-8“ An Apple a Day,” which is an ode to the bountiful fruit found in the surrounding orchards. The Martins make their own apple butter, apple cider and delicious apple slushies, which they sell with a variety of seasonal produce in their farmers market inside.
Creating the barn quilts was a meticulous process spanning 10 days and three generations in July 2012. Steve stresses that in order for the next generation to get into farming you have to make children feel part of the operation. Jeanne’ s house served as headquarters, Karen mapped and plotted the patterns and her daughter, Dana, primed and painted with Steve’ s sons Tim and Justin. Steve, Karen and
60 March / April 2013 Hagerstown: The Best of Life in Washington County & Beyond