The quilts at the Double D Lazy T Ranch are hard to miss. Owner Debbie Park and her husband, Tommy, wouldn’t have it any other way.
Driving down Highway 60 in Perryville, a small community in central Arkansas, the quilts at the established cattle-ranch-turned-B&B stand out bold and bright against a backdrop of the nearby Ouachita Mountains. It’s not uncommon for Debbie and her husband to notice a steady stream of passersby taking their time driving by the ranch to admire the barn quilts accenting the ranch’s landscape.
Though not a quilter in a traditional sense, Debbie has embraced what quilting has to offer and how it brings people together.
Newly retired in 2008, Debbie and Tommy planned to move back to the cattle ranch where she grew up. Largely drawn back to her childhood homestead because of family, Debbie and Tommy looked forward to carving out their own space on the land and making a mark.
A former home economics teacher who became an upscale gift shop owner, Debbie was always intrigued by creative pursuits and the arts. In the early days of having moved back to her new home, “I was just sitting one day looking through a magazine called Country […] and a big part of that issue was devoted to a barn quilt trail that started this whole barn quilt craze in Ohio,” Debbie said. “The whole idea just intrigued me. That was just right up my alley.”
It would be a few more years before Debbie made her first barn quilt.
What Is a Barn Quilt?
A barn quilt is a hand-painted wooden square featuring a traditional quilt block pattern, displayed on barns, sheds, or homes. Inspired by the rich heritage of fabric quilting, barn quilts are a way to celebrate artistry and tradition on a larger-than-life canvas. Some honor family history, others reflect local culture, and many simply bring beauty to rural landscapes. Whether a single quilt brightens a barn or a collection forms part of a quilt trail, these painted pieces turn the countryside into a patchwork of color and storytelling.
In 2011, Debbie and Tommy started to firmly plant roots at the ranch in the Fourche La Fave River Valley, building their own home and accompanying barn—both completed the following year.
The barn proved to be a perfect canvas of sorts, where Debbie’s first barn quilt—a bold, 8-foot-by-8-foot Ohio Star pattern—would be displayed. “It was huge,” she said. “My husband had to get another man to help him as well as the use of the tractor to hang it on our hay barn.”
Clearly visible to passersby on Highway 60, the quilt became an immediate focal point, drawing attention from travelers. “When we see someone driving really slow down the highway in front of the house or down our driveway, my husband will say, ‘Well, there’s another quilt peeper,’” she said.
Encouraged by the response, Debbie continued her barn quilt journey, adding pieces that made the family ranch stand out.
Her next barn quilt found a home on the oldest building on the property, a tack shed. Then, she turned her attention to an unexpected canvas: an old grain silo sitting in front of their house. “I tried really hard to give [the silo] away because it was ugly,” she said. “It was just an eyesore, and nobody would take it. So I told my husband, ‘Well, I guess we’re just going to have to make lemonade out of that giant lemon sitting out there.’”
They painted the silo barn red and added a quilt pattern she calls a patriotic pinwheel. The project proved especially challenging. “That was hard because, since it is a cylinder, I couldn’t use a ruler to make my lines like on all the other quilts,” Debbie said. Despite the difficulty, it became one of her proudest pieces. “It turned that silo into a work of art,” she said. “And it’s my favorite one.”
From there, she continued barn quilting. Three Dresden Plate adaptations, designed to resemble sunflowers, went onto an equipment shed her father built from lumber he milled himself. “But the funny thing is, I didn’t realize the cows would enjoy my barn quilts so much,” she said. “They’ve chewed the corners off of them!”
Barn quilts seven and eight went on the front of the ranch’s barn bed-and-breakfast. The final two barn quilts are a little less prominent, taking up space on the sides of the ranch’s mailbox. “One is actually of a barn that’s got a barn quilt painted onto it,” she said.
After completing several quilts on her property, Debbie saw an opportunity to do more. She wanted Perry County to be included on the Arkansas Barn Quilt Trail. “Since I already had 10 of the 12 required barn quilts needed for a county to be added to the trail, it didn’t take long to fill that requirement,” she said.
With a few more local participants, Perry County was officially added to the statewide trail. “We live in a beautiful county, but it’s not exactly a tourist destination,” Debbie said. “The quilt trail has helped bring visitors who wouldn’t have come otherwise. That was one of my goals—drawing people in.”
Now, as the county’s barn quilt presence continues to grow, she remains connected to the broader community of barn quilters. Each year, she attends the annual meeting of county quilt trail coordinators, where organizers discuss ways to promote and expand the trail.
Though Debbie found her passion in painted barn quilts, she comes from a long line of more traditional quilters. “My mother, my grandmothers, they quilted, but of course, they quilted for their family,” she said. “The quilts actually were pretty, but they didn’t have the tiny stitches that my sister’s quilts did because they were made for warmth and utility.”
Her late sister, Pat, was the true quilter in the family. “Oh my goodness, she created works of art,” Debbie said. “I always say I quilt with a paintbrush; she quilted with a needle, and hers were gorgeous—tiny, perfect stitches.” In fact, some of her sister’s quilts can be found throughout the ranch and its B&B.
Debbie noted her sister became immersed in her local quilting community, dedicating a room in her house to quilting, complete with shelves filled with fabric and a large enough space to set up a quilting frame. “She had a whole wall of shelving to hold all of her fabric, and the room was large enough that they could set her frame up and quilt,” Park said. “Two days a week, her friends would come over, and they would all take turns quilting for each other.”
Eventually, they began quilting for the public, donating their earnings to the local senior center. “They were busy,” Debbie said.
What’s next for Debbie and barn quilting? A second retirement? Not likely.
“I do have a few empty barn walls, so I’m contemplating another one,” she said. “I used to go from one to the next, but now, I’ve slowed down a bit.”
Even as her pace has changed, Debbie’s work continues to leave an impression—not just on her working cattle ranch and B&B, but across Perry County and to those who pass through.
From the quilt-covered silo to the small designs on her mailbox, each barn quilt tells a story. And for those who take the time to stop and look, her artistry offers a vibrant reflection of tradition, craftsmanship, and community.
Christopher Michel is an award-winning former journalist who has been a contributor to Quiltfolk since 2025. He currently resides in Western New York. Check out more of his work here.
