The community of Fogo Island will let it all hang out (on the line) on Saturday, May 5, 2018, in celebration of quilting on Fogo Island. Organized by Fogo Island Inn, this one-day-only Spring Season hang out encourages all households to hang their quilts out on the clothesline together, creating a tapestry of colour and pattern for all to enjoy and celebrate. Residents will send the Inn photos of their favourite quilts swaying in the breeze for a chance to be entered into a draw for a one-night stay at Fogo Island Inn.
Quilting is an integral part of the culture of Fogo Island. Quilts made here are easily recognized by their vibrant and spontaneous array of patchwork, traditionally completed with hand-embroidered, decorative, herringbone stitching. Emerging out of necessity and thrift, these quilts began as a patchwork of fabric odds and ends from pieces of clothing that had run their course, and when combined with other patches became something utilitarian, but also something beautiful.
Today, Fogo Islanders remain engrossed with the practice of quilting, not only for the product but also for the practice itself: friends and neighbours will often quilt together, turning the craft process into a social event. Every bed in the Fogo Island Inn is graced with a handmade quilt that changes with the seasons and has the name of the local quilter who crafted the piece sewn into it. Guests enamoured by the warmth and joy imparted by the Inn’s quilts are often found purchasing them through the Inn’s sister organization, Fogo Island Shop.
Fogo Island Inn’s A Crazy Quilting Experience is available in all of Fogo Island’s seven seasons for guests of all quilting experience levels. Choose from a variety of immersions guided by a Master Quilter, meet them for tea and orientation, and become wrapped up in the storied history of Fogo Island and Newfoundland quilting. Fogo Island Inn’s community quilt “hang out” day and A Crazy Quilting Experience are just two of the ways Fogo Islanders celebrate their heritage and culture through the craft of quilting.