The 47th annual Sisters Outdoor Quilt Show returns Saturday, and once again downtown Sisters will find itself under colorful cover, with as many as 10,000 visitors from around the country and world blanketing the small town taking in the art quilts on display.

Dawn Boyd, executive director of the world’s largest outdoor quilt show and sale, told GO! that the number of quilts hanging around downtown will be nearly double the number that hung in the scaled-back 2021 show.

“We’re back to full, and we’re looking at just over 1,100,” she said.

Art quilts, too, come from around the country and even abroad.

Though there will definitely be quilts from veteran artists, there are also some newer faces and young blood who may have picked up quilting during the pandemic.

“It’s kind of fun. We have had a couple of newer, younger quilters reach out,” Boyd said. “One of them actually has, like, 200,000 followers on TikTok, documenting her quilting stories on TikTok. It’s just fun to see that next generation coming up and getting involved.” (That would be Portland quilter Emily Norquist, @emandbear.)

Boyd speculated that some of the younger quilters whose work will be seen Saturday picked up quilting during the pandemic, channeling energy that may have gone elsewhere prior to the arrival of COVID-19 in spring 2020.

“Maybe when people were super social, that’s where their outlet was, and now all of a sudden it was like, ‘What can I do with my time?’ and ‘What can I do with this urge to do something and be creative?’” Boyd said. “I think that’s a big part of how this came about.”

“But here’s the really neat thing that came out of 2020,” she added. “We actually, that year, incorporated a virtual show, and it was virtual-only, because we knew we couldn’t get together. It was so popular there were 50- or 60,000 people viewing all of our … Facebook Live feed, and then we put it on our website (soqs.org) a few days later. That was so popular that our board was like, ‘OK, from now on, we’re always incorporating a virtual show component.”

Last year’s live feed proved just as popular, and this year’s will also stream via the organization’s Facebook (facebook.com/soqs.org). It will start at 7:30 a.m. with quilts being hung by volunteer firefighters, followed by the quilt show’s team showcasing quilts and exhibits on and off throughout the day.

“And so people, if they can’t come, or they’re not comfortable coming because of the crowd, they can still be connected to the show by watching it,” Boyd said. “That way everyone still stays connected, which is so neat.”

Boyd shared some tips for those planning to see things firsthand. Along with the city’s public parking, the Sisters Elementary School parking lot on East Cascade Avenue will also be available.

“Even though it’s on the edge of town, it’s still walkable,” she said. Otherwise, “just get here early, or come toward the end of the day. It’s supposed to be a very pleasant 83 degrees right now.”

Due to the nonprofit status Sisters Outdoor Quilt Show gained in 2005, Boyd added that financial support is always welcome. Donations can be made at soqs.org or in person at Saturday’s show.

“We want people to know that the event is totally free to attend, but it’s not free to produce it,” she said. “We thoroughly, always appreciate people’s support.”

What: 2022 Sisters Outdoor Quilt Show

When: 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. Saturday

Where: downtown Sisters

Cost: Free

Contact: soqs.org