Over 95 years of history…

Cheticamp Rug Hooking

What began as a means of contributing to family income in the early 1900’s became the cornerstone and trademark of Cheticamp artisanship. With a hooking frame, burlap and hand-dyed wool, the majority of the women of Cheticamp learned to hook rugs at a young age and continued doing so into adulthood as a means of family income.

Elizabeth LeFort (1914-2005) became a global ambassador of Cheticamp’s hooked rugs, having commissioned pieces that now hang proudly in the United States White House, Buckingham Palace and the Vatican, among others. Today, the local museum, Les Trois Pignons, in Cheticamp, proudly displays some of LeFort’s most ambitious works.

As the world and technology advanced, Cheticamp’s population has aged and with it the art of rug hooking has been slowly fading, as Lola is one of the youngest and remaining “hookers” left in town. She remains passionate about preserving and promoting this intricate art-form, read more about her story below.

Lola’s Story

Lola moved to Cheticamp from Toronto in 1972 at the age of 10 years old where she and her mother began rug hooking as a means to pay for food and necessities, which was very common for families in the Cheticamp area at the time.

In 2003, Lola’s sister, Annette, bought Jean’s Gift Shop, which Lola operated for 10 years before taking on ownership herself under the name Proud to be Lola’s Hookers. During that time, Lola has developed a fondness and true appreciation for her “girls”, who have contributed to the Cheticamp rug hooking industry, providing hooked rugs which have been sold in her shop over the years.

Like so many small businesses that were affected by the covid-19 pandemic, Lola had to sell the beloved building that housed Jean’s Gift Shop and Proud to be Lola’s Hookers in 2022 to keep the business afloat while simultaneously losing the one person that was by her side from the very beginning; her mom, Amelia. After operating the shop from a rental space for two years, the art of Cheticamp rug hooking continues to die out, and the inevitable decision to close the shop had to be made. The transition to an online store was made to preserve the rich history of Cheticamp rug hooking, all the while continuing to operate as Proud to be Lola’s Hookers while supplies last.

Lola and Clarence adopted Chance in 2010 when he was two years old. He quickly became a big part of Proud to be Lola’s Hookers, greeting people as they walked through the door. To this day, customers return and are happy to see him, saying “is that Chance?!” as they walk in. Chance continues to be Lola’s right-hand little man.

Chance sadly passed September 18/24…he will forever be missed by so many…