Uh-huh…it’s my Party…Uh-huh!

Be sure to click on the pic above to get all the details!  🙂

One of the prizes for the party…uh-huh!… there’ll be prizes!!! … is the Loom Knitting Pattern Book, by Isela Phelps.  This book means an awful lot to me, not just because it is the most detailed and exhaustive book out there for us loomies looking for new patterns, or because Isela has written 2 other fabulous loomy publications that have been must have’s for any loomy’s library, but because this time I actually got to be a part of the amazing adventure!!!  I haven’t spoken about this in any detail before, but I thought that since one of the rewards for participating in the book is one of the blogiversary prizes, I should tell a little about my experience.

Well, I have to admit, that I was an emergency player, called in at the last minute, lol!  It was right before Thanksgiving 2007 when I got the email from Isela asking if I would be interested in making a child’s hat and scarf set for the book…but it had to be done in under a week!  Of course I instantly jumped (literally…up and down, and around the house, lol) at the chance to help out.  I awaited Isela’s response, while thoughts of yarn and how it could shape itself into the child’s ensemble were swirling around in my head.  Thanksgiving kind of got in the way for both of us, and I didn’t hear back until the day after…but then the need was no longer for a child’s hat set, but a girl’s ribbed top.  Other suggestions were for a doggie sweater, or possibly a felted cat bed.  I jumped in with both feet, and an arm, and said I’d be happy to come up with all three!!!  By this point, time was not my friend…it had been tick, tick, ticking away much needed minutes to get these projects all done and mailed out in time.  This was now Friday, and I had to work both this day and Saturday, as the day after Thanksgiving is the most busiest day of the year for retailers.  I couldn’t begin until Friday night!  YIKES!!!  😛

Well…I started on the Cat Nap Cozy first, as I knew that it would need time to air dry after felting.  I was stitching away, going great guns, until I realized that I needed to create TWO layers for the pillow part, so that it could be stuffed!  This is when I enlisted the help of my eldest daughter to knit up the bottom half.  Having crafty kids around the house is extremely convenient, lol! 

While my daughter worked on that, I was free to begin the Pooch Parka.  This went fairly smoothly, after I called my mom and had her measure her little Yorkie so that I could have something to go by for fit.  After I completed the parka, I zoomed to my parent’s house to see how it fit on their poochy.  You should have seen him!  He loved it, and pranced around as if he knew this sweater was destined for greatness, lol!

Gus in the Cat Nap Cozy

After the puppy photo shoot, I zoomed back home to felt and assemble the cat bed.  I really hadn’t realized that cat bed would be such a big project!  Whew!!  Just an FYI for everyone out there wanting to loom this…make sure you’re not in a rush, and have plenty of time to devote to this big boy…especially while you’re assembling…set aside about 2+ hours of your day just for the felting and assembling, as it will take all your attention.  😉  But let me tell you…it’s completely worth it!  My cat wouldn’t stay out of it, lol!  And he’s a very picky cat on finding places to snooze.  We have since received my knitted items back from Isela, and the publisher, and it seems he has decided that this is definitely the place for him to be while sleeping…no matter where in the house we put it, lol.

The day was now Monday, late afternoon.  I needed to ship these goodies to Isela by Wednesday!  Needless to say I had to keep my fingers flying on that girls top!  I worked all through that evening, and most of the night.  When I realized that I kept dozing off, with my fingers still knitting, to wake up finding something other than what I intended, I decided I’d better catch a little sleep-eye.  This would have been really cool if I was actually knitting what I was supposed to be, lol!  Then I could really multi task, and get everything done while getting plenty of rest.  😉 

 I allowed myself 2 hours of sleep…then it was back to knitting!  I knit all through Tuesday, and didn’t go to sleep at all Tuesday night…just knit the entire night through.  I had a tight schedule the next day, as I had to ship the projects out Wednesday morning, and then go to work!!!  I was a complete zombie, let me tell you.  That evening, after my shift was over, I got to type out the patterns!  Hehehe…talk about my poor brain being dizzy (or ditzy, one of the two!).  But I got through it, and the rest is history, and in print!  🙂

Even though it was crazy timing, and rush, rush, rush…I wouldn’t have passed it up for anything, and would do it again in a second!  I feel so honored and humbled to have been a part of such an important project, and with such highly esteemed company.  Thanks from the bottom, clear through to the top of my heart, Isela, for letting me play with the big girls for a while!  🙂  I will treasure these moments of my life for all of my days.

Bethany~