Go Bailey, Its Your Birthday...

Here he is in all his glory...the birthday boy, Bailey.

Bailey ("Bug") was adopted on January 20th, 1999, as a fresh faced little tweak. He was found in a cardboard box in the Duluth skywalk system, where he had been abandoned with his siblings. Before becoming a house cat, he resided briefly on a tugboat in the Superior harbor, where he spent his days maniacally chasing his sister and generally having a great time as a kitten in foster care. He left his sea legs behind when we took him in and hasn't been on a boat since, but, he has been camping. Go ahead, as him about camping...

Bailey was promoted to Head of Household upon the arrival of little brother Jack, in Spring 2001, and the dumb dog, Mocha, who was beamed down from the mother ship in the Fall of 2000.

Today, we are all celebrating with him! He'll smile later, when there's cake. (Kippers)


In honor of the King of Cats birthday, we're having a Bailey's Birthday Knitting Challenge!

Its an opportunity for you to think like a cat...


...Eat, Sleep, Bathe, and Be Fabulous!



I have a slick little book, 365 Knitting Stitches a Year.

It is a cool perpetual calendar, with a different pattern printed on each date of the year, and it looks like this:

No, you can't win it. Its mine.

Do you have one, too? Great! Lets play!


There is one simple luxury that I always insist upon in my life, and that is handmade soap. I love it. It smells fabulous, its often made with natural essential oils , and gives me an excuse to hide in the tub for extended periods time. ("Can't talk now! Busy smelling the soap! See me in 6 hours...")

I deserve handmade soap! I need it! With so many things in life that make you crazy, having that one little bit of civility that allows you to wash away the stupidity of the world is essential to a person's sanity. Or at least it is for mine.

To go with the handmade soaps, when I started knitting, I began to make great washcloths out of cotton, and I must say, handmade soap never had a better friend than a handmade washcloth. Its better than any onion bag scrubby, or cheapy washcloth you buy in a store.


Its a love thing.


What I would like you to do is make yourself some beautiful, handcrafted washcloths. You deserve them!

Only, do it the Bailey's Birthday Challenge way: Flip open a copy of 365 Knitting Stitches a Year (or any other, comparable perpetual knitting calendar-type thing), find the birthdays of five people (or animals) that you love, check out the coordinating patterns for the birthdays, and then work those patterns into fabulous, luxurious washcloths for yourself.


Do it!

To further motivate you, there are prizes!

Create your five personal luxury items, snap a picture of them and send it to me via e-mail (scarrgo.shelly@gmail.com) with the words "Bailey's Birthday Challenge" in the subject line. Tell me a little bit about the people (or animals) birthdays that you chose, and why you chose that pattern. I will randomly pick 5 of those entries as winners and if I pick you, I will send you a delightful, delish, bar of handmade soap so you can properly enjoy your special creations!

Soaps are from Zaja Natural Handmade Confections--visit their online store for the big YUM. (Try not to buy EVERYTHING...)

This little challenge is a great way to make something out of those stitch patterns that you love but haven't gotten around to trying, in a simple, low-commitment project that you can finish in an evening. Think of it as a big swatch. The bonus is that you have something nice for yourself in the end. Of course, you can always give your creations to the birthday people you chose, too...

Get your entries in by Friday, February 29th to be considered for the drawing! (And please, submit only items that you started knitting on or after January 20th, 2008) Winners will be announced on this blog within the first week of March, and will also be contacted via email.

Bailey's Birthday Challenge!

Nothing too challenging, after all...

Its a cat thing.

(Bailey would like you to begin knitting before he's forced to do something cute...)

The permanent link to this post is http://catsandyarn.blogspot.com/2008/01/go-bailey-its-your-birthday.html