Happy 150th, Canada: Have a Big Mary and some mitts

To help celebrate the birth of our nation, two women from Newfoundland and Labrador put their talents to the test to recreate a fast-food icon and winter mittens.

KeriDunphyput her crocheting skills to the test by recreating theMary Brown's Big Mary meal.

The first one I did, they told me, 'Keri, that don't looked cooked.'- Keri Dunphy

"Aside from my absolute love for Big Mary meals I heard that Mary Brown's was having a Canada Day contest," the Burin-born woman said.

"Submit any form of art that relates to Mary Brown's. I went with what I know, which is crocheting, and recreated this."

Her creation looks delicious but she told the CBC it was thetatersthat caused the most trouble.

"I did it first and I was visiting my mom and my nan at the time and they just look at it, the first one I did, and they told me, 'Keri, that don't looked cooked.'So we had to go to Mom's yarn stash and find the right colour for that golden tater."

The Mary Brown's contest wraps up on Canada Day, and a winner will be announced later in July. IfDunphyis victorious she'll win freepoutinefor a year. Regardless of that outcome, her picture of the meal deal is winning the internet.

"It's been insane," she said.

"I can't believe it. I thought a few of my friends would get a kick out of it and it's blown up. I've got hundreds and hundreds of likes and shares and comments on myFacebookfrom people I don't know, people across the country thinking that this is the most amazing thing."

150 mittens

After seeing countless commercials of other people doing 150 things for Canada's special day, Cheryl Stacey came up with her own idea.

"My plan for Canada's birthday was to knit 150 mittens, which equates to 75 pairs of mitts," she said.

Stacey puts her 45 years of knitting experience to work each night when she knitsaway watching television.

"Mitts this size I can knit that in a night, but without the thumb 'cause that takes a little bit more time."

Stacey's friends tell her she's "a little cracked" but that doesn't slow down her progress. She's nearly at 50 pairs of the 75 goal.

"Maybe [I'll] sell them, and if I do I'll donate the money to a charity. Or I will donate the mitts themselves to a worthy cause."

You can watch Jeremy Eaton's report on the two in the video below:

Knittin' and Crochetin' for Canada

7 years ago

Duration 1:59

Two NL women put together unique 150th birthday gifts