As we celebrate our 100th anniversary, L.L.Bean employees are finding clever and creative ways to commemorate the occasion – from baking a cake in the shape of our Bootmobile to handcreating one-of-a-kind crafts. One such employee, a 30-year L.L.Bean Product Support Specialist veteran and professional rug artist, Marion, decided to recreate an iconic Bean image (from a past catalog cover) on a very special handhooked rug.

Marion made this beautiful rug through the process of “hooking” or pulling loops of yarn or fabric through a stiff woven base. She used more than 25 shades of dyes to handcolor the fabrics in the rug, while the final piece incorporated thousands of individually hooked threads.

More than 500 employees shared in this effort too. Marion, who works in one of our customer contact centers, sent the rug to our two other centers, where customer service representatives took a turn in hooking a loop in this masterpiece. As a special finishing touch, Marion asked four other customer service colleagues  (whose respective tenures at the company add up to 100 years) to hook the final loops in her creation.

The photos below  tell the story of the collaborative final hooking session.

This rug is a testament to the L.L.Bean spirit of collaboration and extra effort in creating a lasting product. Have you ever created something to commemorate an important event? Share your anniversary-inspired stories with us.