Yarn Bombing - What is it? - Crafts a la mode

All About Yarn Bombing and some gorgeous examples

Yarn Bombing is the art of crocheting or knitting yarn to cover outdoor structures usually in an urban setting in order to bring beauty to "cold urban settings". According to Wikipedia "yarn bombing was initially almost exclusively about reclaiming and personalizing sterile or cold public places."

Yarn bombing, the American name, goes by different names in different countries. In England, it's called Yarn Storming, so named because it is a less violent term than yarn bombing. It's also known as graffiti knitting, urban knitting, kniffiti, guerrilla knitting, etc.

Basically, Yarn bombing is textile graffiti and while it's usually done in a city setting it can be anywhere. Here is some yarn graffiti in New York City. It's a way to bring beauty to cold urban settings.

I love the look of this. It's so unexpected, isn't it? Awesome!

Here is a pretty tree covered with yarn graffiti.

A little bit of history: In the 1990's Houston artist Bill Davenport was crocheting objects and putting them on display as sculptures.

In 2002, Shanon Schollian had a "stump cozy" project, covering some of the many stumps left when trees were cut down in Oregon forests.

In 2005, the practice of yarn bombing was originated by
some Houston, Texas knitters who tried to find ways to use up leftover yarn.

Texas textile artist, Magda Sayeg knit custom covers for the door handles of her boutique. She also founded the yarn bombing collective Knitta Please and made numerous knit installations around the world including knitting a bus in Mexico. Because of her success and popularity with the art form she has earned the title of “mother of yarn bombing.

In London in 2008, "Knit the City" took London by storm, yarnstorm, that is. Lauren O'Farrell^[8] (who creates her street art under the graffiti knitting name Deadly Knitshade), from London, UK, founded Knit the City, a group of street artists who used yarn to express themselves.

Yarn graffiti is in 49 states and 25 countries and counting, bringing warmth to the cities in the form of yarn covered outdoor structures. One good thing about this type of graffiti? It's easily taken apart when needed, unlike painted graffiti.

Yarn bombers not only knit and crochet objects, but they also reuse already made yarn sweaters, coats, and afghans and reuse their installations when they are taken down. The best thing about yarn bombing? Anyone can do it. Anyone can wrap a pole or cover a small part of a statue (a shoe, perhaps?) with some form of knitted something. Right? It's definitely a fun and happy art form.

Want to read more about the topic of yarn storming? How about Mandy Moore’s Yarn Bombing: The Art and Crochet of Knit Graffiti or Illiante Kalloniatis’s Art of Yarn Bombing: No Pattern Required?

I was visiting a local town in Connecticut and lo, and behold, there was a yarn bombed Adirondack chair!! I was immediately fascinated by it so, of course, I took lots of pictures of it. Unfortunately, it was with my cell phone camera which ~~sucks~~ isn't quite as good as my Canon D-60, so forgive the horrible pics but they give an idea of the fun of yarn bombing.

Yarn Bombed Adirondack Chair

I think they stenciled on the chair and also maybe decoupaged it. The name NANCY is on the right arm of the chair. I think Nancy is the yarn bomber, what do you think?