 |
| Photography by Richard LaFortune |
 |
| Fabulous contribution by the Hickster from Anchor City Rollers |
I am very excited for one of my projects though. It was a work in progress for so long and I'm really happy with how it came out. International yarn bombing day was June 15th and a few of us went out to decorate. I love yarn bombing. Its a wonderful way to decorate mundane things. Little works of art and love that will put a smile on someone's face. Last year we went out and put bow ties on a few statues around down. Something small that I had whipped up in that week. This year I had bigger plans.
There are quite a few knit/crocheters with Anchor City Rollers. I love catching up with everyone's current projects before practices. A few of them had previously expressed interest in yarn bombing with me. I asked them to knit me some tiny hats for the tops of fences...or whatever else looked like it needed a tiny hat. I received so many beautiful bits of yarn!
 |
| The full pile of yarn bombs |
If you are feeling short on time or want to whip up a yarn bomb really quick I have a few tips for you. I used a pom pom makers and was able to pump out cute pom poms in no time. We did up a bunch of them the night before. It is fun to play around with sizes and colours. Not to mention you can tie a pom pom onto anything!
Another wonderful idea for yarn bombing is using any unfinished projects you may have. There are more than a few test squares I have in my odd ball pile. These items are great to tie together and make a larger project out of. This is my plan any time I go to Boland's Island. Check out your WIPs, you never know what you can find! I rediscovered a flowered chain project for one of my previous apartments. It was going to go outside and around my deck, but did not get finished in time. Since then it has been sitting in a bag, waiting to get finished. Sounded like the perfect item for a yarn bomb.
A few of us went out a night for the mischief of putting everything up. We started out at the Halifax Commons.There is a big fountain in the middle of the park and I have wanted to yarn bomb it for years. Seemed like the perfect situation for the flower chain and a few pom poms!
 |
| Up to some mischief |
There is a children's park at the Common Roots garden that encourages yarn bombing! Well you know we were not going to turn that down. There were a few flowers left over that did not make it into the chain. I weaved them into some of the support sticks for growth. Also the bulk of the pom poms were put up here.
To top off the night we took all the little hats out to the Public Gardens and decorated the fence tops. It was a lot of fun but I was a little too short to put them all up. It was really exciting to see the reactions of people passing by while they were going up. The hats were the most fun to make and were very easy to do. I've shared a few basic patterns to get you inspired to yarn bomb.
Basic Little Hat Pattern
I like to knit my hats from the top down. I find that they are usually much more uniform and my stitches look neater. I have provided a basic hat pattern to start and then included variations. These hats are meant to be fun and playful so feel free to switch up the colours or add any other embellishments you like!
I like to knit my hats from the top down. I find that they are usually much more uniform and my stitches look neater. I have provided a basic hat pattern to start and then included variations. These hats are meant to be fun and playful so feel free to switch up the colours or add any other embellishments you like!
Materials
This pattern can be used with any time of yarn and any needle size. Finished item measures only a few inches tall and approx 3" around.
Be sure to have a tapestry needle or two, especially if there are a group of people yarn bombing. I have lost so many needles throughout the night and have found bobby pins to be a handy alternative. I can pin a few to my shirt and keep track of them all night.
You will also want to have a spare ball of yarn and some scissors. Some items will need help staying in place and it helps to have something to tie them down with.
Last (and most importantly) bring some friends. It is always much more fun yarn bombing in groups. Having more people really builds the excitement level and gets everyone creative about where to put things.
Pattern
Be sure to have a tapestry needle or two, especially if there are a group of people yarn bombing. I have lost so many needles throughout the night and have found bobby pins to be a handy alternative. I can pin a few to my shirt and keep track of them all night.
You will also want to have a spare ball of yarn and some scissors. Some items will need help staying in place and it helps to have something to tie them down with.
Last (and most importantly) bring some friends. It is always much more fun yarn bombing in groups. Having more people really builds the excitement level and gets everyone creative about where to put things.
Pattern
CO 6, join for working in the round
K6 sts
KFB 6 times
K12 sts
*K1, KFB* repeat 5 more times
K18 sts
*K2, KFB* repeat 5 more times
K24 sts
Continue knitting until piece measures 2"
BO all sts
To add a ribbing at the bottom of the hat continue in pattern until last 2 rows. Switch to K1, P1, or K2, P2 pattern till end.
With Earflaps
Pickup 6 sts from base of hat
K all sts
P all sts
Repeat last 2 rows
K1, K2TOG, K3
P all sts
K1, K2TOG, K2
P all sts
K1, K2TOG, K1
P all sts
K1, K2TOG
P all sts
BO
Repeat on opposite side of hat
Now that you have the basic hat pattern down you can start getting creative. Mix up the colours or alternate your stitches. Play around with adding some purl rows. You can change the sizing, by adding or shortening the amount of increase rows, to fit any sized object you want to decorate.
 |
| Taximus Prime even got her mom to help us yarn bomb. Everyone likes to help spread the love! |
