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Knitting News: New Jersey Knitter Wants Help with Yarn Bombing

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yarnbomb new jerseyA yarn bombing is not usually something you announce before the fact in the local newspaper, but Bridgeton, N.J., knitter Carol Moore says she wants help beautifying her city’s downtown with yarn.

She participated in a yarn bombing for International Yarn Bombing Day, which was back in June, and in the time since the tree in front of her shop has become increasingly covered with knit and crocheted pieces.

She says she things more fiber art around downtown would improve the look of the area and give it something unique and special that hopefully would drive more visitors and customers to the area.

Moore has the blessing of mayor Albert Kelly, who called is an easy way to beautify the town that isn’t permanent (he also says it does no damage to the tree, but it can if left on long-term).

[Photo by the News of Cumberland County.]

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Comments

  1. I personally do not find these “yarn bombing” projects to be beautiful at all! The colors do not co-ordinate, there is no regularity in the stitches or pattern stitches used, etc. It is a beautiful tree! I love trees, including their trunks. Don’t cover them!Cover something ugly, & use co-ordinating stitches & colors. Make sure you use excellent workmanship as others are stuck with looking at it. I have seen some lovely examples of “object covering” on the internet. It CAN be done well. So can Krazy Knitting & Crazy Crochet. It’s difficult, it’s an art, I discovered I am not good at either covering objects, nor Crazy Crochet, so I don’t do it.

Have you read?

Get Your Fruits by Knitting the Fruit Salad Vest

I guess I’ve decided it’s time to start knitting vests, and while I typically think of vests as being for fall, this one is decidedly summery. 

Vanessa Ewing’s Fruit Salad Fest is covered with all kinds of fruits. I see grapes, blueberries, strawberries, peaches and kiwi all stitched up in rows for a cute and colorful vest. 

This one is worked in sock yarn and comes in nine sizes. The actual finished chest measurement of the vest ranges from 29.5 to 59 inches, or 75 to 150 cm. It’s meant to be work with 2 to 4 inches/5-10 cm of positive ease. And while it’s called a vest it doesn’t look like it has any shaping, which gives it little cap sleeves when worn. 

There’s a bit of ribbing at the armholes and neckline, and the bottom has a split hem. It’s worked in the round from the bottom up and includes steeks. It’s not really a pattern for people new to colorwork thanks to all the charts and different colors used, but if you’re ready to take on a challenge this would be a fun one. 

Speaking of colors, there are 13 involved in this pattern, but a few of them aren’t needed in a huge quantity, so this could be a use for some mini skeins or leftovers from other projects if you have them in the right colors. This isn’t one where you can substitute colors that easily since they are meant to be true to real fruits, but you could use a different background color, make your grapes green or red, or change the blueberries to another fruit if you have different colors on hand. 

Any way you slice it, this looks like a super fun knit that is sure to bring a smile to your face whenever you wear it, and to others whenever they see it. 

Check it out and grab a copy on Ravelry. 

[Photo: Vanessa Ewing]