Beautiful Bristol

One thing I love about my adopted home-town of Bristol, is that new street art pops up all the time. You can never get bored when your walk to work is constantly changing with the addition of new and innovative ways to brighten up the urban landscape. This is the latest to tickle my fancy. Combining yarn-bombing with ‘clean’ graffiti done with a pressure washer on the outside of our old central police station. It’s been there a little while now and is surviving so far. I felt the need to take a few snaps and share it with you lovely people. What do you think? (I would encourage you to click on the top picture to enlarge it to get a feel for the details.)

Yarn Bombers of the World, I Salute You.

I only became aware of the phenomenon that is Yarn Bombing this very week when on my way home from work I bumped into this.

One of the trees in a prominent place in Bristol’s Castle Park had a little stripy crocheted jacket. Even though I was keen to get home after a looooong day at work, I had to stop and take a good look.

I do that same walk many times a week and am always on autopilot just dying to get home to my man, my cats, and my tea. When I spotted this woollen wonder, it shook me out of my post-work daze. I had a good walk around the tree, took some photos, walked away with a smile on my face and found myself actually LOOKING at the park I had been taking no notice of for the last seven years. Not bad for a piece of crochet?

There was a tag attached to the piece with a web address www.knitdiss.blog.com so obviously I had to have a look when I got home (still smiling). It turns out that the work was done by someone doing their MSc dissertation on ‘Yarn Bombing’. I had no idea what this was but after browsing through the blog it didn’t take too long to figure out.

Also know as Guerilla Knitting, Yarnstorming, or Graffiti Knitting, this form of street art has been growing in popularity since it originated in Texas in 2005. Bristol is a mecca for graffiti artists the world over, thanks largely to the work of Banksy making its way into the public eye, so seems the ideal place to expand the scope of street art into other media. The beauty of Yarn Bombing being that it does not cause any damage to public or private property and is completely removable, although lets hope it is allowed to remain. Oddly it is technically illegal although I doubt that any charges would ever hold up and I hope that the law-makers would turn a blind eye and appreciate the dedication and creativity involved in such an art.

Whoever you are at Knitdiss, thankyou for brightening up my journey home and I will be keeping an eye out for your future installations.

Have a look at some examples of Yarn Bombing from around the world, projects large and small are all equally fabulous.

Apparently part of an advertising campaign

Clickedy Clack, Clickedy Clack

My monstering enterprise now has staff! … Kind of.

I have ’employed’ my mother to give me a hand with some new autumnal monsters I’m planning. I have pursueded her to flex her knitting muscles in return for payment in the form of cuddles from my kittens and a few cups of tea.

Seriously, that woman is amazing with a pair of knitting needles. You know that saying about the hand being quicker than the eye? Well you ain’t seen nothin’ until you watch my mum turn a ball of wool into a jumper at something approaching the speed of light. With one eye on Corrie, just a quick flick of the wrist and BAM … A scarf!

Now that my favourite season is drawing in and I start dreaming of bonfires, conker fights, and toffee apples, my monsters are taking on a more cosy feel. I’m all about chunky knits and lots of layers. I do have some rudimentary knitting skills but my mum is far faster and neater than I could ever be so I’ve put her to work knocking me up a nice line in miniature hats and scarves to adorn some of my creations. They should be winging their way to me in the post over the next few days so keep an eye on the blog for some comfy cosy creatures.