Spinning A Yard

It's a worldwide phenomenon and it's coming to a street near you. What am I talking about? Well, the cultural curiosity that is 'Yarnbombing', of course. This 'anti-graffiti' movement has been gaining ground in recent years and, while it certainly has its detractors, it is generally seen as a bit of creative, harmless fun.

So what is yarnbombing, and what exactly are these guerilla knitters trying to achieve? Well, put simply, it is the art of decorating familiar urban features with brightly colored, knitted woolen effects.

Whether it's simply placing a custom-made scarf around the neck of a prominent statue, or brightening up the ugly steel pole of a downtown traffic light, the sole aim is to bring cheer to an often dull environment.

With active yarnbombers busily adding splashes of color to cities around the globe, the movement has, unsurprisingly, attracted a good deal of media attention. Newspapers and magazines from London, Vancouver, New Zealand, to Philadelphia and beyond, have been falling over themselves to unravel the truth behind this knotty spectacle.

The busy knitters and textile artists who generously donate their pieces to the streets of our often gray towns, are aware that their handiwork may be swiftly removed, destroyed, or even regarded as reckless vandalism. But, for most observers, the crocheted creations are simply met with joy. Wry smiles can be seen on the faces of those catching sight of the latest wooly addition to the urban environment, while scores of passers by, stop to take photographs