Micklegate Arts Trail, York - 31 May 2025 to 15 June 2025

 

Micklegate Arts Trail - A Shoal of Knitted Fish

It occurred to me just the other day that I'd not blogged about the Micklegate Arts Trail (MAT) so for those who didn't get to go, I thought I should.  It was great to be involved in a 2 week extravaganza of art, music, film and poetry where 14 venues showcased the work of over 30 artists...

Micklegate Arts Trail 2025 - Artists and Venues 

MAT is organised by Navigators Art and is a collaboration between local businesses and artists and is part of the York Festival of Ideas. I took along some extreme knitting, big knitting, hula hoop weaving and crochet to exhibit on the railings of Holy Trinity Church.

Happy, Birds and Rainbow

These were mostly pieces that were originally developed for community art projects in Rowntree Park, which you can read about here (extreme knitted fish), here (big knitted fish), here (big knitted owl), here (hula hoop woven blue tit), here (crocheted Happy) and here (rainbow).  Some of these were made by me and some were made or part made by people joining in with the community projects.  It was lovely to see them all on display again!

Me with some extreme knitting

As part of MAT I brought along my extreme knitting needles so people could have a go for themselves.  And here are just a few of the people who tried it out.  It was very popular...

Extreme Knitting in Progress

There were some other great artists exhibiting in Holy Trinity Church and grounds...

MAT Holy Trinity Church - Peter Baker, Nick Walters, Lu Mason, Barry Lewis, Richard Mackness (from top left clockwise to centre)

And of course there were lots of fab artists exhibiting along the Arts Trail.  Here are just a few...

Micklegate Arts Trail 2025(clockwise from top left)- Sinead Corkery at No. 84 Deli & Cafe, Fiona Kemp at Hudson Moody, Richard Thompson at The Hooting Owl, Nick Kobyluch at Skosh 

It was great fun taking part. I hope everyone who came to visit enjoyed the trail. Thanks to Navigators Art and the York Festival of Ideas and to the venues that took part for making it possible.  Special thanks to Nick Walters for organising the Holy Trinity venue.  And then it was over...

Hippystitch Exhibit Taken down and Packed Up

Thanks to Deborah New for helping me put everything up (and who also helped with the original community projects) and to Lily Stone for helping me take it down.  Watch out for next years Art Trail!

Big Knitting Creates a Rainbow

Big Knitted Rainbow and Little Knitted Rainbows

I recently knitted some little rainbows, that are currently hanging in my window but which will be heading along to the Rainbows for Rowntree Park yarnstorming project in due course. Offering a visible thank you to the NHS, they were also fun to make, look very cute and definitely contibute a positive vibe which is much needed at the moment.  So, what next? I decided I'd like to make a big knitted rainbow.  My big knitting needles are 20mm in diameter so need some big yarn.  I save colourful old T shirts in case I might be able to recycle them for a craft project and here they came into their own!  I didn't think I'd have a rainbow's worth of colours but it turned out I did...

A Rainbow's Worth of Old T Shirts

So I got to work preparing some upcycled T-shirt yarn.  You fold your T shirt not quite in half lengthways and cut strips not quite to the edge. Then unfold and at the edge where it isn't cut through make a series of diagonal cuts to produce a continuous piece of yarn. You can use the sleeves as well.  I cut my strips about 1 inch/2.5cm wide.

Fold T shirt Over and Cut Strips

Unfold T shirt to Reveal Cut Strips

You can find a great YouTube video from Sustain my Craft Habit showing you exactly how here.  All my adult T-shirts produced over 20m of yarn each...

Big Needles and T-shirt Yarn

I cut up 2 red T-shirts in different shades of red as I knew I would need more than one T-shirt's worth of yarn for the red section of my rainbow. Next I started knitting...

Casting On With The Big Needles

The pattern I used was from Knitting by Post and was the Easy Medium Sized Knitted Rainbow knitting pattern.  I only knitted with half the number of stitches as my rainbow wasn't going to be double sided. Here it is knitted up...

Big Knitted Rainbow

Next I attached it to some plastic fencing using some of the T shirt yarn and some clear fishing line.  Then I made a whole load of cloud coloured pompoms in different sizes...
 

A Suitcase Full of Pompom Clouds

 
and attached them to the bottom of my rainbow.  The finished item was up on my railings in time to "Clap for our Carers" where we show our appreciation with some hearty applause for the NHS and all the key workers keeping things going during the pandemic.

Finished Big Knitted Rainbow

My big knitted rainbow is about 1 metre wide and 0.5 metre high.  I don't think you'll miss it if you're passing by!  Why not hunt out your old T shirts and have a go?

Tree Leaves & the Woodland Trust

Tree Leaves Yarnstorm in Rowntree Park, York - Summer 2019

Once the Tree Leaves Yarnstorm installation was taken down, had its visit to the Tree Leaves Laundrette and went online, the trees & leaves were ready for sale to fundraise for the Woodland Trust.  Our first sale was in Rowntree Park, York.  We had fantastic sunshine, a great response and people queing to buy. 

Trees for Sale

Our second sale was at the Trafalgar Bay pub and also brought in some lovely customers.

More Trees & Leaves for Sale

Finally the remaining trees and leaves plus the extreme knitted conifer and the big knitted leaves that were on the tennis court fence were purchased by York Greenways. York Greenways exists to protect and  enhance the ecology of the accessible traffic-free routes from York into the surrounding countryside. Their vision is a network of green corridors leading to places of interest or refreshment, encouraging York’s residents and visitors to explore and value the biodiversity and heritage in and around the city. 

York Greenways are going to reinstall the yarnstorm on the Solar System Greenway - the cycle path that goes from York to Selby.  If you've never cycled or walked along the Solar System Greenway, give it a go - it's a great route.  You don't have to do the full length unless you want to and there's refreshment en route at the Brunswick Organic Nursery and the former Naburn Station or take a side trip to the local village pubs nearby.

Letter from the Woodland Trust

In total, we've raised over £800 for the Woodland Trust.  The Woodland Trust protects and campaigns on behalf of this country’s woods, plants trees, and restores ancient woodland for the benefit of wildlife and people.  Their vision is a UK rich in native woods and trees, for people and wildlife. So I'm sure they'll put the money to good use.

So all that's left to say is a big THANK YOU to everyone who made this happen - we couldn't have done it without you - it's been fab!


The Tree Leaves project was sponsored by the Friends of Rowntree Park, Bettys & Taylors Group & supported by Boyes 

Treemendous Tree Leaves

All loaded up and ready to go!

Today Deborah and I installed the Tree Leaves Yarnstorm.  It was a lovely day for it.  We arrived at Rowntree Park with all our equipment and everybody's fab makes and set up camp...

Tree Leaves Base Camp

And look, we had an audience straight away... 

 
We definitely made progress, with Deborah concentrating on the little trees and leaves...

Deborah hangs all the little trees and leaves

while I concentrated on the big ones...

and finally it was finished...

Extreme knitting, big knitting, finger knitting and some fab knitted, stitched and crocheted leaves

So if you are wondering what this is all about, keep reading.  The installation was designed and made by Deborah New & I with the amazing help of the local community and those further afield.  We came together to celebrate craft and creativity, to put “Art in the Park” and to fundraise for charity.  This installation will be in place for about one month. (It will be coming down in late August).

The charity we are supporting with this project is the Woodland Trust. They protect and campaign on behalf of this country’s woods, plant trees, and restore ancient woodland for the benefit of wildlife and people.  Their vision is a UK rich in native woods and trees, for people and wildlife.  After the display is taken down, the trees will be sold to raise funds for the Woodland Trust.

Sale dates are as follows: 

 Saturday 21 September 2019 - RowntreePark (by the café) 10-3pm

Thursday 26 September 2019 – Trafalgar Bay Pub, York 7-9pm 

Or if you've enjoyed seeing the installation, why not pop into Rowntree Park Cafe where there is a tin (just by the till) for your Woodland Trust donation.  Alternatively you can donate directly by visiting the Woodland Trust website - click here.

What do you like best about the Tree Leaves Yarnstorm? And which tree or leaf is your favourite? Please post your pics on social media using #TreeLeaves and #urbanforest.

If you want to see more about the Tree Leaves Yarnstorm check out these  blogposts:

Tree Leaves Yarnstorm - The Details

Tree Leaves at Spark:York

Tree Leaves at Rowntree Park Cafe #1

Tree Leaves at the Trafalgar Bay

 Tree Leaves at Rowntree Park Cafe #2

Extreme Knitting the #TreeLeaves Conifer

 

 

Tree Leaves & the Fairfax Court Yarnstormers

The Tree Leaves project is sponsored by the Friends of Rowntree Park, Bettys & Taylors Group & supported by Boyes 

Big Knitting Brilliant Birds Owl

Big knitted owl and his much smaller friend

To accompany all the amazing birds that keep flying in for the Brilliant Birds Yarnstorm in Rowntree Park, York later this month, we are going to have a display on the tennis court fence with birds of somewhat larger dimensions.  You may already have read about the woven Hula Hoop birds.  Well, now there's also a big knitted owl.

25mm & 15mm needles

Using 25mm knitting needles and selvedge edge ribbon from the Cone Exchange, Gillian knitted the owl in record time.  (Quick aside - the Cone Exchange is a community scrap store in Harrogate set up by Bettys & Taylors which recycles and reuses waste materials from their own and other local businesses.  It's an amazing place!)

Selvedge edge ribbon for the owl and black yarn for the pompom eyes

Gillian, having finished the owl, works on another #BrilliantBirds project at The Winning Post...

So fast, Gillian had already knitted the owl (see far left) before I remembered to take a photo!

 
Next, using 15mm needles, I knitted the beak and part of the eyes with a couple of pompoms to finish them off.  And there you have it - a big knitted owl approx 56cm by 30cm (22 inches by 18 inches).  Watch out for him flying in!

If you want to join in with the Brilliant Birds Yarnstorm supporting St Leonard's Hospice in Rowntree Park, York this June, you can find out all the details here, the patterns here and you have until Saturday 10 June 2017 for your birds to fly into Rowntree Park Cafe.  Go on, #whatwillyoumake?