Tree Leaves & the Fairfax Court Yarnstormers

The Fairfax Court Forest

The Fairfax Court Yarnstormers have made a fantastic contribution to the Tree Leaves Yarnstorm Installation.  I called in to join them for their knit and natter session recently and collected several large bags of trees and leaves that they had been busy knitting (and stitching!)

Jean Elliott, Hazel Laws, Edna Shilletoe, Doreen Feetenby

The table was groaning under the weight of the urban forest they had created!

Jean Marshall, Marjorie Winn, Ann Driffield

Jose, who urges the group on in their community knitting endeavours, wasn't there when I visited but she had knitted hundreds of leaves (literally!).

Jose Smith

A fabulous forest... 

Thank you so much ladies -  I can't wait to see all your hard work on display!

Fairfax Court Yarnstormers are Blooming Marvellous!

Ann Driffield, Edna Shilletoe, Doreen Feetenby, Jose Smith, Marjorie Winn

The Bloom! festival in York, running from the 5-8 July 2018 is celebrating the 250th anniversary of the Ancient Society of York Florists.  After attending a workshop run by York Learning to make flowers for the community art flower wall at York Explore Library, I thought, I know some people who'd like to get involved with this! 
 

Daphne Atherton, Jean Elliott, Jean Marshall, Hazel Laws

So I popped along to see the Fairfax Court Yarnstormers - stalwarts of community knitting, stitching and crochet projects.  And guess what - they've been Bloom!ing marvellous!  Between them, these magnificent makers have produced 140 knitted blooms for the flower wall...

Knitted flowers for Bloom!

And more knitted flowers for Bloom!

I'm sure York Learning will be delighted with these fab flowers - thank you Ann, Daphne, Doreen, Edna, Hazel, Jean, Jean, Jose, Marie, & Marjorie!

Fairfax Court Yarnstormers Make Brilliant Birds

Fairfax Court Yarnstormers - Jean, Hazel, Edna & Doreen

Stalwarts of the yarnstorming scene in York, the Fairfax Court Yarnstomers - Jose Smith, Edna Shilleto, Doreen Feetenby, Jean Elliott & Hazel Laws, never fail to impress and today was no exception.  Over the last 5 years, the Fairfax Court Knit & Natter Group have participated in all my community yarnstorming projects, coming up trumps every time.  Having been to see them earlier in the year to tell them about the Brilliant Birds Yarnstorm, I went along recently to pick up their offerings and was frankly blown away.

A Truly Enormous Partliament of Owls

A Very Cute Flock of Robins, Blue Tits & Other Round Birds

Lovely Stitched Birds from Hazel

Fab Birds Knitted to the Sue Stratford Blackbird Pattern

Doreen's Sue Stratford Pattern Hummingbirds Roosting in the Outdoors

In all, there were over 250 additions to the #BrilliantBirds flock.  Jose, who made a large number of the above and couldn't be with us for the handover, is the team leader and keeps everyone on track and upto date with all the news.

Jose

What can I say except thank you so much ladies, you're amazing!

Something fishy's going on at Fairfax Court!

The Fairfax Court Yarnstomers - Jose, Edna, Jean & Doreen (not pictured) & their Fantasy Fish

  

This week I went to visit the Fairfax Court Yarnstormers who over the last few years have been fantastic at supporting our yarnstorming projects.  I knew they had been knitting fish as I went to tell them all about the Fantasy Fish Yarnstorm earlier this year and they were keen to join in.  However I had no idea how many fish they would knit...

Piles of fantasy fish

It was amazing.  When I arrived, I was met by piles of #fantasyfish - more than I could have imagined!  Jose told me how good the project had been for using up all her bits of yarn and (top tip) if you used two yarns together you got a rather nice mottled effect. 

and here's the shoal!

It did take a while to lay them all out!

The Fairfax Court Yarnstormers have done it again!  More than 130 fish have swum along to #increasetheshoal. Thank you so much Jose, Edna, Jean & Doreen!

Fairfax Court Yarnstorming Ahead

Marie, Jose, Edna & Doreen - Fairfax Court Yarnstormers (Thanks too, to Maureen who has also been knitting poppies but couldn't join us for the picture)

Today I went along to join the Fairfax Court Yarnstormers to collect all their hard work.  They have been knitting for the Poppies in the Park project and have been very prolific.  I collected 378 poppies (217 white poppies + 161 red poppies).  How impressive is that!  (Jose confided that she had knitted 300 which is quite a feat.)  

White poppies

 

Red Poppies

Thank you so much ladies!  They'll be a fantastic addition to our display.

Do come along to our final workshop which is on Tuesday 2 June from 2-4pm at Rowntree Park Cafe, York.

The Poppies in the Park installation goes up in Rowntree Park on Thursday 11 June (by the tennis courts, near the cafe) and will be on display until after the Rowntree Park Birthday Party on Sunday 12 July 2015.

What's the Knit a Bike Installation made of?

The Knit a Bike Installation in Rowntree Park

Sugar & spice and all things nice - no, nothing like that - well, maybe the all things nice bit!  The other day, I was writing a letter detailing what went into the Knit a Bike Installation & afterwards, I thought other people might like to know too.  So here goes:

The mini jersey bunting:

79 mini tour jerseys

37 metres of knitted bunting cord 

The big jerseys:

4 large tour jerseys made from 4 wool blankets cut up into yarn

20 red felt polka dots stitched in place

The writing:

13 metres of finger knitting

The bike:

12 metres of arm knitting

10 metres of finger knitting

1.9 metres of crochet 

Not to mention:

3 decorated wheels

54 pompoms

1 information sign

All made by lots of lovely people :

 

 

at two workshops

84 person hours

and the Fairfax Court Yarnbombers

100 person hours

And that doesn't include all the additional time people spent at home making things for us.  

And finally:

Time Taken to Put up the Installation

18 person hours

So once again thanks to everyone who helped to #bepartofit!  And thanks to the Friends of Rowntree Park for sponsoring us and to Rowntree Park Reading Cafe and Your Bike Shed Bicycle Cafe for letting us hold out workshops there.

Knit a Bike Yarnstormed Installation for Le Tour Yorkshire - Rowntree Park, York

Friday 6 June 2014 was the day that we put up the Knit a Bike Yarnstormed Installation in Rowntree Park, York in celebration of the Tour de France Grand Depart which leaves York on 6 July 2014.  It was a beautiful sunny day - thank goodness!

First of all we had to lay out our equipment & plans ... 

wheels and whatnot

ladder & plans

Then up went the mini bunting ...

mini bunting on display

followed by the big jerseys ...

Deborah & Helen hard at work

Meanwhile I got to work on the bike ...

bike in progress

 and the text ...

le tour ?

Deborah working on a wheel

and eventually the writing was complete together with wheels & pompoms!

le tour yorkshire in finger knitting

Le Tour wheel

crochet wheel

So were the jerseys ...

big knitting tour jerseys on display

and finally the bike ...

the bike - created from arm & finger knitting & a bit of crochet

et voila ...

We started at 10am and foolishly thought we would be done by lunchtime.  In fact it was about 4pm when we finally finished.  We think it was worth it though and we hope you do too.  Thanks to everyone who came along to help create this installation either at Workshop #1 or Workshop #2 to #bepartofit or sent us mini jerseys (especially the Fairfax Court Yarnbombers who made 33!).  Extra thank yous go to Deborah New who helped me organise and run this project and to Helen Hodge who helped us install it.

This project was sponsored by ...

was part of York: Be part of it ...

and the Yorkshire Festival 2014 ...

The first workshop took place during Voluntary Arts Week and both were in Craft & Design Month 2014.

And now I think I'll go and put my feet up for a bit!