Our very popular crochet club runs every Monday lunchtime in the Library and aims to encourage everyone from beginners to advanced to pick up their hook and find relaxation and creativity through the craft of crochet.
Since September, the club has been teaching students how to crochet with the help of YouTube tutorials, books and one-to-one support from Natalie, Mrs Peplow and Mrs Chevalier. Each term has had a theme and students have learnt how to crochet hearts, flowers and seasonally themed items. We also held a very popular ‘crash course’ in finger-knitting from Liana in Year 7. Older Year 9 and 10 students have joined in, using the skill of crochet as part of their Duke of Edinburgh Awards assessments.
Sunday 11th June was ‘International Yarn Bombing’ Day. Yarn Bombing is when either knitted or crocheted woolly items are taken outside into the urban environment to raise a smile with soft fluffy yarn. Yarn bombing began in America at the beginning of the 21st century as a way to brighten and soften the harsh or broken landscape of grey steel fences, benches and handles found in urban setting, adding a friendly touch to a hard and often bleak urban landscape. Yarn bombing was rapidly taken up during the COVID pandemic to bring ‘Random acts of crochet kindness’ to neighbourhoods, with Yarn bombing as well as anonymously left crochet gifts of hearts and flowers being put outside for people to find as either random gifts left on park benches or as post-box toppers, for the whole community to enjoy.
To mark International Yarn Bombing Day, Old Palace Crochet Club ‘Yarn-bombed’ our wonderful Horse chestnut tree at Seniors with a ‘tree-hugger’ and flowers and vines, which we hope will raise a smile to everyone on entering the Chestnut gate at Old Palace. A big thank you to Paul and the Caretakers for giving us permission to Yarn bomb!
