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Yarn Bombing Or Crochet Wrapped Yarn Trees

ByJennifer
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The first time I saw a yarn wrapped tree was at the Morton Arboretum as a part of their Nature Unframed exhibition where they made crochet wrapped yarn trees. As a life long crocheter, when I saw this exhibit in 2011 I thought it would be so cool and so much fun to bring to our own downtown. I was just fascinated by it and thought it was such a fun and cool idea. It’s also called “Yarn Bombing” too and is a form of street art. Fast forward to 2023 and I found myself on a committee to bring this exact thing to our town as a part of a visit from the art of Andy Warhol at College of Dupage. It was such a great experience in our own town by doing some “Yarn Popped” trees up and down our main street! I wanted to share a few of the things learned from the experience.  If creating a yarn wrapped tree display in your community is something you’re interested in, here are some  Yarn bombed tree ideas to getting the community together and creating something fun with public art for everyone!
A tree trunk covered with colorful crochet wrapped yarn art. A sign nearby reads, "CAUTION Art Installation in Progress Please Do Not Feed the Artists!" These unique crochet wrapped yarn trees add a playful touch to the landscape.

What is Yarn Bombing?

Yarn bombing is a form of street art where you wrap public items in yarn. You can do items like trees, bike racks, fences and more. This can be done by knit items or by crocheted work as well. June 11th of every year is known as Yarn-Bombing day.

Things to Know Before Planning to Yarn Bomb Public Spaces

When planning to add yarn to trees or other items in public spaces, there are a few steps to take such as:
-It can be illegal to yarn bomb without permission
-Talking with the local town, village or municipality to make sure it’s allowed. We did ours in cooperation  and collaboration with the local Lisle Chamber of Commerce.
-Seeing if there are any regulations permitting or prohibiting the activity. Permission is important in publicly owned spaces.
-For private property work directly with the owners.
-Also finding out and working with your local government or organization to see if there is additional insurance needed.
-Having licensed arborists monitor the trees for stress or damage
-Limiting the amount of time the yarn with be up to lessen any damage
–If plasticyarn (acrylic) is a concern for environmental reasons, limit yarn use to wool or cotton yarn. These yarns may need to be removed sooner as they may not hold up as well in the inclement weather.
In 2025 you can see how we participated in a Hokusai exhibition in our donwtown.
A tree trunk is crochet wrapped in colorful knitted panels, each displaying a large letter that together spell "LOSSLE." An apartment building and parked cars are visible in the background.
While it’s so much fun and colorful, it would be awful to do all of that work  in a public place to have the city just remove it and throw it out. It’s so much better to make sure it’s sanctioned and supported on public property.
A tree branch is wrapped in colorful crochet wrapped yarn patterns, with another crochet wrapped yarn tree trunk in the blurred background.

How to Organize the Yarn Bombed Pre-Events to Involve Community

There are lots of ways to bring the community into it. The biggest thing is to plan way ahead. We started planning in January for a June/July installation.

We:

-Organized free crochet sessions to the community with the library and local businesses so they could learn starting in March/April and had time to complete smaller projects.

-Hosted knitting/crochet sessions in local businesses with someone there who could help newbies.

-We had yarn donated by the community that was free to pick up for the project at local businesses.

-Local businesses were drop off points for finished works.

A crochet wrapped yarn tree stands on a city street, its vibrant colors spelling out "BE YOU." Cars line the road and an apartment building rises in the background.

Guidelines for Yarn Bombing Works

We did have some restrictions for accepting works. They needed to be:

-Not political in nature

-Contained no swear words

-Nothing religious or provocative in nature

-we gave rough dimensions for works after measuring where we wanted to place them

-Had a legal waiver for participants

-We made sure they knew works may not be returned

-Smaller works would be accepted with the acknowledgement they would be combined with larger pieces

Tree trunk covered in a vibrant crochet wrapped yarn pattern featuring circular designs in red, yellow, blue, and purple, set among other crochet wrapped yarn trees in an outdoor park area.

Tips for Day of Installation

We worked closely with public works and the vilalge to make sure that the yarn pieces were installed without damage to the trees.  it’s important to only have them up for a limited amount of time, otherwise it can damage the trees. It’s also preferable to do it after bird nesting season is over so they aren’t grabbing the yarn for nests. For all of the squirrels and birds we have in our town, these weren’t disturbed or shredded at all.

A woman decorates a tree trunk with crochet wrapped yarn squares on a city sidewalk, bright banners fluttering and parked cars in the background.

Many of the yarn works were attached by quick crocheted chains if they were not wide enough to wrap around the trees to make up the gap.

A person with light brown hair in a gray hoodie is adding crochet wrapped yarn to a tree covered in colorful knit patterns outdoors.

If they were large enough they were either overlapped or connected on the edge with a quick over hand stitch. Some with zip ties as well. The yarn pieces were always  connected to themselves or wrapped around a branch but never connected directly to the tree.
A tree trunk on a city sidewalk is wrapped in colorful crochet yarn, with more crochet wrapped yarn trees lining the street in vibrant patterns.

 

Our yarn wraps were kept to ground level for safety reasons.
A tree trunk crochet wrapped in vibrant yarn squares stands outside a brick storefront with a "LOLA Handmade Crafts" sign and pink umbrellas.
Some of the trees had larger pieces than others, but people loved the fun colors up and down main street. Even little trees had little wraps.
A tree trunk adorned with crochet wrapped yarn trees and a round white tag stands on a sunny street, with cars parked along the curb.
A sidewalk lined with cars and crochet wrapped yarn trees adds a splash of color and creativity to the streetscape.

 

Why Yarn Bomb Trees?

The biggest thing about any public art projects is that it help to bring civic pride.  This was such a inspiration and  a very affordable way to bring something fun, involve the community and brighten our downtown.

A crochet wrapped yarn tree stands in front of a jewelry store, adorned with orange, red, and pink designs. Shrubs and plants surround the base, enhancing the vibrant display.

Residents in the community were able be a part of something bigger than themselves and it was engaging visually for those walking up and down Main Street or who lived downtown.

A tree displays colorful crochet wrapped yarn panels spelling "LISLE" next to a sign for Lisle’s Yarn Popped Trees event in a green outdoor area.

It even dressed up sections of our downtown that were not as nice as others.

 

A tree trunk, one of the crochet wrapped yarn trees, is adorned in colorful yarn with heart shapes near a sidewalk, standing in front of a building with flowers hanging nearby.

 

After Yarn Bomb Clean up

When we were ready to remove the items at the end of the exhibit, we removed them carefully so the trees weren’t damaged, saved the ones we could, and then laundered and stored them for a future use.

A tree trunk and branch are crochet wrapped yarn trees, adorned in colorful squares and stripes, with a building and parked cars visible in the background.

I hope we can use them for something else in the future in another public art display. It’s so important in our communities to create places we love to go and be proud of.
A young person stands outdoors beside a blue wagon filled with colorful crocheted blankets and a brown paper bag, holding more crochet items in their arms, near crochet wrapped yarn trees.
The image shows the word "Jen" written in a black, cursive script on a white background, reminiscent of a stylish name badge you might see at a blogging conference.

 

*This was posted Via Jennifer Rizzo. com

18 Comments

  3. Hi Jen, Do you think my family would understand if I start to crochet around some of my trees? That’s so awesome…and speaking of awesome your designs are just that! You are amazing, but I think I’ve told you that before. Happy Easter to you and your “bunnies” Love, Penny

  8. Very cool !! Where is this at ?? I am very familiar with your area.Even though I am out here it is interesting to know that this is something really cool to see.Have a bright day there.Thanks for sharing that…Chickie

  12. What a creative idea.I love how the artist has the “bulleyes” scattered among the trees. In Denver an artist beautified a chain link fence in the downtown area with crocheted flowers growing on it. Another really cool idea. Will we be seeing crocheted masterpieces on your trees in the near furture?!?!?!?!?!?!?!?!

  14. I had heard of this. I think they call it guerilla art, when people turn everyday objects in public space into impromptu art objects. I have not seen one in real life yet, but seeing those trees sure makes me hope I will run into something like this soon.

  16. Wow…really creative!

    I just found your blog and love it! I will be looking at your older posts. I am following too.
    xo
    Ashlyn

  18. This is so cool! Thanks for commenting on my blog, I am so glad I was able to jump over to yours, I’ve had a great time going through all the posts! Your house is amazing, I would have never guessed it to be a split level. You are so talented!

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