Magda Sayeg never meant to become an artist or a trendsetter. She was just trying to figure out what to do with her spare yarn when she accidentally invented yarnbombing.
Yarnbombing is a new type of street art that uses yarn instead of paint. Knitters and crocheters cover walls, trees, and different object on the street with colorful, cozy yarn. The movement started when Sayeg, along with a couple of her knitter friends, using their spare yarn to make door-handle covers.
It was a joke, a way to take something mundane and make fun. But the joked sparked something in Sayeg. She started making cozies and blankets for objects. She started with a ‘stop’ sign and from there went to bigger and biggers things. She also formed a group with her friends, and together they went to cover everything in warn, colorful yarn.
The project gathered media attention after one of Sayeg’s most ambitious projects: a bus. She covered every part of the old vehicle with fun colors and patterns. The piece went viral and yarnbombing became a worldwide trend among knitters. Now you can find sign-posts, doors, and old vehicle dressed in sweaters all over the world. The old grey streets of the city suddenly look so much cozier!
