In the near future, you might see some weird and woolly stuff as you walk around the Perron District. The statue of Millie Seitz in the Celebration Garden might have a nice new set of mittens. The Butt Hinge bench in front of Perron Courtyard might have a knitted seat cover. St. Albert Place itself could be wrapped in a huge cozy.

The possibilities are endless – and all fantastically fun – if you ask Geoff Manderscheid. The teen services co-ordinator at the St. Albert Public Library is in the process of gathering supplies and rallying the troops to start a yarn-bombing club for teens.

“I’m definitely into art like street art so I’m definitely coming from that angle and that appreciation,” Manderscheid explained, emphasizing that he has no knitting experience personally.

“We’ve partnered with some volunteers in the community and they’re going to help teach us how to knit and crochet and do all kinds of neat things,” he said.

All that’s required is the willingness to learn and the desire to decorate the world.

Yarn bombing is a kind of graffiti in which knitted creations are placed on public objects like lampposts, trees and even buses. The purpose is to liven up some otherwise staid and stale public fixtures while also promoting the centuries-old art of knitting.

To get the ball rolling, Manderscheid recently bedecked some of the knee-high light posts in front of St. Albert Place with wool hats. City workers removed them soon afterward but Manderscheid isn’t disheartened, especially since he has permission to adorn public art.

“It’s one of those things. As an art installation, it can be very beautiful. Also, it can be very humorous too. It just depends on how it moves you. I think this is really going to move some people. I think it’s going to have a pretty positive impact on our public spaces.”

To further the benefit of the entire project, the knitted pieces will eventually be sewn together and made into blankets that will be donated to the St. Albert Food Bank as well as Family and Community Support Services to warm up struggling families in the city.

The library is hosting a meeting Thursday, Jan. 17 from 6:30 to 7:30 p.m. to build support and gather interested teenagers.

Manderscheid is also accepting supplies like yarn and knitting needles. For more information, people can call him at the library at 780-418-6622 or visit www.sapl.ab.ca.

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