ConnieLene – KnitDesigner

In my 3 years in the Netherlands I added knit graffiti to several concrete balls in Haarlem and in Maastricht. I no longer search for balls to embellish in the public arena as I was doing whilst living there in the cold Northern climes.

But on Friday – I was driving through the Manukau City Centre trying to find my way home after my sister dropped me off at my parked car, and after I bought the book “Wild Jewellery” at Whitcoulls.

And I got a bit lost, you might say, trying to get back to the motorway after a wrong turn after leaving the parking building. I seemed to be driving by some tall apartment buildings and council buildings until I got onto Station Road – at least I think that is what it was called. I was crossing crossroads – from a give way sign and out of the corner of my eye I spied; you guessed it, some concrete balls (at least 6 maybe 8 from the angle where I spied them). There was nowhere to stop and so I continued onto the motorway.

I hope someone knows where these balls actually are, as I would love the circumference, cause they could need some brightening up and I have not done that to a concrete ball for a year or so now.

So I was going from the parking building left between some tall buildings heading south towards a road which I turned left onto which travelled between the shopping mall and the amusement park Rainbows End towards the motorway. If you know where that is, please let me know. If you are there and have a tape measure – please record the circumference and send it to me and maybe you will find a ball or 2 suitably attired some time in the future.

History:

Who stole the balls of Haarlem

Haarlem, A city without balls

Ball Warmer without a home

Memorial Day Tour April 30th 2011

Lost Balls of Haarlem

Fitting a Ball Warmer

Vodafone Ball Cover Install photos

Today I drove to Mangawhai, north of Auckland, from Miranda (about 185k’s if you go the direct route) to have lunch with some terrific people that I went to primary school with ever so many years ago. I was a bit late having driven the long way there and also included Orewa and Kaiwaka on my route. The restaurant was the Frog and Kiwi, a small restaurant with interesting salt and pepper shakers! you probably guessed already but just in case – one was a frog and the other a Kiwi.

I had a great French Onion Soup and a really good long black.

But the tree, Oh Yes the tree. On the way to Mangawhai I drove into Orewa to deliver a Beanie to Karl and I also stopped to see a tree at the Estuary Arts Centre And it was worthwhile doing so as this tree is festooned with all sorts of yarny things which seems to have happened during a KIP (Knit in Public) event held there during this last week.

They certainly had a psychedelic knit in public day in Orewa. It is a magnificently adorned tree. The Estuary Knitters celebrated WWKIP (World Wide Knitting In Public) day very well indeed.

Haarlem Ball Warmer Memorial tour & install – Queen’s Day, 30th April 2011

We took our snowball with its orange hat to view some of the lovely cafes and bars that we visit for jazz, blues, rock and wine and good company prior to installing on one of the shiny posts that now stand like the row of teeth on a comb in the Grote Markt of Haarlem.

Life has been rather miserable since I found that the great balls of Haarlem have finally been replaced with a row of boring shiney posts.

Last Saturday, a very grey day indeed, when were feeling very very down having received sad news from home, we decided to go to Rotterdam for the day.

Why? – to see if we could get out to and see the great sea walls there, a wonder of the modern world they say. But we arrived too late in the day (at about 10.30am), and because it is quite a distance to get to the starting place (about 96k’s), and without a car all the more difficult. Yes, there were other options, but they did not really seem to satisfy – so we are going on a Wednesday soon, when we will satisfy Best Beloveds need to know and see on a special all day tour including the sea wall, gates, museum etc. They only run this specific all day tour on a Wednesday.

We must do it soon, so that with a bit of luck the sea itself will not be boiling so hard (It is the ferocious North Sea after all) that I cannot cope with the boat trip. Very soon, like, before the end of summer. Oh and I think we are there already, at the end of summer, I mean. The air has changed, the light has changed, it is dark much earlier, even the birds behaviour is changing.

But as you can see – I found another stretch of water, a safe stretch, a calm stretch – a concrete river with concrete balls – and now I am inspired once more. I have a completed ball cover, and another one 75% done – and now I may have a place to position them.

A concrete river, with round river stones – WOW!

In the heart of Rotterdam.

That is the news from Rotterdam

and the next news might be after a very busy Wednesday, I just might need some help with this.

Best Beloved phoned me before lunch today – he was out on a short break and walk after a heavy morning. He who never took much notice of the state of tree trunks on his walks rang to say that seven, 7 no less trees have been yarnbombed on Bos en Lommer (Amsterdam Sloterdijk) – way to go.

Have photos via a trusy Vodafone phone – thank you Best beloved.

And then of course because I am a librarian I went on the hunt to find out more about this event Read about it in Dutch here sorry but it really is all in Dutch – and I haven’t discovered an English explanation – what I do know is that it is an urban knitting project in Almere-Haven, Flevoland (an area of the Netherlands) and the artists are listed on the website with links to their own sites – and they are worth a look.

These are Best Beloveds photos taken with his phone.

The photos here were taken by Harald Walker – in March this year. So it is not a recent event, this yarnbombing.

Pity my ball warmers didn’t survive.

Best Beloved walks here now and again and has just spied them.

Trees with designer coats.