Vandalism never took so long, nor has it looked so good.

Kamloops has already seen a bit of yarn bombing here and there.

Next week, people walking and working in the city's core during the downtown spring festival will see more examples up close as perpetrators feverishly work their needles in preparation for the day of action.

The most recent example here was a flamboyantly festooned meter in front of Electrictree Yarns.

"It's about taking stagnant, stale public spaces and beautifying them," said Caroline Dick, who co-owns the downtown retail shop along with her mother.

"It's fun. There's quite a group of elderly ladies coming to the store and asking about doing vandalism."

The practice originated in the U.S. Three years ago, the U.K.'s Telegraph newspaper mentioned in a story "wooly creations around public property like trees, street signs and lampposts."

An extreme example saw a Texas shop owner completely cover an abandoned bus in crochet and knitting.

Two Vancouver authors have written a book, Yarn Bombing: the Art of Crochet and Knit Graffiti.

Dick said she first heard about the idea several years ago at a "fibre fest" — an industry and consumer trade show.

Since opening the shop on Labour Day last year, Dick said there have been examples of yarn bombing here and there in Kamloops and a lot more interest from customers.

Some of the yarn bombed parking meter work was transferred stealthily to the front door of her shop.

Dick's new shop comes as an extension of her upbringing on a Saltspring Island farm, where her family raised sheep.

Her mom, Patricia Donnelly, co-owns the shop. Dick takes fair-trade wool as well as wool sourced locally and processes it at her family's Saltspring farm.

Knitting is generally more popular than crochet because it uses one-third of the wool for any given project.

Besides yarn bombing, another clue that fibre arts, as crocheting and knitting are classified, is becoming popular is the expanding customer base and increased visits to the shop.

"There's a huge renaissance in fibre arts," Dick said.

"Everyone wants to make their own things now. We're getting people in their 20s and 30s coming in. When I was young, I didn't want anything from my grandmother."

cfortems@kamloopsnews.ca