National Yarn Bombing Day Transforming Newburgh Indiana Riverwalk

Wait, What Is National Yarn Bombing Day?

Okay, so every day after the show, I check what the next ‘National Day’ is going to be so I can maybe build a question around it for the next morning. Yesterday, I was scrolling through and landed on today’s National Day, and I immediately had to stop and Google it because I had absolutely no idea what it was.

Today is National Yarn Bombing Day.

My first reaction was honestly just “huh, that sounds fun, but what does that even mean?” So I did what any curious person does: I headed straight to Facebook to find out, and I am so glad I did, because what I found was so colorful and fun and makes me proud to live in this town now too.

So What Actually Is Yarn Bombing?

Yarn bombing is exactly as fun as it sounds. It is the art of taking beautifully crocheted and knitted pieces and wrapping them around trees, benches, lamp posts, park railings, basically anything outside that could use a little color and warmth. Think of it like teepeeing someone’s house, but instead of boring white toilet paper draped over the trees, it is carefully crafted, colorful, gorgeous artwork that took hours to create, wrapped perfectly around everything in sight. It is street art with a cozy twist, and it is one of the most wholesome things I have ever seen.

And Then I Found Out Newburgh Did It

Here is where it got personal for me. While I was going down the rabbit hole on Facebook, I discovered that back in 2020, the Historic Newburgh Riverwalk had its very own yarn bombing moment, and of course, it did. I say that with so much love because if you know me, you know I walk that riverwalk daily. I genuinely think it is one of the most beautiful spots in this entire area. Walking it feels like a little slice of heaven, and finding out it was once covered in colorful yarn art made me love it even more.

Six years ago, a group of incredibly talented women went to a whole lot of trouble creating these intricate pieces and wrapping the trees and lamp posts along the riverwalk. Some of the pieces were knitted, and some were crocheted. And yes, before you ask, those are two different things, but both require great skill and serious patience. I tried crocheting, and I have been saying I want to get better for two years now. These ladies, though, each detail in each piece was stunning.

The artists behind it all were Lesley Muehlbauer Nelson, Karin Van Wey, Penny Kroeger, and Heather Flota-Moore, and they absolutely deserve their flowers for this.

Why This Makes Me Love Newburgh Even More

I am still relatively new to calling Newburgh my hometown, and moments like this are exactly why I have fallen so hard for this community. Finding out that six years ago these women poured their time and creativity into beautifying a public space just because they wanted to, with no expectation of anything in return, is the kind of thing that makes you genuinely proud of where you live.

The photos that documented it are still floating around, and they are worth looking up. And to Lesley, Karin, Penny, and Heather, thank you for sharing your talents with Newburgh. That riverwalk has always been special, but you made it even more so.

If you were one of the people who got to see the Newburgh Riverwalk yarn bombing in person back in 2020, we want to hear about it! Drop a comment and tell us what you thought, and if you have photos, please share them because we would love to see them.