Yarn Bombed Pedicab/bike

Joy, colorful joy- the yarn bombed buses in India, yarn bombed trees, yarn bombing produces colorful works of art that really make me happy.  The Instructables bike speed challenge was the inspiration I needed to create a movable work of art.  As soon as I saw my friend’s pedicab, I knew it would be the perfect canvas for yarn bombing.  The same idea could easily be applied to a bike, especially for a holiday parade, as the yarn can easily be removed.  It is so much fun to ride a moving work of art.

Yarn, yarn, yarn and some more yarn ,Bike/ pedicab, Circle loom, Pompom maker, Battery operated lights/ wheel Brightz spoke lights, Store bought pompoms (small), Fishing line, Handlebar tassels, bike basket, and Zip ties

optional- (If needed) Sandpaper, paint, cleaning supplies, fabric(if recovering seat) yarn bombing can be temporary and does not effect the bike, so any bike can be yarn bombed

Tools - (optional) Staple gun, Paint brushes, buckets,

Clean the bike, sand any areas that are rusty, use an SOS pad to remove rust spots from the wheels. A clean shiny bike inspires creativity.

Paint (optional)  This bike was just painted with leftover paint from painting a bedroom. The small gold designs were just free handed with a small brush and gold craft paint. A quilt provided the idea for the back of the seat. The design on the bottom bar was inspired by aboriginal art of small dots made with a pencil eraser. Any colors or designs can be used.

Wrap the spokes.  Using a figure 8 pattern, start at the hub and work towards the rim.  It will look like an hourglass.  TIP- this is time consuming, to avoid frustration, do one or two spokes while listening to great music , take a break and come back to the process.  It takes time but the results are stunning!

Decide which bars are going to be covered with knitted covers.  Measure the length of each bar. Use a 24 peg or a loom with an inside diameter of 4 inches to knit “tubes” that are two inches longer than the bar that you want to cover.  Using a circle loom is simple and my 6 year old was able to help with the knitting process. Again, this requires time and is best done while watching TV, on a long car trip....or get people to help. The covers do not have to be the same pattern, use whatever yarn you have available.

AFTER you have secured all the pompoms, add the knitted Tubes, Wrap the knitted tube around the bar, use the embroidery needle and a piece of yarn, secure with a whip stitch. The knitted tubes will cover and conceal the fishing line that secures the pom poms.

Using a pompom maker ( available at any craft store), make lots of pompoms.  The pedicab has 32 large and medium pom poms plus 9 feet of pompom garland from the dollar store and two bags of pom poms from the dollar store.  They are fun to make and any that are not used on the bike project can be turned into pets by adding googly eyes or fun book markers.  Again, easy for my six year old to help.

Add pom poms. Use an embroidery needle to thread the pom pom onto the fishing line.  Tie securely to any area, the basket looks great with pom poms.  I added store bought poms to the design to add visual interest and reduce the number of pom poms that had to be made. Be careful to make sure that they will not get tangled in the wheels and use zip ties to secure any that may slide on the bars

Lights and accessories.  Follow the directions to add spoke lights.  Rummage around the house for fun things to add.  A bell that was a little broken and a pot of yellow flowers were the perfect accents.

Double check that nothing will tangle in the chain or wheels, then take it for a spin Yarn bombing your bike(s) is a fun family activity that will create a mobile work of art that brings color and joy to your  neighborhood