Fairies Really Do Exist!
by Tallulah Treadaway
The yarn bombers turning the post-boxes of Barnoldswick into scenes from a real-life fairy tale.
Every once in a while, even as adults, it’s nice to look back on our childhood fairy tales and fantasies. Well, for the town of Barnoldswick that mystery and magic will never have to end! Knitted and crocheted post-box toppers have been popping up all over town, appearing in the middle of the night; made by their very own Barlick Yarn Fairies.
The town of Barnoldswick is an enchanting place, not only because of its northern charm but because it’s home to the Barlick Yarn Fairies. Their magical adventure started at the beginning of lockdown when they, like many of us, were looking for a new hobby. “Neither one of us had really crocheted before but we were learning from tutorials and things.” They began by creating crochet octopuses for premature babies. Since then, locals have started to spot pop-ups of beautiful crochet and knitted displays on the post boxes and as decoration throughout town.
“It may surprise you that these incredible displays are the combined work of only two fairies!”
The fairies have created displays of George the Dragon aptly named to celebrate St George’s Day, hearts for Valentine’s Day, and Easter arrangements. One of their first projects was creating red, white, and blue flowers to celebrate VE day. The official celebrations were cancelled due to the pandemic and so they decided to place the crocheted flowers all around the town. People were encouraged to find one and take it home and to keep them as a commemoration of the celebrations. So far, one of their favourite pieces has been their bollard toppers placed outside Rolls Royce, with pieces dedicated to the merchant navy, the royal navy, the army, and the navy.
It may surprise you that these incredible displays are the combined work of only two fairies!
Both have full-time jobs and spend their evenings knee-deep in yarn to produce these intricate pieces of art for only two reasons: “a little bit of excitement and to put a smile on people’s faces.”
They have never done any of this to be recognised or thanked for their work. “We’re usually doing it in darkness… it’s nice that you can drive by, and you can see people looking at them and people will say ‘oh, wow look at this,’ and you see people taking photos and we just wander by and smile and think ‘That’s why we do it.’” So, keep an eye out because you never quite know who you’ll be standing next to!
One of the most rewarding consequences of their ‘hobby’ has been seeing the response of the local community, with members of the local area even chipping in and lending a hand with some of their larger projects.
The pieces certainly do not go to waste. After they have been appreciated by the town, the fairies collect the materials and sew them all together to make blankets which are then donated to different charities so that the good intentions of their work continue to be enjoyed by people who need it most.
Remembrance day display
“It’s been bigger than we could ever have imagined.” They laugh knowing that they have “been famous by not being famous.”
But it’s not just the people of Barnoldswick who are showing their appreciation for the hard work of the fairies, thanks to social media their work has been spotted by people all over the world! “You’ve got people in America saying ‘I wish we had post box toppers like that!’” Their work has inspired others to learn and create, one made its way to the yellow post boxes in Lanzarote. It has even made national TV with some post box toppers appearing on the One Show. “It’s been bigger than we could ever have imagined.” They laugh knowing that they have “been famous by not being famous.”
This is truly a story of community and the joy that small pieces of art can bring. You only have to read the comments on the Facebook pages to see how genuinely touched and meaningful these displays are to so many people. Their colourful toppers bring a smile to the faces of anyone who sees them, and for people who can’t get out to see them in person, they can look at all the pictures which others have posted online.
The work of the Barlick Yarn fairies is just proof that you are never too old to embrace the joy of a fantasy world; their hard work and imaginative creations have turned the post-boxes of Barnoldswick into scenes from a real-life fairy tale.
Take a look at the Barlick Yarn Fairies Facebook page to keep up to date with what the fairies have been up to and what is coming next!
Craven&ValleyLife Summer 23
