Trees around Hitchin’s historic St. Mary’s Church will be festooned with colour on Friday as a crochet crew sets out to ‘yarnbomb’ the town centre site.

The Comet: Yarn bomb event in St Mary's Church, Hitchin, June 2015Yarn bomb event in St Mary's Church, Hitchin, June 2015 (Image: Archant)

The Secret Garden project has enlisted knitting group Hitchin Stitchin to create the intricate woollen decorations as part of this year’s Hitchin Festival programme.

The church was built with money from the medieval wool trade in the area, and its size and beauty shows just how important the industry was to the local economy in the 13th century.

But it’s not just wool being used – Clare Arends, who has taken keeping the town clean and tidy as her theme, has been knitting using plastic bags.

Hitchin-based crochet designer Helen Ingram said: “I was so excited to be asked to decorate a tree. It is an opportunity to show the beauty and versatility of wool and celebrate the British wool industry.”

The Comet: Yarn bomb event in St Mary's Church, Hitchin, June 2015Yarn bomb event in St Mary's Church, Hitchin, June 2015 (Image: Archant)

She has only used British wool, some spun from the fleece of her family’s sheep, in her design.

Philippa Gregory, the organiser of the Festiwool yarn and wool fair which returns to North Herts College’s Hitchin campus in November, will also decorating one of the trees.

The Comet: Helen Ingram of Woolly Chic at her Crochet and Cake meeting in HitchinHelen Ingram of Woolly Chic at her Crochet and Cake meeting in Hitchin (Image: Archant)