The pattern is the first in the Picture Climate Change series of scarves designed to encourage others to create their own representation of climate change’s effects in their own region such as:

Damage to Coral Reefs
Coral bleaching could be displayed using a gradient yarn, such as OzifarmersMarket Coral, from a deep coral pink ending with silvery-white for 2016-2020, possibly combined with using the density of little tropical fish as a textured pattern along the length to emphasise the temperature change.

Forest Fires
My grandson suggests 1 tree on each side: 1920s onwards is a healthy tree that gets yellower near the top; 2020s and earlier is a burnt trunk moving from black through flames to, maybe, yellow vegetation near the top.

Increasing Flood Risk
The unprecedented flooding in eastern Australia in the last month prompts the idea of using 2 strands of 4ply in relevant colours to show a river (blue/brown) of meandering the whole length of the scarf between green banks illustrating increase in temperature with the extent of overflow shown by river colourway overlapping bank colourway. 2000’s could have river increasing in brown tonings.

Use these ideas as a springboard for your own imagination in any craft medium to picture the effects of our #ClimateEmergency in your own region from increasing floods, to tornados, to melting glaciers to…
Wear so that your concern can be voiced even when you are silent. Please share your idea and a picture of any completed designs with the rest of us.

River to Flames scarf

Two versions are shown. The original, which the written pattern is based off is made of 4 ply cotton. Below are the explanations of the 8ply BWM Bloom version.

This proof-of-concept design extends the basis of the Impressionist Climate Scarf. The cool colours form a river that flows from darker to lighter toning indicating deeper to shallower water, with a light patch in the 1940s for WW2, until it ‘dries out in the sand’ of the neutral shade long term average temperature. The warmer colours start with flame tips that become dark with increasing heat nearer the base, like all flames. Artistic license has been applied to use an extra pale blue shade so that the 1940s could still look like water rather than a sandbar. To balance this, maybe an extra warm shade should also be used.

For the winter version, selective use of the long gradient Bendigo Woollen Mills 8ply Bloom Carribean and Capri colourways with variable ribbing for a braided river illustrates changing temperatures from 1920 to 1970s with the matching changing depths of the river until it dries out in the sand of the long term average temperatures with the use of Bloom Marble Statue. The 1980’s starts with the smoke of early climate scientist warnings before the flames of the 2000’s take over in Bloom Red Skies and Red Ochre.

The colourway is based on the appearance of the accurate global Temperature 6 Colour Climate scarf (see image) illustrating 100 years of global climate (1920-2019), and has been knitted, freeform, in cotton. For another accurate Global Climate scarf see Common Grace’s Knit for Climate Action scarf.

Please share your idea and a picture of any completed designs with the rest of us. If sharing on social media please use #showyourstripes #ClimateEmergencyNow or #ClimateEmergency