Curl up with a coral reef

Coral reefs: wet, hard (in places), living. Crocheted objects: fuzzy, soft, inanimate. So never the twain shall meet—right? Actually, sometimes you can hardly tell the difference.

"Crochet Coral and Anemone Garden" with sea slug by Marianne Midelburg. Photo by Alyssa Gorelick.

The top photo shows an actual reef. The bottom photo is a crocheted coral reef developed by The Institute for Figuring’s Crochet Coral Reef project as “a woolly celebration of the intersection of higher geometry and feminine handicraft, and a testimony to the disappearing wonders of the marine world.” Their concern is very timely. 2008 is the International Year of the Reef, and recently several new reports have indicated increased threats to coral reefs around the world. And their reef is nearly as spectacular as the real thing.