Coronavirus: Rainbow trail success surprises Ipswich mum

A mum credited with popularising the trend of creating rainbows during lockdown has said she is "amazed" it has become a global phenomenon.

Crystal Stanley, of Ipswich, said she set up the Rainbow Trail Facebook page after seeing "something similar" on social media from Italy.

More than 182,000 members from around the world have since joined her group.

Miss Stanley, 31, said the rainbows were a sign of "positivity, hope and togetherness" during the crisis.

The mother-of-one said she painted her first rainbow on an old piece of wallpaper.

She said she "thought it would be a bit of fun" to encourage others to create them for their windows.

About 4,000 joined the Facebook group within two days and it had "just got bigger and bigger" since, she said.

Miss Stanley said the group had members from across the country and around the world, including Thailand, the United States and Australia.

"It's literally been unbelievable how far it's gone," she said.

The creativity shown by people was "fantastic", she said, adding that she had been sent images of rainbows made from pine cones and toys.

She said she got thousands of posts on the Facebook page a day and the Rainbow Trail had set up a fundraising page to help East Anglia's Children's Hospices (EACH).

Miss Stanley, who has a daughter Ariana Batchelor, three, said: "Seeing the rainbows makes me think of the children or adults who have created them and what they are all going through during these hard times.

"And they have created these to show support for all the key workers and to make them smile when they see them."

On Sunday, the Queen said the rainbows would be the symbol of the UK's "national spirit" in the face of the pandemic.

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