No Valentine's Day Gift? Try a Free Scarf in Bryant Park

For this Valentine's day, forget the florist. The perfect gift may still be lying around Bryant Park. 

Hundreds of knitted scarves were strategically placed throughout Bryant Park this morning to the bewilderment of pedestrians. They were hanging from lampposts and off of chairs. And they were all for free. 

Rico Martinez of Brooklyn said he works in construction nearby, and when he saw scarves all over the place, he knew he had found the perfect Valentine's Day gift for his scarf-less mother.

"I got one for myself because my neck was kind of cold, but then I thought about my mom today. So I saw a really nice one that was purple, and I picked it up for my mother. Later, I'm going to buy her flowers, and I'm going to bring it to her," Martinez said.

The scarf for Martinez's mother was made by a group of women who knit the scarves in the summer and give them up to the cold and the needy in the winter. The Bryant Park program is called "Found But Not Lost," and the name is printed on the tag for every scarf. 

Looking for a way to warm the necks of her daughters, Paris native Cecil Sarabeia said she was glad to find the scarves. When asked about the scarves, her daughter Leona said one thing: "They are beautiful."

Visiting from Houston, Sam and Sarah Harden said the scarves were a godsend as they were unprepared for the New York weather.

"It's really cold outside. We were eating lunch and our necks were freezing. And we see the scarves and apparently they're giving them away for free," Sam Harden said.

Sam Harden said the scarves sync up perfectly with Valentine's Day.

"And now I don't have to get her anything [for Valentine's Day]," he said, chuckling.

"Yeah, I don't know about that," his wife, Sarah Harden, responded.

Sam Harden said he was just joking as they plan to spend the rest of their Valentine's Day, necks covered, exploring New York City.