Greetings and Dear Laura:
Whew! With the blanket in my rear-view mirror, I feel like I'm on vacation or something! Just knitting away on whatever I'd like. The cuff of my first Sockapalooza 4 sock only needs a few more inches to the cuff, so I'm in good shape there. I'm hoping to do some swatching tomorrow on a baby sweater. Oh, and cleaning my house! Good heavens, it's amazing how quickly it reverts to dust-bunnies.
Last March, I posted about my genetic tendency to stash in a post called My Grandmother's Stash. I followed up later in the spring with a stash sale that lightened the load and also resulted in a bit of organization. At least it all saw the light of day, if only for a few weeks!
I've pretty much always lived with a stash philosophy of "More is Better." Or, "She who dies with the most yarn wins!" Let's just say what when someone would bring up ideas for breaking a stash addiction, my response has always been a resounding, "WHY???"
My attitude is shifting, however, and I blame this.
I listen to my iPod at work. Depending on the project and level of concentration, I either listen to music, an audiobook or podcasts. High concentration - music. Medium concentration - a book that I have already liked in print or audio. Low concentration - a new book or podcast. I also tend to listen to podcasts in bunches. When I discover a new podcast, I download all of the available episodes and listen to them in order. Sometimes after the first few episodes I decide not to continue. However, if I liked the podcast, the next time I go on a podcast jag, I'll catch up-to-date on those that I enjoy.
Early last March, I discovered the first few episodes of "Stash and Burn" featuring Jenny and Nicole from San Francisco. I was amazed that they are tracking their stash on a spreadsheet (hello!) and knew exactly how many yard of yarn that they have. (One of them had 65,000 yards!!!) I was torn between admiration, horror, fear, and the nagging question....(whispered) how much do I actually have???? It can't be THAT much, can it??
Then I went into my hall closet to find something, grabbed a bag that was stuffed under a pile of things and opened it to discover yarn that I had no recollection of acquiring. Kinda freaked me out, I have to say.
In my defense, having touched all of my stash in the last few months, those 4 balls are the only ones that I have no recollection of. I sometimes have to think awhile, and some yarn brings to mind more detail than other yarn.....but even with the receipt, I don't remember buying this yarn!
Since discovering "Stash and Burn," I've toyed with the idea of a Stash Spreadsheet of my own. I've mostly been restrained by thinking about how much knitting time would be used up in data entry. Then along came Ravelry, which is so much better than just a spreadsheet! It's a full featured stash-o-rama, online and shared! I am so psyched!
I think the best thing that I have learned so far in my Stash Management (I'm not DE-stashing!) journey is that I want to SEE my stash. At some point, I wanted all of this yarn. Even if it hadn't spoken about what it wanted to be, or even if it has changed what it will be, if I don't see it I don't love it. And if I'm always adding yarn that I love then I'm missing an opportunity to knit what I already loved.
Alright. Enough for now. More stash talk on the way tho!!
Keep knitting!
Cynthia (aka Designated Knitter)
Whew! With the blanket in my rear-view mirror, I feel like I'm on vacation or something! Just knitting away on whatever I'd like. The cuff of my first Sockapalooza 4 sock only needs a few more inches to the cuff, so I'm in good shape there. I'm hoping to do some swatching tomorrow on a baby sweater. Oh, and cleaning my house! Good heavens, it's amazing how quickly it reverts to dust-bunnies.
Last March, I posted about my genetic tendency to stash in a post called My Grandmother's Stash. I followed up later in the spring with a stash sale that lightened the load and also resulted in a bit of organization. At least it all saw the light of day, if only for a few weeks!
I've pretty much always lived with a stash philosophy of "More is Better." Or, "She who dies with the most yarn wins!" Let's just say what when someone would bring up ideas for breaking a stash addiction, my response has always been a resounding, "WHY???"
My attitude is shifting, however, and I blame this.
I listen to my iPod at work. Depending on the project and level of concentration, I either listen to music, an audiobook or podcasts. High concentration - music. Medium concentration - a book that I have already liked in print or audio. Low concentration - a new book or podcast. I also tend to listen to podcasts in bunches. When I discover a new podcast, I download all of the available episodes and listen to them in order. Sometimes after the first few episodes I decide not to continue. However, if I liked the podcast, the next time I go on a podcast jag, I'll catch up-to-date on those that I enjoy.
Early last March, I discovered the first few episodes of "Stash and Burn" featuring Jenny and Nicole from San Francisco. I was amazed that they are tracking their stash on a spreadsheet (hello!) and knew exactly how many yard of yarn that they have. (One of them had 65,000 yards!!!) I was torn between admiration, horror, fear, and the nagging question....(whispered) how much do I actually have???? It can't be THAT much, can it??
Then I went into my hall closet to find something, grabbed a bag that was stuffed under a pile of things and opened it to discover yarn that I had no recollection of acquiring. Kinda freaked me out, I have to say.
In my defense, having touched all of my stash in the last few months, those 4 balls are the only ones that I have no recollection of. I sometimes have to think awhile, and some yarn brings to mind more detail than other yarn.....but even with the receipt, I don't remember buying this yarn!
Since discovering "Stash and Burn," I've toyed with the idea of a Stash Spreadsheet of my own. I've mostly been restrained by thinking about how much knitting time would be used up in data entry. Then along came Ravelry, which is so much better than just a spreadsheet! It's a full featured stash-o-rama, online and shared! I am so psyched!
I think the best thing that I have learned so far in my Stash Management (I'm not DE-stashing!) journey is that I want to SEE my stash. At some point, I wanted all of this yarn. Even if it hadn't spoken about what it wanted to be, or even if it has changed what it will be, if I don't see it I don't love it. And if I'm always adding yarn that I love then I'm missing an opportunity to knit what I already loved.
Alright. Enough for now. More stash talk on the way tho!!
Keep knitting!
Cynthia (aka Designated Knitter)
1 comment:
I know what you mean about having to see your stash. I have mine in clear shoe boxes on the shelf. I also have several baskets and bowls of yarn around the house. It looks pretty, the family doesn't mind, and it makes me happy to see it!
Laura from Ari
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