Yarn stash club

As you know, I’m joining in with Revelations of a Delusional Knitter‘s Surmount the Stash 2012 challenge in hopes of reducing my yarn stash to more manageable levels.

After writing my original post for this challenge, I came across this post by mk carroll, who suggested the idea of making kits from your stash yarn.  She herself was inspired by this post by Stephanie Pearl-McPhee (a.k.a. the Yarn Harlot).  The idea of having pre-assembled kits of hook, yarn, and pattern at the ready for me to grab in the morning is pretty exciting.

I’ve never been a “morning person” – yes, even as a kid, my parents struggled to drag me out of bed in time for school – and I’ve been known to be downright annoying when I’m running late for work, but I still have to find “that yarn” before I leave in order to have something to do on the subway ride.

I’ll also confess that while I’m still in the middle of what seems to be the world’s largest blanket project, the idea of other – shorter – projects is quite appealing.  Last night, I started imagining my own yarn stash club, and here is my first set of ideas for kits.

• Mr. Crabby by Stacey Trock, available from Crocheted Softies: 18 Adorable Animals from Around the World (reviewed here). This would be a great gift for MC, and I happen to have a nice, red skein of Patons Classic Wool (along with some white remnants) in my stash.
• A Hat Fit for a Fella by Shana Kreikemeier, available from her website needyl. This would be a great gift for my dad or his partner – they both have aran cabled sweaters for the winter, and I actually bought a white skein of Cascade 220 Superwash on Small Business Saturday at Knitty City for this very purpose.
• Yoga Socks/Pilates Peds by Pam Daley, available from KnitPicks as a gift for my mom or sister.  (Heck, if I like the pattern, I’ll probably make a pair for each of them.)  But I haven’t chosen the yarn yet – my sock yarn is a bit deeper in the stash and I need to pick a skein with the right amount of yardage.

This is, of course, in addition to all my plans for dwindling my acrylic stash through charity crafting.  I know I want to make more granny squares in 2012, so I decided to create some order in the pattern chaos there, too.  I plan to start with the newest book in my granny collection, The Granny Square Book: Timeless Techniques and Fresh Ideas for Crocheting Square by Square by Margaret Hubert.  I scanned through it and found a set of 14 relatively sturdy looking grannies in 3 colors or fewer – just perfect for charity crafting with stash yarn.

Now all I need to do is finish the bedspread for my sister and those three design projects, and I’ll be back on track for pleasure crocheting (and knitting).

Tags: a hat fit for a fella, cascade 220 superwash, charity, crochet, crocheted softies: 18 adorable animals from around the world, destash, freshstitches, granny square, granny square book, knitpicks, knitting, margaret hubert, mk carroll, mr. crabby, needyl, pam daley, patons classic wool, pilates peds, revelations of a delusional knitter, shana kreikemeier, stacey trock, stephanie pearl-mcphee, surmount the stash 2012, yarn, yarn harlot, yoga socks