It’s been just over a year since I first learned about Revelations of a Delusional Knitter and her Surmount the Stash challenge.
This has been an interesting year for me in terms of stash. I started using Ravelry’s features more actively, which helped me track my stash more closely. I also started working with Galler Yarns, and I received more yarn support for upcoming designs in 2012 than in any previous year. In spite, or because of all of these things, I’ve actually been able to make a noticeable dent in my yarn stash and am definitely ending 2012 with less yarn than I started with!
In December, I didn’t finish many projects since I’m working on a very large secret project. I did manage to use up 112 yards on little holiday projects.
I also added 79 yards to my stash in yarn support remnants. I reorganized my yarn bins so that I could store everything in 5 bins rather than having a box of yarn support on the side. Overall, not a very significant month in terms of my stash!
During the course of the year, I learned a few things that may be helpful to you if stashbusting is on your list of New Year’s Resolutions.
- Talking about my stash helped keep me accountable. I kept track of my stashbusting efforts through my monthly Surmount the Stash updates and I am also active on the Surmount the Stash group on Ravelry.
- Tracking yardage was more effective for me than tracking skeins. For my first few updates, I talked about the number of skeins I used up or bought. Later I learned that I used a lot more yarn in partial skeins (especially for charity projects), so I decided to track by yardage. I compared the yardage used to skeins of Red Heart Super Saver so I could still have a visual reference.
- Be thoughtful about purchases. I approached yarn festivals and yarn crawls with a plan, including a monetary budget or skein limit (or both).
- Let it go. While it would be nice to sell every bit of yarn I don’t plan to use, it was often better to take a loss on what was spent on the yarn in exchange for more space and less clutter in my home. I donated yarn to charity and gave some away. I sold other skeins at a discount to move them out of my apartment.
- Don’t forget about trades. I needed certain colors for a project for a swap over the summer, and I was able to get what I needed by trading and buying partial skeins on Ravelry. I ended up with just the right amounts and for less money.
- Remain flexible. Your priorities may change as your stash shifts. I wasn’t worried about yarn support when I started my stashbusting efforts but now I plan to track it so I can keep a closer eye on my stash.
What are your stash plans for 2013?