Perhaps this post should be subtitled,”How the mighty have fallen.” After doing some supersonic stashbusting in September, I had an unusually high level of stash acquisition in October.
My accomplishments
- I used about 1,020 yards of stash yarn for various projects, including a square and a hat for charity, three ripple projects made as samples for the Ripple Mania crochet-a-long, and a placemat for me. This is roughly the equivalent of 2.8 skeins of Red Heart Super Saver.
On the other hand…
- I bought six skeins of yarn at the North Jersey Fiber Arts Festival (2,070 yards, or the equivalent of 5.7 skeins of Red Heart Super Saver), as well as some roving.
- I bought five skeins of yarn during the New York City Yarn Crawl (1,380 yards, or the equivalent of 3.8 skeins of Red Heart Super Saver).
- I had two additional shopping excursions at Knitty City during the last week of October.
I picked up 3 skeins of Berroco Ultra Alpaca before the storm.

Although I had intended projects for these skeins, I definitely feel that the storm had something to do with it. Beforehand, I imagined I would do a lot of crocheting while hibernating indoors. (I actually spent more time online and watching the news.) After Sandy I wanted to support a local business when so many have been devastated, perhaps beyond repair. Whatever the reasons, these excursions added another 945 yards (equivalent to 2.6 skeins of Red Heart Super Saver) to my stash.
The Verdict
I think it’s clear the stash emerged victorious this month. I ended up with 3,375 more yards in my stash than I used this month – that’s like 9.25 skeins of Red Heart Super Saver! On the other hand, I did such a great job of stashbusting during the year that all the yarn still fits into my plastic tubs, with space to spare! When I started this challenge, I also had yarn stashed in bags and boxes because my bins were overrun.
November Goals
I would like to finish up my holiday projects using stash yarn, make 2 or 3 more charity projects, and get started on another scarf or cowl for me. I love the one I made in October, but I also need something neutral that I can wear.
For more stashbusting updates, visit the Surmount the Stash group on Ravelry.