Stash dive
So you know how I said I was doing things a little differently this month? The idea was to take some time off. So far I seem to be completely failing at that. I took time off from bringing out new patterns (I’m doing Summer School and showing off some old ones instead). But instead of actually not working and instead relaxing, all I can think of is all the new stuff I want to make.
But that’s part of the fun, right? And as part of that plotting out new schemes thing, I did the occasional full toss of the stash. Here it is in it’s gloriously purged and sorted state.
The big bin has scraps that are big enough to be useful (I’m digging my scraps bin lately, it’s where things like the stars and hearts and acorns and cupcakes come from, and I have several more tiny bits projects coming up…all hail the scraps bin). Then I have four medium bins (currently divided into solids or semi solids, multi colors, single ply, and yarn from Seven Sisters Arts/String Theory because yes, yes they really do make up that big a chunk of my stash and that totally makes sense). Then there’s a tiny bin of whiteish yarn.
And yeah, I realize that these are not exclusive categories. That the white yarn is solid, and some of it is single ply. And that the single ply yarn is sometimes solid and sometimes multi color. But it’s what works really well for me. I know just which bin something will be in (and just which bin new yarn goes into), and it helps me find what I’m looking for when I have a project in mind.
How do you like to organize your stash? Do you ever dump it all out at one time and go through it all? Is my stash the size you thought it was (everyone always assumes I have a yarn shop in here…but really it all fits in part of one small closet, so I don’t worry about it too much)?
I recently consolidated all my yarn into one place. I sorted it into sock yarn, and then since most of what I buy has a destiny, I put the yarn for each project together in a large baggie (I have to use baggies as I have a moth problem from a secondhand rug). Now I can easily collect the yarn for a project, and I can see how many things I need to complete! I store it all in on some shelves of a wardrobe along with our family games.
My stash is somewhat organized into different large bins. Sock yarns are separated from sweater quantities, another bin full of reclaimed yarns from thrifted sweaters, each of those in their own clear plastic bags with info cards. There’s one mixed bin full of stragglers that I couldn’t fit in other bins plus undyed yarns I thought I’d eventually dye. My scrap yarns have gone from a gallon size bag to a medium bin since I can’t bare to throw any of it away, especially if I need to mend socks.
Your stash is a tiny bit smaller than I expected, but not by much, since I know you do this reasonably frequently and you’re constantly knitting. I have plans to dump mine & look for options to swatch for a test knit, but at the moment I don’t have the floor space. I currently have about 1.5 33 gallon totes of yarn, and one of fiber, and a tiny shoebox of handspun. So more than you, but not as much as some. 🙂