9 Lies and Excuses we Tell Ourselves About Our Yarn Stash

I made these batts before I knew how to use a drum carder. I finally admitted to myself that I’m never going to use them. They are now cat toys – I felted them in the laundry.

I’m in the process of getting organized after the wedding.  This is actually stating it rather mildly – I didn’t realize how many things I’d let go in the last few weeks before the wedding, as small planning details took over much of my brain.  One of the things that has become truly noticeable is how my yarn stash has escapes it’s confines, and is now… well, everywhere.  This is even more of a problem because I have to keep track, and keep separate, stash for designing and personal stash.  I’ve had to confront a few lies and excuses I’ve been telling myself about my stash:

1. It coordinates with XY&Z, so I should keep it. Some of the time, this is a good reason to hold onto the yarn – especially if you have plans for it.  But if it’s in a weight or fiber that you just don’t use… find a new home for it.  Ravelry has both groups and a stash page for trading or selling yarn you won’t use.  Make use of those resources.  Not familiar with Ravelry?  Then you should take my Ravelry 101 class.
2. I spun it, thus I must use it. I know the pain of this one, I really do.  But some of the yarns I spun when I was first learning?  I’ll NEVER use.  I didn’t know how to spin what I wanted, so I either spun something too thick, or without enough body.  So, ask yourself some questions: can you give this to someone who will love it?  Can you re-purpose it?  Can you make it into something you can use?  If the answer to all of these is no, it’s time to donate that yarn.  It’s taking up space that could be for something you do use.
3. But it was such a great deal! This is one point I used to have a lot of problems with.  Now, as a designer, I have an entirely different view about yarn.  But I come from a family of deal – hunters, and that type of upbringing is hard to resist.  Just remember – if you haven’t used it in the past two years, do you really think you are going to use it in the next two years?
4. I’ll use it someday. Maybe you will.  But if you are like me, the appeal of something new and shiny is better than the yarn that is already in my stash.  Make room for new stuff.  Use it, or (deliberately) loose it.
5. It’s too nice to make ___ with it. This is one I struggle with.  I have lovely, lovely yarn in my stash, and it’s so beautiful, so wonderful, I can’t find a single pattern that is worthy of it.  A lot of it is my hand-spun  which I have created with such care that I can’t possibly imagine a pattern that will highlight it’s beautify adequately  But I have to realize this: if I don’t ever use it, nobody else will ever see the beautiful hand-spun I made. Or the beautiful yarn that I found.
6. Everyone has to have a little bit of ___, for emergencies.  This is true to a limited extent.  I recommend to everyone who makes socks to keep a couple of yards of the yarn just in case you have to darn something.  But you don’t need to keep half a skein.  You don’t need three balls of worsted weight black, so you can make eyes on your animals.  A little bit is enough. So save what you need and clear out what you don’t.  You’ll be happier for it.
7. This dyer is out of business/isn’t available, so I have to keep it! Okay, you can’t get more of it, that is true.  But if you aren’t going to use it, it doesn’t matter how rare of a yarn that it is.  You know what I’m going to say already – be honest with yourself.  Get rid of it if you aren’t going to use it.
8. I have such fond memories of getting this yarn. Great.  Now make something out of it, so you’ll have fond memories of making something out of it too.  Yarn is meant to be used.
9. I got it as a gift – I don’t want to insult the person by not keeping it. I actually had a skein of yarn that my now-husband, then boyfriend gave me.  It was acrylic, and he didn’t know better, but it meant the world to me that he thought to buy it for me.  But I’d never use it for something for myself – it just wasn’t what I used.  So I made a quick gift for someone else, and kept a small ball of the leftovers.  I still have that small ball, but now someone else is made happy by what I made.