Avoiding the stash

A couple of posts ago, I mentionned Elann's hemp yarn that was on sale. Jeannie suggested that I buy it even if I'm not planning on using it for a long time. I'll admit I was very tempted. But I'm a weird kind of knitter.

I don't want a stash.

It's not that I think knitters shouldn't accumulate crazy amount of yarn. There's a part of me that wishes I could have my own yarn store in my appartment. I do look at people's stash pics and I drool. I'm only human.

But I don't want a stash.

Of course, having a little stash becomes pretty much inevitable at some point, unless you're the type of knitter who can buy yarn for one project and not buy anything else until it's done. I'm not like that and I tend to buy yarn thinking I'll start a project after I'm done with my current ones, but by the time I'm finished, I often don't feel like knitting the item I had planned after all. I've also received yarn as gifts and I have participated in Secret Pals exchanges. Not to mention that I have a bunch of crappy yarn that I bought when I was just starting and didn't know better.

So I do have a little stash but so far it fits into two medium-sized baskets. Oh and I also have a couple of cones. As well as a few skeins in a drawer. But that's it.

You may be wondering why I don't want a stash. It's simple. I live in a small one bedroom appartment. I have no space for a stash (and I tend to clutter and don't want to make my problem worse). So I feel guilty when I have too much. Then I feel like I should really use what I have and I end up having to knit stuff I don't necessarily feel like knitting just because I want to use up yarn.

So I try not to buy yarn unless I *know* I'll use it soon. The only exception (HA! Of course there's an exception) is sock yarn. I don't mind buying it even if I don't think I'll use it right away because I know for sure it'll get used eventually. I have some yarn (mostly the crappy acrylics I mentionned before or balls of yarn that are leftover from other projects) that I have no idea if I'll ever use. But sock yarn? I'm not worried. I still try not to go crazy and buy 20 balls at once though.

So today I went to the yarn store and got yarn for two pairs:


I'll see if I can work on Kiri at tonight's knitting meetup, but that may not be possible so I won't have any choice but to start a new pair of socks (poor little me!) ;)

Oh and I'm sure you're all dying for an update on Mariah. Well let's just say I had no idea that knitting a stupid hood would take that long. I'm almost there though.

I'll end this post with a link to a beautiful sweater pattern: Clicky!. I'm not sure when I'll have the time to make this, but I really want to!