I’ve added this post to the Unraveled Wednesday linkup, with thanks to Kat for hosting.
Until very recently, my stash was on our living room bookshelves, all neatly tucked into boxes.
That’s right, all there, organised by colour. Oh, except for my project bags. Those don’t count anyway. They’re not just stash any more, they have Purpose. And they lived down the side of the sofa. Or in one case, on the arm of the sofa.
But that was it, all arranged neatly except the project bags. Oh, and the box on the coffee table shelf. Nearly forgot about that. So just the bookshelf boxes, the projects, and the box under the table, which was out of sight and causing no trouble to anyone.
Although… that bookshelf also had some other bits and pieces on it, lower down. Not all mine, you understand! In fact, mostly fabrics and sewing stuff of G’s. I just had one project bag, inherited from a relative, with a few skeins and some needles and maybe other notions that I hadn’t looked through properly. And a finished object that I wasn’t happy with. But mostly not mine, that shelf, that’s the key message here.
I mean, sure, there were those coffee jars with scraps in… but those were decorative. More housewares than stash, really. Something any home would benefit from. The fact that I occasionally knit with those scraps is besides the point. They’re Not Stash.
Alright and then there was that one lonely yet lovely skein that was waiting to be made into my Cardigan of Theseus. Which was also on the bookshelf. The same bookshelf. But that was *it*. Just the boxes, the projects, the other box under the table, the inherited bag, the scrap jars, and the lonely/lovely skein.
Because nobody would count the plastic boxes stacked up next to my work desk as stash, would they? Even if they were full of cotton yarn and WiPs? And assorted items that may or may not be knitting adjacent, like empty tote bags waiting for projects and stuffing for toys?
Alright, a person might count those as stash. That might be understandable.
But truly, that’s all there was. The shelf boxes, the sofa projects, the coffee table box, the inherited bag, the scrap jars, the skein, and the plastic tubs. Truly. It was all under control and Completely Fine.
And even though that was definitely the case and there was no cause for concern, I was extremely delighted when half of the office was converted to a brand new crafting space for me! I moved the entire stash (with some necessary clearing out as I went) and set everything up on my new unit, along with myriad other supplies for jewellery, resin, painting, and general arts and crafts.
I also moved all my buttons, needles, and blocking boards out of my work desk drawers. Forgot to mention those. That’s how out of sight and under control they were.
Truth be told, I was fooling nobody, least of all myself. I knew I had tons of arts and crafts stuff and I was desperate to have it organised. And my wish came true. I love my crafting space so much and was far more inspired to do non-knitting crafts once it was all set up. My yarn runs right across the top of the unit (and a little *on* top of it, too). The drawers hold pens, pencils and assorted other stationery; needles and hooks; glitter, felt, feathers and googly eyes; and spare storage containers and bags (like that empty crackers for cheese assortment tin from Christmas that will surely be useful for something). All in all it’s a crafting utopia, and I couldn’t be happier with it.
The Crafty Yarnster 