Grab My Stash Busting Strategies Ebook

I have had the idea for a long time (since before my teenage daughter was born, probably) to write a book about stash busting for knitters and crocheters. Not necessarily about purging yarn (though I do have a book about decluttering your craft supplies, too), but ideas for helping you figure out what’s in your stash, what patterns might work for those yarns, and techniques to use to make your yarn go farther or to use more yarn in a project.

I’m excited to share that I’ve finally done it, and Stash-Busting Strategies is now available as a free download when you subscribe for email updates on my website Our Daily Craft.

This 50 page ebook covers all the basics of stash busting, including:

How to evaluate your stash and get it organized
How to figure out what those odd balls are: what yarn weight and material and how much you have, no ball band required
How to find patterns that will work with the yarn you have

After that, it’s rapid-fire ideas for ways to combine yarns so you can make the projects you want to make, or just to use more yarn so you go through your stash that much faster.

From adding stripes and other colorwork to pockets, hems, marling and more, I hope that these ideas will get you thinking about how to use your stash in ways you hadn’t considered before.

Rather than providing specific projects (since I don’t know how much of what kinds of yarn you have or what you like to knit), this is an idea book that intends to inspire you to shop your stash first and get creative. It includes plenty of examples from my own knitting life (because I’m notoriously terrible at judging how much yarn I need for a project) of things like working cuffs and necklines in a contrasting color, making a new yarn out of yarn I already have, and adding stripes to make a project the size it needs to be, just to name a few.

You can learn more about the book and sign up for updates here. I hope you’ll check it out!

Yarn Organization

22 Page Knitting Project Journal and Planner

Getting ready for back to school makes me think about pencil crafts, so let’s take a look at some pencil themed knitting patterns!

I recently made a pencil on a circular knitting machine, and it was a fun, quick, easy project that uses little bits of leftover yarn (and if you don’t have yellow you can make it a colored pencil using whatever color’s your favorite). And if you want to make a bigger version check out this pattern from Orange Olive Road on Etsy.

If you want to knit a pencil pillow by hand, check out Sketchy, available on Ravelry from Shana S. Cohen. This one uses worsted weight yarn and has two size options and the choice to make a pencil with an eraser or a colored pencil.

Pencil scarves seem to be the most popular kind of pencil knitting pattern, and there are lot of cute ones. This one from Cosy Craft UK mostly uses garter stitch, with some welts to add texture and what looks like an I-cord edging. It calls for DK weight yarn.

If you want to go all garter stitch try this version from Emsley Co Creations, which uses five colors of DK weight yarn and just a little shaping to make the point of the pencil.

There’s also this fun, mostly stockinette so it looks like it curls a bit, pencil pattern that looks like it’s worked in chunky yarn from Little Knits Studio. This one uses just a little garter stitch and easy shaping for the point.

If you don’t want a pencil scarf, how about some pencil socks? The No. 2 Pencil Socks from The Yarn Enabler are available from Ravelry and use five colors of sock yarn. They feature wide ribs to mimic the texture of a pencil and have options to be worked from the top down or the toe up.

Needs Sharpening by Alexander Walker is a free pattern on Ravelry that uses five colors of sock yarn to make a sort of shortie sock. The little bit of black at the tips of the toes inspired the name. These, too, can be worked in either direction and are available in three sizes.

Have you read?