I Needed A Present

You know when you get into that mood where you need SOMETHING to make you happy, whether it be food, drink, or....I don't know....yarn? Well, I was doing pretty good, and still in based on the rules of the YFC and KFYS rules, however, I caved on the purchase of yarn. Now before you judge, listen to the circumstances.

On Wednesday, I went to Destash.com to do my daily review of what everyone is selling and I spot 2 skeins of Socks that Rocks for $12.00 including shipping. what WHAT!! I struggled with myself for about 5 minutes trying to convince myself out of it. Needless to say I caved and sent the e-mail to request the purchase. I waited all day, beating myself up for being so weak and then I got the e-mail....that said she sold it to someone else. I was both relieved and depressed about losing this wonderful deal.

However, fate had something else in store for me.

My Valentine's day was a little depressing. This is probably one of the few times I think about being single and it is only compounded by the fact that everyone is so lovey dovey and getting presents. PRESENTS!! Well, I wanted a present too, but was still on this nasty yarn diet so I suffered through the feeling until I got to my knit group.

One of our normal meeting places, Banana Berry, was closing and I specifically turned down an invitation to be the third wheel on my Sister's Valentine's dinner to be with my friends at knit group. My reward was that the owner, in a very CALM voice told me that all yarn in the store was $5.00. $5.00? I didn't believe her. I kept repeating it and looking around as if it was a cruel joke. I picked up yarn and looked at her, "$5.00?" I asked. She mouthed "5.00". I picked up another, "5.00?" Once again she said "5.00!". When another knit group member arrived I told her about the deal with the same reaction "5.00!!!"

So needless to say I used my Get out of jail free card for KFYS and my free day for YFC. To buy these goodies:

2 skeins Cherry Tree Hill to hopefully make the chevron scarf for the Scarfalong
and some of this:

7 balls ofRoyal Bamboo in a wonderful buttery yellow to make this



That was after 3 hours of mulling and shopping so that I didn't add to much to my stash. Technically, I was the picture of restraint. Here was the damage for one of my other knit group members which proves it could have been much much worse.


This is only one of 5 piles. MAN, I wish I was her!

Yarn + Money = Broke OR Why Not To Buy Yarn 2007

When I saw this button I knew I had to have it. It exemplifies my goals for 2007. Since calculating ball of yarn just seemed too much of a trial I decided to track and calculate my destashing another way. I would use the tried and true scale to determine stash fitness. Since the home scale would not have been that great for this task, I borrowed one from work.

This is the stash as of 1/7/07


34.50 LBS of yarn

The sad part of this is that on August 2006 I said:

"Thus my resolution begins... On this August 4, 2006 I, Monique, fight the urge to buy yarn as much as is possible for an obsessive personally and will bust at least half of this stash before this time next year. This includes any new yarn so that I am at 50% capacity by next year."

Umm...folks, this is the same resolution I have right now and if I had measured the stash back then it would have weighed much less. But with a new resolve,
I WILL BUST THIS YARN!!

Knit From Your Stash 2007

I am scared!! I am very scared as this is something I know needs to happen but makes me feel as though I will fail. But as Henry Ford stated

"Whether you think you can, or thing you can't,
You're Right."

So I am taking the "can do" approach with the Knit From Your Stash 2007. I had a destash in mind for 2007 anyway and I will continue with my thought out approach of weighing my yarn and trying to reduce it by half (in lbs that is). However, I think that the support group idea that will inevitably materialize within the knitting bloggerspere will help to strengthen my resolve.

So here are the rules to this group destash-along and my addendum:

• The Knit-From-Your-Stash-a-Thon will start January 1, 2007 and run through December 31, 2007 -- a period of TWELVE months. - I modified this a little as I just need to get this stash widdled down and my Stitches event comes in February.
  

• We will not buy any yarn during that period, with the following exceptions:
• Sock yarn does not count- Okay, sock yarn does count for me as this could just spiral into another dependancy cycle
• If someone asks for a specific knitted gift that we really and truly do not have the yarn for, we may buy yarn to knit that gift - This one should not be too hard as I don't really gift knit...yes, I am stingy
• If we are knitting something and run out of yarn, we may purchase enough to complete the project - I definitely agree on this one
• We each get TWO "Get Out of Jail Free" card -- we are each allowed to fall off the wagon one time - I added another as I will be extending my destash for 12 months instead of nine. Stitches West is not counted as one of the two GOJF cards.
  

• We are allowed to receive gifts of yarn - ok, here is my own personal rule that I will get to use up my $50.00 Michaels Gift Card for the purchase of yarn since the card itself was given as a gift.
  

My add on rules or exemptions are:

• I will get to buy yarn at Stitches West in February - This has been planned out for some time so there is no way I am travelling all the way there and NOT buying yarn. This is NOT part of my 2 get out of jail free cards.
• I will not beat myself up if I become weak and break the rules of this destash - I will instead get back on the horse and try to make it to the finish line.
  
• I will be doing a stash enhancement before January 1, 2006 - as I have a few project set for 2007 but will be limited to 3 projects worth.

Wish me luck! And for all you fellow destashers I wish you all the strength that luck for 2007!

Hmmm...next, the list of project paired with yarns as the picking will be slim for the next 9 months.