yarn overload

My yarn stash is out of control. With a one bedroom apartment, there just isn't much room and I try to keep my yarn contained to one canvas bin. Which is currently overflowing. With more yarn on the way. I've been trying to bust through my scrap yarn granny blanket, but it gets old crocheting in rounds over and over. And I still have a ton of yarn left even though I'm on my tenth square.

I keep getting bombarded with ideas of things I want to make for others, which of course, means buying more yarn. There's the wedding ring blanket for a soon-to-be wed couple that I would love to make, but that's 8 more skeins to buy. Plus I've been commissioned to make a vest (hence the more yarn on the way). That's not to mention the bright, summery blanket I want to make for my husband and myself. I'm seeing bright, dark blue, yellow and white yarn with fresh, just bought light-blue sheets - because really, I have two sets of sheets and I need a change. In my mind, I'm seeing a Better-Homes-and-Gardens-esque scene with bright summer sunshine pouring through clean windows onto my lovely homemade creation - but the sensible side of my brain sees the stacks of skeins piled around the house while I struggle to finish yet another project.

I'm torn between wanting to wait until I use up my surplus and running out an buying a ton more new yarn. Crochet/knitting is definitely a struggle in self-control.

a good idea

Every Christmas I'm surprised at how much I spend not on gifts, but gift bags. Christmas Eve I dropped $25 on wrapping alone, and that was only for one side of the family. Not to mention finding the right size bag for the gift is impossible. I inevitably have several gifts that are too big for medium size bags but too small for the large. And with the whole "go green" movement, I cringe at thinking of spending so much on paper bags that are going to be thrown away and fill up a landfill somewhere.

So, my husband came up with a clever idea. Well, he might not have intentionally come up with the idea; I think he was teasing me about my yarn-addiction. However, he suggested that I knit/crochet bags - they would be reusable and could count as part of the gift.

I'm going to take some of my stash yarn and try to think out some easy bag-like patterns. Even a year away, I'm not sure if I have the discipline to make all of my gift bags for next year. Still, I might make a gift bag or two for a birthday and see how it goes.

WIP it good

I am now officially doing too many projects at once. Seriously, my WIP list is a little out of control. It runs as follows:

* fingerless, gauntlet-style gloves for my sis-in-law

* knit shawl for my mother

* crochet shawl for my sis

* cap/beanie for my husband (for our trip to the UK in December)

* knit scarf for myself

* a mini-blanket made from all my scrap yarn (because it was freezing at morning service on Sunday)

That's not adding in the sweater pattern I've been eyeing over at Lion Brand's website. Plus I'm feeling the urge to purge my stash. It's overflowing the sides of the bin I keep it all in. I was able to use up some of my baby yarn stash yesterday making cute little beanies for an expectant co-worker.

I just can't help starting new projects.