Stash Less - I may have figured out the key!

The series where we talk about having a thoughtful stash.

Stash less has been a learning process for me. With practice, and with putting my ideas out there online, I've been able to more clearly understand my own behaviour and triggers around stashing. Over the last week or so, I've had a really big realisation; for me, the key to stashing less is actually a combination of having a budget, and having a plan. And not for the reasons I thought. 

I thought that the budget was a way to control my spending a bit, and my making list was helping me be a better planner. I was planning to ensure I was making the things I really wanted to make and to help me not be so caught up in my crafty whims. But what I've found is that the combination of the two helps to eliminate many of the reasons why I stash.  

Allow me to explain. My Making List 2015 is only a few weeks old, but it changed things for me. The first thing it changed was that I am not making so many random things. I did make some socks* but other than that everything I'm making are the things I should be making. This is unheard of. Often when I get the urge to start something, rather than starting something that needed to be made, I go blank about what to make and start something totally random. Then I feel pressure to finish the aforementioned random thing. Pressure that keeps me away from the things I really want to be making. 

Having made my making list I can see my plans are slightly unrealistic. That is a bucketload of knitting for a person who knits in life's gaps. But knowing that my expectations are probably unrealistic is kinda good. It means that I've gained some drive to stay focused, while being aware it probably won't all happen. I want to reiterate that the list is actually a list of things that I really want to make. These are all the things that I often postpone because I am crafting to my whims. There is still time for whims but by having the list I am making things that will be much more satisfying to me. 

I stated in the list post that writing the list clarified that I have all the materials I need in my stash. Before I wrote the list I was buying materials "just in case I have time" or "because I really want to make X on a whim". This type of purchasing  now makes no sense as I really just don't have time for them. Win! Big win!!

This picture is a combination of a FOMA purchase, using stash that I was saving for "the perfect project" and making from the list!

So I've got rid of many of my reasons for purchasing. I'm not buying for time poverty reasons (to have things just-in-case I get the time) or for perfection (to have the perfect materials) as I know I already have the materials I need for the list. I'm not buying for having the pretty as I can see I have no use for it anytime soon. So the only reason I would be buying for stash would be for fear of missing out (FOMA) - and for me there are only a couple things I worry about missing out on - Nani Iro or Liberty releasing a new seasonal collection - and I'm trying not to wander internet shops so I am less likely to be tempted.

Oh my goodness! The joy of being free; free from desire and free from want!

Now I've heard a few rumblings from a few folks, in comments and whatnot, that a budget isn't for them. That they are the kinds of people that a budget wouldn't work for, that they like their freedom too much. And I'm with you. I love freedom! I love the idea that I get to choose and no one is stopping me. But the thing about stash less is that it is ME that wants to change my behaviour. So I'm the one creating the rules and wanting to put the brakes on. I've already talked about the freedom that has come from having the list, but then you add a budget, and the freedom only increases.

I set my budget at a level that meant there was some room for joyful purchasing, and I said I wasn't going to be super strict. I could still buy a grownup sweaters worth of yarn for myself if I wanted to, but as I can see I don't have time to knit anything for me that requires new yarn, I have extra cash to play with. I would really really like to stick to the budget and that creates opportunity cost; if I buy one thing I can't buy another. Knowing what I have to purchase for the list means that I am aware that I only have about $200 left for the year as a discretionary fund. Yes I may spend more than that. But I want to be really really careful to not overspend just to own the pretty or FOMA. I really want to put thought into it.

And here is the key….without the budget I could justify many many things for FOMA. And for owning the pretty. With a budget I have to make a choice with which kind of pretty I want the most. I need to really really want it for it to fit into the $200. $200 means maybe two purchases this year. And I want them to be for something truly special. I love that it has come to this. That this will be when I make a purchase!

The budget and my making list combined have made the process of stashing less feel like freedom rather than restriction. Freedom I have given myself. Such a useful thing to figure out.

Useful ideas, or not for you? Have they changed what you think about budgets? Or lists for that matter?

Felicia x

Click the link for other posts in the Stash Less series.

*Yes I did make socks. Totally random thing to make as it is the middle of summer here. But they are pretty! And make me happy so play on I say!

PS. There is another aspect of freedom that has arisen from not stashing. In the past I would buy because I wanted to own the pretty, but then it was like a big chain around my neck. I would see a pattern that I really wanted to make and more often than not I didn't have what I wanted to use in stash. Because I had purchased the pretty already I would feel pressure to use it and not be able to follow my creative whims. A big bummer and a clear case where the stashing itself is the restriction.

The non post.

So sorry guys - no post on knitting! First the car broke down, and now I've got some bug, so I need to go to bed and finish the post for Monday. So as a total filler here are a few more retreat photos.

I'm thinking about the retreat a lot this week as we are almost there with this year's class list. I need to lock down one or two more classes, and then we can call it DONE!! The list will be posted in March - so a little while yet, but rest assured that we are all busy making samples and writing descriptions and taking pretty photos. I can't wait to share it with you all. x

I Made This - Brienne Moody

I Made This is a weekly blog series that features makers from around the world and aims to talk about the things we are proud of; of the objects we make that have meaning to us and the journey we take to make them.

This week's I Made This comes to us all the way from Minnesota in the US of A. I met the lovely Brienne a couple of years ago when I was lucky enough to share a cabin with a few years ago at Squam. I'm totally in love with her style and her willingness to experiment and make stuff up. Brienne has such an incredible way of putting things together. She shares her successes (and her not-so-sucesses) at her blog By Brienne, she has an etsy shop and you can find her on instagram at @bemoody. 

Two of the super women I met at Squam a few years ago. Brienne is the smiler on the right!

I made this deer last June. I remember the weekend that I made it - it was very rainy. We had hiked in the morning over many slippery, mossy rocks. We had an early lunch that included a bit of wine. When we got home, still encouraged by the morning walk and by the wine, I settled in and began to work on this deer alongside my daughter.

I make mostly garments and handbags but I’ve always been drawn to soft sculpture. Over the years I’ve learned to appreciate a professionally finished seam and a well-fitting, handmade dress. I sew on my machine every day and I have knitting in my hands at all times. In fact, as I write this, all I can think of is my unfinished sweater sitting just inches away from my fingers...

I’m most inspired, though, by the things that show the hand that made them. But I don’t do “hand making” as much as I like. So the deer was a stretch for me. It is all hand-sewn and is made in such a way that the hand sewing is featured. There is no hiding your mistakes. I did all of the stitching and my daughter did all of the stuffing.

The children were so eager to get her in their hands that I allowed them to play with her for several days undressed and with one leg.

I think that her knitted shawl is backwards. Her left leg keeps falling off. I didn’t do the knots correctly when I finished a section. Still - she is the thing that I am most proud of making. And whenever I unearth her from under a pile of dress-ups or when my daughter clips her into an empty carseat to keep her safe on the road, I am reminded of the work that I did to animate her. And of the afternoon spent together with my daughter greedily stuffing her limbs. 

I love her so much that I made a boy version of her this fall to give to my son for Christmas. And I have two babies stowed away to be given as a Valentines day treat. Thank you for having me, dear readers. May your next crafty stretch become your new obsession:)

Inspired or discouraged?

So we have talked about it in passing, over numerous posts, in the last year or two. About the ability for the things we see on the internet, instagram and pinterest to be encouraging and inspiring versus sometimes being deflating and discouraging. And I guess I just wanted to ask directly for your experiences and how this affects your making. Do you get affected by it, or does what you see just inspire you to try new things? Does it affect what you then post pictures of? 

I created the retreat (and this space) to start to chat about people's fears and head stuff (including my own!) around craft. To that end I really want this space to be encouraging rather than discouraging. I started I Made This as part of that process and often talk about my many mistakes on the path to learning my craft. I'm truly hopeful that I have hit the mark, making you feel more capable and able to try and tackle things that you think are a bit above your current skill set. Or even just to feel you can make something you think is beautiful with the skills that you already have.

But maybe I haven't…?

One area I do struggle with this, is instagram. As hard as I try to post my everyday making, it is still the pretty 40sq cm of the making I end up posting, rather than the rest of the super messy sewing room. I think I end up using instagram more as a place for the pretty I can see, in the midst of the chaos. Like an online visual inspiration diary to look back on when I'm feeling overwhelmed by the constant mess.* I think I use it now as a way to feel like I have achieved something (other than tidying up tiny bits of paper and toy animals) in my day. As in "look I made a sock!". I'm not just a washer of dishes. I am a sock maker…..hmmm. 

The only tidy 40sq cm in my sewing room this morning. It made me happy in an isn't-it-ironic kinda way because the photo looked so calm. And in that tiny 40cm and that tiny moment there was a bit of calm. 

Love to hear your thoughts on this one. What do you see or read that encourages you and inspires you? What deflates you? Does your making change based on what you see?

Felicia x

*Why are small humans so messy!

PS. I mentioned on Friday that I was going to post a knitting tip post today, but it hasn't happened - apologies! While I was searching for a good youtube link to link to, I couldn't find what I was looking for. So I did an impromptu video tonight (when I should have been making dinner for the kids - jaffles anyone?) to go with the post but have now got a little stuck trying to upload it to my new youtube account. So it will have to wait until Friday - apologies.

Around the Traps -#4 the really good stuff!

So a few random things I am loving over the last few weeks. Really loving!

A Course
The first is that I have seen that Christine's online Pitch Perfect course is running through Squam for a second time. I paid to do this course last year as I was planning to approach some magazines about some of the things we talk about on this here blog (I haven't got around to it yet but maybe someday!) And even though I am yet to write a single pitch, I got so much out of it! It definitely isn't a writing course - it is a pitching course - that is made very clear from the outset.  And while I agree that we weren't learning how to write, I do think the course made me a much more thoughtful writer. The aim of the course is to teach you how to write the perfect query letter to get your writing published. But for me though, the biggest thing I took away from the course was a new way of thinking; about planning your article (or in my case blog post), about the article's structure and about the audience you are writing for. This course material was one of those things that once learned, can never be unlearned. I really loved it. If you do any kind of writing then this is worth a look. 

Some Collections
Two new collections that have been released in the last few weeks that I totally love are;

1. Anthology II from the lovely Carrie (who I have featured on the blog before because I love her!). This collection is pretty perfect. She is a bit of a genius for all the reasons I mentioned in my post about her. 
2. Quince&Co have just released a collection called Home that I am just a little obsessed with. I adore this and this and this. All of them have joined my queue. But sadly not a single one of them is on #mymakinglist2015. Yet.

Pattern is Theolie and the yarn is Juno Alice Sock.

A Knitalong
The lovely Kylie (who until recently worked at the lovely Sunspun) has started a summer knitalong to use up those special single skeins of yarn that are sitting there waiting for the perfect project. I've cast on a shawl using yarn I've been saving for who-knows-how-long for who-knows-what (I could also add a who-knows-why to this). There is a rav group  and a hashtag #summerofthesingleskein. Many of you probably have something lying around just begging to be used?? 

A List
Finally I came across this wonderful fantabulous list posted by While She Naps entitled the 20 podcasts to listen to while you're crafting. I love finding new podcasts; always good to mix it up and find something fresh. I have only just started to go through the list but I am totally loving Alec. Abby mentions This American Life in passing (it's not on the list), and while I don't want to tell you what to do, I need to say that even if you don't listen to it very often (or ever!) you must check out this week's. The episode is called Batman and it will change your perception about the world forever! I made the fella listen to it because it was just that good and he came up to me going "ohmygodfeliciahowamazing". "I know mate, I know!" He is British - so this is big big praise. 

Enjoy lovely people. I'll see you Monday with some knitting tips.

Felicia x