My Yarn No-Buy Year – December checkin and projects

As far as yarn, the no-buy year was a success because I stayed within my guidelines. I only bought yarn in person or to complete a project. So that was good and a success, without feeling I missed anything, other than the Nightfall edition of La Bien Aimée Corrie Confetti. I still miss that dark blue unique batch, even though I had no pattern in mind. I just loved the look and the idea of it.

All in all, I spent €1528.46 this year, that is €126.54 per month if I include my “reward”, the swift and ball winder. I have not broken down my expenses by categories, I may do so at some point, and that is a third of what I spent last year. So I did contain my expenses and there are no regrets. That was my first goal.

Did I reduce my stash, yes, a bit, but not that much as my mother gave me all of hers and I have been using it for mostly acrylic care-free presents.

What Did I Learn ?

What I realized during the past year is that I now need to question my pattern library. My Ravelry Queue was filled with patterns I had bought with a project in mind and were still sitting there, after over a year, and as PDF files in my computer. What is shiny and new and attractive one day will quickly be pushed by something else, as shiny and new and attractive. Do I need to buy all the digital patterns that appeal to me ?

I have organised my Ravelry Queue to list the ones I bought and really want to knit, that is still a lot.

Thanks to the comments on my dedicated YouTube video, I have been pondering this point a bit further. One thing to consider is that online patterns can go offline and become unavailable, even on Ravelry, and more so on personal blog posts or sites.

I think I will set up some time out or Purgatory time (hey, even if I have just watched the last episode of the last season of Supernatural, I’m still under the influence :D). I may use either the queue feature or the cart in Ravelry before actually buying. Creating a Favorites bundle is another idea. Not sure for how long the Purgatory time out will be best though. May be 6 month, or until a discount offer applies, or until I decide to cast on ? I am still undecided and I will have to update this point as the year unravels, for it to be a practical guideline.

Books and magazines are another question as they can go out of stock, out of print, and not have any digital format to fall back to if they become unavailable. You know that I love books and browse through them on a regular basis, either for ideas and inspiration or just for quality day dreaming time. That is why I won’t change anything to my regulations for books. I will continue to buy the ones I would be sad if I cannot get them at some point. I will have to be aware of not participating into some FOMO – Fear Of Missing Out – trend, where the new and shiny is the main trigger.

All in all, I am happy with all the books I got in 2022, so I will continue to buy them with intention.

Updated guidelines

• Yarn :
  • I’ll consider buying limited edition yarns. I still feel the miss for some I did not buy in 2022, without being that painful though ! I’m not sure I’ll buy a mystery box again
  • I’ll buy yarn for presents if I do not have what I need in my stash
  • I may also buy yarn to knit a project with stashed yarn
  • If I go on vacation or to an event or go visit a producer, a mill, a yarn shop, I may buy some yarn either as souvenir or for a specific project
• I’ll also allow myself to buy replacement items, notions, needles etc. if any break or if I am in need of a special item for a special project
• Patterns, I will set up a Purgatory or time out process to double and triple think buying digital patterns. I still want to support creators, causes etc. So I will have to find the right balance to contain my digital patterns library – and us it !
• Books and magazines, ie paper prints. You know I love books and prints, the smell, the feel, and the reading process, over and over. So I’ll allow myself to buy the book that will go out of stock for being popular, the ones I would miss if I cannot browse through them in my house
• I have been wanting good needle sets for a long time. I am using cheaper ones. Even though I am not much into rewards, I was very happy to get the swift and ball winder in December 2022, without thinking about that much during the year. So I’ll look for good quality exchangeable needle sets, both regular, shorties and DPNs

Companion YouTube Video : https://youtu.be/R3JvSetgMIM