I got a whim today, a whim to go through my yarn and get rid of what doesn’t bring me joy. I’ve been pondering it for a while, but kept telling myself it wasn’t hurting anything to keep it all, and I had the space, so why not keep it just in case I ever needed it?
Well, I didn’t really have a good answer but I decided I needed to go through it all anyway. This is close to where I started. (This is an older photo. I’d added more yarn between this photo and today. So imagine this plus some.)
I pulled out a LOT of acrylic, mostly stuff I’d bought back when I was making things to sell. Also, I tend to prefer natural fibers to acrylic now, so I only kept my very favorite acrylic blends. I pulled out a lot of cotton and blends. Even now in the heat, I don’t find myself wanting to work with the mercerized cotton. I don’t tend to wear the things I have made with it. I only kept kitchen cotton in the colors that are actually in my kitchen, and the cotton blends that are soft and drapey.
Then I moved into the good yarn, the wool and blends. If it was itchy, I pulled it out. A few yarns I pulled are gorgeous; I still loved the look of it. But I’d used some of it and didn’t like knitting with it or wearing it, so there was no point keeping it. If it was a color I would never use, or a weight I’d never use (like one skein of sport weight?), I pulled it. I was ruthless but it wasn’t painful at all. This was what I had in the end:
That’s a LOT of yarn. I mean, it’s kind of ridiculous when you see it all spread out like that! I’ll bag it up and see if I can sell it locally for a bit of money, and in the meantime, I’ll enjoy my newly organized stash. It’s gorgeous!
Even looking at the shelves makes me happy! This is all yarn that I love, that I can see myself using. I even found a skein of Madtosh that I forgot I had! And that right there is a good reason to get rid of stuff I was keeping just for the heck of it: I can see what I have more easily, I can see the yarn I chose with intent, and I know that I could pick anything from my stash and be happy to knit with it.
p.s. yes I know it’s still a crazy big stash! I’m okay with that!
bonnyknits 
Shelves look great — an inspiration for me to do the same!
Thank you! I do love having it out where I can admire it!
Your shelves make me smile- I’d love my stash to be that pretty!
Thank you! But I discovered it does get a bit dusty being open like that. Oh well, it’s all washable!
Perfect! It looks pretty and must make you happy every time you go by them!
Whoa! I really should do this at some point!
You totally should. I feel so much better about my stash now!!
Very pretty! I love looking at pictures of well organized stashes
Me too!!
I was going to be sad on your stash’s behalf when I saw the pile to destash, but you’ve still got plenty of yarn. And this way you’re keeping the stuff you actually want to use, so that makes a lot more sense than holding on to things you won’t use just because you can. 🙂 Do I see a Zauberball or two up there? I love that yarn! Hope you knit something fun with i! (And… now I’m itching to cast on one of my Zauberballs. Sigh.)
Yes, I have 2 Zauberballs and don’t know what to make with them! I tried a crochet mesh wrap but didn’t like it & frogged it. Should I do socks or what??
I love shawls with them! My favorite so far has been one called “Lazy Katy,” and it only took one Zauberball. It’s here: https://www.ravelry.com/patterns/library/tuch—shawl-lazykaty
Oh wow, that is so gorgeous! I love the unusual shape, and that lace is stunning. Thank you, it’s in my queue now!!
You’re welcome! I love it so much that I think I might knit a second. It’s easy to wear, too: the shape helps prevent it from slipping the way some shawls do.
Storage like that is brilliant, you can see exactly what you’ve got without digging.
Yep, exactly! As long as I don’t mind a bit of dog fur. 😉