wipping up trouble

This fall has been marked by a struggle to get my WIPs under control. I am now down to a rather ominous thirteen projects on the needles.  I am not allowing myself to cast on for anything new until the WIPs are down to ten.  This is beginning to make me crazy.

I have never been a fan of stashbusting, stashalongs, yarn diets, and the like.  I understand why people would want to curb their appetites for purchasing new yarn, but like other fad diets, the stash diet has a few classic problems.

• it promotes bingeing and purging, rather than a healthy, regular acquisition of yarn.  The original stashalong included several "free days" when participants could buy whatever yarn they wanted - as long as it was on that day.  Simple: you just wait until that day, and cheat all you want.  That's not dieting, friends.  That's splurging.
• it encourages dieters to engage in deceitful behavior. "I'm not buying this for my stash, I'm buying it for my friend - who is trading me some yarn I really want."  We can all find clever workarounds, ways to violate the rules and nonetheless add to our stash.

To make things worse, a stash diet is conceptually incoherent.  Let me put it this way:  I am always knitting from my stash.  I don't need a stashalong to get me to knit from my stash - who else's stash would I be knitting from??

The fundamental problems that stash diets aim to fix are problems that can't be fixed by an all-out moratorium (with lots of exceptions) on purchasing new yarn.  Can you imagine trying to lose weight by deciding to stop buying food?  It just misses the point.  Consider some of the problems that likely underlie the urge to go on a stash diet:

• being bored by the projects that one has on the needles
• not having the discipline to finish a project
• being tempted by whatever pretty fiber comes one's way

Ceasing to purchase yarn doesn't get at the fundamental, underlying problems knitters have.  Someone who is bored with their knitting or can't finish will just cast on something new from yarn they already own. Someone who is tempted by yarn is going to end up in a dangerous binge and purge shopping cycle.

My problem is WIPs, not yarn acquisition.  I just don't finish things - I get stuck, or I forget about a project, or I don't make the time to do the finishing.  I am comfortable with my desire to buy new things, to put new projects in my queue, to fantasize a life in which I could knit at a pace that would keep up with my stash.  But I am realistic - I know what I am really capable of.  So, instead of putting a ban on purchasing new yarn, I have been working on my WIPs - which are the real problem for me.  I gave myself a specific carrot:   I'm not allowed to cast on for new projects until the WIPs are at 10. And I am sticking to it.

But, I am getting really, really antsy.  So, here's my pledge for the next week:  I will be down to 10 WIPs in a week's time.  I've got three projects that just need finishing:  a pair of socks, a hat and mittens set, and my Mod on Mod blanket.  This time next week, those will be done and I will be casting on for something new.  But don't be surprised if, in the meantime, I buy a skein or two.

Comments

[Karen]

Go on those WIPs!!! You can do it. I've been trying not to cast on until I finish my WIPs too (except for Christmas gifts). But I also joined a 4 month stash-along. For me it helps, because I have the compulsion to save my stash and just buy new yarn when I want to start a project. So getting over the idea that the yarn I already have is too special to use is a good thing!!

[Chris]

Nice job summarizing the problems with most "yarn diets" - I know they've definitely had that effect on me. And good luck with the finishing this week - you can totally do it!

[bellamoden]

I do get your point! My very public declaration is for a simple reason: I need to save the money for the next stage of my life. No exceptions feels very freeing! Odd how that goes.

[Lauren]

I have to say the stashing-along has worked really well for me, and I've been doing it basically all year with a few exceptions. But those are all valid reasons not to do it! I think 10 WIPs is reasonable, go for it!

[Anne]

Didn't you just have a (remarkably successful) WIP-down?

[Jodi]

Good luck! My yarn diet didn't go too well, but I'm fine with it. Just this weekend I realized that now I have enough yarn in the stash that I can just pick up and knit projects right away, without having to run to the yarn store (none of them are terribly convenient for me) or poke around on the internet and wait for yarn to arrive. So my stash is pretty darn helpful.

[cyn]

You're right on about the yarn dieting being akin to regular dieting. While it doesn't work if someone really wants to cheat, it can give a supportive environment to those who need it. As for WIPping into shape, I had a finish 2, cast on 1 rule until I got down to a certain number. I just couldn't resist the call of the new pattern.

[JayJay]

I think that the whole yarn diet thing is more a social outlet for those who love to buy yarn, but that may be the psychologist in me talking. I have been gifting/trading my yarn to others who have more of a chance of actually using it. With a baby on the way I realized that I am not going to knit as much as I'd hoped. Let's hear it for realism!

[Wanda]

Your points are right on! That is really the problem with the stash diets, which is why I stopped doing them. I ended up with a binge/purge effect. I've found once I get rid of some yarn, some new yarn takes its place. Now I try to curb the buying, but if I do, I don't feel guilty about it.