Day Three: My Knitting Space

For day 3 of Knitting and Crochet Blog Week, the topic is yarn/project organization.

The project organization is easy:  Ravelry for the info and bags like this for the actual projects.  

Box tote purchased from Dollbirdies on etsy.com, like this one

I also have a small cosmetic pouch I bought for a couple dollars that I keep all my.... well, you know, stuff.  Scissors, gauge thingie, stitch markers, yarn needles, etc.  There are knitting pouches made to do this as well, but the cosmetic bag works just fine.

I have already told you about the felt yarn needle holder I made.  I still love it and use it all the time.  It lives in the cosmetic bag.

All other physical yarn organization happens in our guest room, which would more accurately be called our yarn room.  

I have the yarn and patterns on a Expedit bookcase from Ikea.  I attempt to sort yarn by weight, but that's isn't always possible.  (Sock yarn overfloweth.)  Scraps of sock yarn go into the basket to be used for future Frankenprojects, and the top of the bookcase is for special yarn, most of it souvenirs.  Though there's a good chance this yarn will someday be knitted, right now it's being enjoyed for its beauty and nostalgic value.

The drawers hold my needles (unless they're too long to fit, in which case they go on a shelf--double points and straights in one drawer and circulars in the second.  The two red doors hide random bits of knittery--projects that I have no desire to do nor look at, buttons, glasses I didn't end up using on a knit teddy bear, that sort of thing.

This room has a swift and a ball winder, and it also houses all my knitting books, magazines, and printed patterns.  I have four binders of patterns that I've tried to divide into sections: baby patterns, sweaters, home stuff (rugs, pillows, etc), toys, hats, scarves, socks.  I asked for magazine holders for my birthday, and I use these to try to keep the magazines in chronological order because it appeals to my innate sense of order.*

I love this room.  I love being able to see my yarn.  I love the magazines all lined up in rows in colorful holders.  I love being able to wind a skein of yarn into a ball without having to wrap the yarn around Andrew.  (He loves that bit, too, although the wild swinging of the arms to keep the yarn from tangling while sending it through the winder was a good workout.)  I love seeing yarn and remembering when I bought it and imaging what it will become.  

There's only one problem.  My knitting has nearly outgrown the bookcase.  I blame patterns.  I can't throw out old knitting magazines.**  Because the literature keeps growing, I have allowed myself to be deluded into thinking that the amount of yarn is staying stable or even diminishing.***  I have not yet figured out a solution to this problem, although I have been eyeing the other walls and imagining a second bookcase....

*Some would call this sense "obsessive-compulsive" rather than simply innate.  I don't argue with them...  We both know whom they would call to organize their bookshelves.

**Actually this might be the real problem.

***Yes, I know this is a lie.  I admit it nowhere but in a footnote.
An additional note I feel bound to add:  I absolutely tidied up this room before taking photos.  Also, there may or may not be an additional box of yarn living on the floor that doesn't fit on the shelves.

Okay, may.