Yarn-Buying Habits that Aren’t Working for Us

With spring in the air, April has long been a month to focus on clearing the clutter. We throw open windows. We dust off the cobwebs of winter. And we take a deep breath before the fun of the summer months. April is also the month to focus on our impact on the environment. We ask ourselves, “What can I do to reduce waste and make more conscious choices in my daily life?” If you’re looking to reduce the clutter in your craft room and make more thoughtful selections, it’s time to look are your yarn-buying habits.  

Here, the Interweave Yarn team reflects on the yarn-buying habits that aren’t working for us. There is no shame in these habits! Rather: Noticing the pattern allows us to shift our approach and get even more of what we want. Yarn that we love and use!

Related: Organizing Your Yarn Stash: Assess What You Have

Yarn Buying with a Singular Focus

Interweave Knits editor Kerry Bogert loves color. She often sees skeins of yarn with irresistible color. “I tell myself; this is too beautiful to pass up. So, I buy one skein of sock weight with the idea that I could make a pair of socks, or I’ll use it in a shawl one day. We all know how socks go for me . . . ” Kerry shared.

Buying a single skein of yarn is a great way to build a colorful stash of yarn. However, it has its drawbacks. One-of-a-kind colorways can be extremely difficult to source after their initial release. If you decide in a month or a year that you should have bought 2 or 3 skeins to finish that hot new shawl, you may be out of luck.

“I’ve been resisting single skeins of yarn recently—I have way more than I’ll ever knit in my stash. Instead, I keep a small queue of accessory projects handy when I go to yarn-buying events or my LYS. So now I buy exactly the quantity I need of a color I love.”

Related: Stash-Busting with One-Skein Gifts

Sucker for a Sale

Sandi Rosner, Interweave’s technical content editor, is the Close-Out Queen. She explains, “When a yarn I like has been discontinued and is priced for clearance, I will stock up on any colors that fit into my wardrobe. It’s a good thing yarn doesn’t go bad, but storage space is becoming an issue.”

Buying yarn on sale is a great way to stock up, obviously! Who wouldn’t want to get yarn for less? Yet final sale purchases can have their disadvantages. Buy too much or too little and you’re in a jam! You won’t be able to get that discontinued yarn again.

When you open the latest email from your favorite yarn retailer run some quick calculations. Ask yourself, “what might I make with this?” If the answer is a sweater or cardigan, you can use apps like Stashbot to anticipate the yarn quantities. Vicki Square also offers guidelines on how much yarn you’ll need.

Size Matters

“I tend to gravitate towards chunky yarns or those with variegated colors, and I have drawers full of yarn that are waiting for their ‘perfect project’,” reflected editorial coordinator Gabby Axner. “I love the texture chunky yarn creates in knitwear and how much I can squish the skeins of it in my hands like a little pillow.”

If Gabby falls in love with a fingering-weight hat pattern, will she find what she needs in her stash? Not likely. When you look at your own yarn-buying habits, are you too focused on one size? For a healthy stash with variety, think about yarn weights and fill thoughtfully fill the gaps.

Related: Buying Yarn: Sickness or Passion?

Now it’s your turn! What yarn-buying habits aren’t working for you? We’d love to hear what works and what doesn’t in the comments below!