June 5, 2022

I am suffering

from a bad case of Stash Accumulitis to the Maximus!   This I have found is highly contagious by spending too much time with other crafting minds.  

I am putting the brakes on my stash enhancement.   No worries here that I am spending the grocery money on crafting supplies and we have been reduced to eating canned cat food. With Amazon, UPS and Fed Ex each stopping at my house at least once a week or me carrying in a purchase from every time I venture out, I just woke up and thought....enough is enough.    I'd like to vow that I will buy NO MORE unless it is needed to complete an active project.   The operative words being LIKE TO.

Look at my Jenga pile of shame….


and this does not include the class pieces from my recent Guild Anniversary.  Oy!

All the purging I did of fabrics, kits and supplies a few months back was not done to create empty spaces. Every box shipped off for eBay sales is not permission to buy to refill the space that was created ….nor does every box I take to be donated give me Carte Blanche to buy more things.  I had thought I was moving to a more realistic phase of my crafting life. 

Realization hit me right between the eyes after the second trip in 10 days to a fabric store spending $$$ and $$ respectively on those visits.  When I took the fabric upstairs to put it away I saw the other fabrics I had bought to yet put away. 

Shortly before my brick and mortar shopping trips, these lovelies arrived from a pre-order last summer.   It is a selection of fat 8ths from the Blackbird Collection that I ordered from The Kitten Stitcher.  These will be great for finishing.


Of course when Kitten Stitcher sent out the announcement the fabrics were in and shipping would follow, she was great at marketing by including the link to her site with the selection of ALL the fabrics that came in and I HAD to order these.  I'm thinking project bags?




And then there was the sale at Joann's on buttons.    75% off    The packages were assorted size and hombres of each color.   Yes, four different colors jumped into my card.   I mean, it was like buy one, get three free, right? 
However there is no project mind for these.
More fabric for project bags because apparently I have the need for more bags to hold all my projects.

Some pillowcase material for my grand daughter and other fabrics....just because.


In mid-May, my sister and I each ordered the same jelly rolls of Moda fabric from the Ladybird Collection and we created a challenge between us.   Using the same jelly roll pattern we are each making a quilt and then going to compare our finished projects to see our interpretations.  I absolutely needed the coordinating fabric for the binding and accents so back to the fabric store in Vineland for a third visit!   And how's this as a major side-bar.......My sister said she has fabric for 4 quilts already started and I just laughed and said I had 4 quilt tops started and at least four others kitted up.  

Let's factor in Jamboree in October 2022 that I have signed up for,  the Shaker Retreat in November 2022,  and two classes with my guild.  Now these are not necessarily stash enhancements BUT as we all know they create the buying opportunity. 

In about 6 weeks, I am well into four figures of purchases and expenses.   An honest assessment of projects and time tells me I can never ever ever ever EVER complete all the things I already had in my stash and I need to stop ACCUMMULATING!  Sew, I plan to not buy ANYTHING until I use up some of what I have!!!     

But wait,  I forgot to mention I HAD to have these smaller button forms to cover with tiny cross stitch motifs to create the Sampler in a Jar……and immediately ordered the larger size as well…..and yes, they still sit unopened.   The intention is there, it is just the execution I am lacking.  Woe is me.......I think I need a refresher in time management.



Not to be left out, there are the 24 skeins of WDW Chesapeake I bought.  I have the pattern for the French Alphabet Sampler which is monochromatic.   It is difficult to say but truth is, this is not even on my radar to start.  Heck the plane carrying this project to my WIP basket is still on the assembly line at the Boeing factory in Washington State.    And yet somehow I felt it necessary to get the floss.  What was a thinking?   Am I going off to Tibet on a year long voyage of solitude and self discovery and thought I needed supplies to keep take with me?   I pray I have not blown up the supply chain of available WDW Chesapeake with this need to have all the things.




I need to stop trying to be a one woman economic stimulus plan.   I don’t care how much my credit card company loves me and lets me keep charging each month I need to STOP not for monetary reasons (well maybe when I think about it...LOL)  but to save my house from exploding craft supplies all over the neighborhood.  Somehow my neighbors housing draped in ribbons, bolts of fabric and floss hither and yon does not conjure up a comical site in the least.

I need to work from my stash.  
    I need to work from my stash.
            I need to work from my stash.

I am sure I am not alone with this illness.    Knowing that I have no will power and I never stick to any fantastical plan I create has not yet deterred me from pledging to myself, and now to the world,  that no additional stash will be added to my accumulation of supplies for mass crafting  unless it is needed to complete a project in progress! Maybe there's a support group for us.   

Hello, my name is Robin and it has been one day since I last purchased 

crafting supplies not for immediate use.

Thanks for stopping by, thanks for letting me vent, stay safe, be kind and keep on stitching.

PS. Within an hour of posting, I was alerted of a support center in Tennessee.   Thanks Diane!



9 comments:

  1. Oh Robin. Thank you, I needed this so much this morning. I giggled thru the whole report and I thank you for trying but unfortunately I don’t think I could help too much. Everything is so pretty and that is the problem, we love pretty and sparkly and it just jumps into our carts without us realizing what extra stuff is in there because we saved it and only needed one thing but no chart can come alone. Love the color for the French Alphabet Sampler. Maybe someday I will find a color I like for mine too. Want to congratulate you on your first day of not purchasing craft supplies and if you ever need someone to talk to you know how to get in tough with me. I will gladly help you as much as I can, only a phone call away.

    Diane in TN

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  2. You are a true crafter!
    I think a lot of us can relate.
    My husband says I have a lot of stuff, but he has a small garage downstairs & the big garage full of car stuff, so, I'm not too worried. LOL
    Love that green floss.
    have fun with your stash!
    Marilyn

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  3. Robin, this really hit home with me this morning! We as stitchers/crafters have so many wonderful and amazing choices these days, it is hard to not be caught up in a buying frenzy....especially when we have social media placing temptation so easily in our paths.....every single day!!!... I have adopted the "I'm not just a stitcher, but also a collector" mantra, but that doesn't always assuage the guilt I feel over my stash. The "good" news is..that guilty feeling dissipates when something new and exciting crosses my path...be it virtual or in person!

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  4. Oh Robin, what you wrote is so true! I keep saying I am going put whatever item down on my "think it about" list, but then get it ordered. I think NO and won't give in to temptation only to talk myself into making said purchase as it is supporting a small business, shop, designer.

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  5. I had to smile the whole time while reading this and can totally relate. I had a similar talk with myself recently, especially as I have a smaller house now. So far, I’ve managed to stay out of the quilt store for a month, but got an email the other day about a block-of-the-month I forgot I signed up for. So much for not acquiring fabric! My plan for cross stitch is to only buy things I need to finish current projects. My challenge to myself is to end the year with fewer WIPs than I started with, so that has helped keep the spending down (except for my last spree at Salty Yarns��). Keep us posted on how you your plan is going!

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  6. I have absolutely no idea what you are talking about.....said no stitcher or
    quilter ever. And now don't you feel better after putting it in writing, it's not as bad as it seems. Right??
    And that is why we worked so hard all our lives so we can enjoy what we love. That's my story and I'm sticking to it.
    I love the coordinating fabric for the Ladybird Collection jelly roll.
    I love everything in this post.
    Have a wonderful week.
    Shirley

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  7. What fun ,I am just the same I see and buy it .
    Even though I have so much that I will never stitch , I still keep buying .
    But I think it sometimes makes you feel good .
    I am happy I am not on my own .
    Enjoy hugs June.

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  8. Oh ROBIN YOU ARE DEFINITELY NOT ALONE. ALL OF US CRAFTERS ARE THE SAME. I PURGED WHEN I MOVED, BUT LIKE YOU HAVE MANAGED TO PILE ON THE “STUFF: YET AGAIN . GUILTY!!

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  9. Every Monday I wake up and vow to not buy any fabric this week. By Thursday, I discover I simply must have x from the store and come home with the alphabet. I think when I'm confronted with all those beautiful possibilities, my reality sensor forgets that I don't actually go up to the sewing room much.
    Buying the WDW floss now, while you could get it, was a good idea. I bought the pattern for Calendula Patterdrip's Cottage a while back and am having a devil of a time getting the 20 skeins of variegated thread needed to complete it.
    I understand why you feel you need to stop buying fabric, and notions, and oooh, That's Cute!, but I also completely understand that it's a lot harder to actually stop than it is to think about stopping. Your stash enhancements are all so cute I'd have had a hard time resisting too- and by that I mean they'd have come home with me.
    -Kathy P in Pittsburgh

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Thanks is much for stopping by. I so enjoy your comments even if I do not always reply. Have a great day that hopefully includes a bit of stitching.