New Year's Organizing: Knitting Needles and the Rest!

It's January 30th, incredibly, and our month-long organizing spree is nearly complete. 

So, what's left to do?

If you haven't organized your knitting needles in the course of organizing everything else, that should be a top priority.

As I sorted through WIPs and UFOs, I reclaimed quite a number of needles, and promptly put them in their rightful places, before they got lost in the abyss. I have a few cute organizers that I've been lucky enough to collect over the years, some gifted to me through swaps.

Yes, that's Beatles fabric, with Yellow Submarine illustrations! I die. 

Owls!

What I didn't do--what I've never done--is update my needle inventory on Ravelry.

This is because, well . . . I have them all.

I have DPNs in every size from 0 to 10.5, including an extra set of sock-sized bamboo DPNs, sizes 0 - 2. I have 2 sets of interchangeable needles (after Santa's generosity), with at least one set of tips in every size from 3 - 13, and at least 1 set of duplicates from sizes 3-8. I have 24" circulars in sizes 1, 1.5 and 2, for socks. I have 16" circulars in sizes 3-8 for hats and sleeves.

I am a needle hoarder.

The result being that I don't really need an inventory, because I know I have the needles necessary for any given project.

They might be in use, or have fallen to the bottom of a WIP basket, or become a cat toy, but I have them.

Somewhere.

If you aren't compelled to collect an absurd and unnecessary number of knitting needles, though, I encourage you to go ahead and keep track of your inventory on Ravelry, or via some other method--it is pretty handy to know if you have the right needles on hand when considering a new project. WEBS offers a number of suggestions for needle tracking programs in this post.


So, with our yarn, needles, knitting tools, WIPs, UFOs, and books and patterns organized, the last thing to do is tidy up our actual crafting spaces.

I have a combo office/craft room that I think is going to get quite a bit of use as I work to expand my home-based businesses during 2013. It is in serious--desperate--need of a paint job, but blah blah blah, paint fumes, pregnancy, etc. So I'm not ready to tackle that yet. But I did straighten up and declutter.

I can feel the creativity flowing already.


And with that, our New Year's organizing comes to an end. How did you fare?

New Year Organizing: Patterns!

The New Year organizing continues, and this week we're tackling knitting books, magazines, patterns, etc.

This is one area where I consider myself fairly well organized already--in no small part because when we moved last June, I purged a lot of unused books, patterns and magazines that I didn't feel like packing.

What I haven't done recently is update my Ravelry library--deleting the patterns I'd purged and adding new ones--so I decided to start there.

While not essential, I find it useful to keep close track of my pattern library on Ravelry, because when searching for patterns to knit, I can check off the "in my library" button, and it will show me patterns I already have that meet my requirements--for example, all the patterns in my library knit in DK weight yarn, or all the children's cardigan patterns I have.

I think we can all relate to that feeling of buying more and more patterns, yet using very few of them. Keeping an organized library can help minimize that!

It's also helpful to check your library occasionally for pattern updates--any pattern you download through Ravelry can be updated by the designer, who can notify all purchasers when any changes are made. Just click the update button, and you ensure you have the latest, most error-free version of the pattern at hand, quick and painless.

I started with 177 patterns in my Rav library.

I deleted a number of Interweave Knits issues I had purged, free patterns I had already used or was no longer interested in (hey, you can always download them again!), and added a couple of books and magazines I'd purchased, and wound up with 130 patterns, about 8 of which I also updated. Not a major hack job, but trimming the fat, at least.

In addition to tracking patterns in the Ravelry library, I have a number of patterns stored on my iPad, including single PDFs and ebooks, in the iBooks app.

I can access these patterns anytime, even without an Internet connection, so I keep a good selection of patterns here "just in case."

Always prepared for a knitting emergency!

I also have Interweave Knits downloaded in the Newsstand app. You can purchase and download an issue when you want to use it, and then archive it for later use, so it doesn't eat up your storage space. Very handy.

I didn't have much work to do on my physical pattern storage space:

This is my fairly modest collection of books, with some single printed patterns stored in a large binder (and a big vase full of yarn balls). The bookcase could probably use dusting, but otherwise, I think I'm in good shape.

And while I was at it, I decided to tackle my Ravelry queue. I deleted some patterns I was no longer interested in, and made sure each pattern had at least one tag for searching and organizing purposes; I also noted any yarn I already had on hand for specific projects. I'm down from 181 to 152!

 

What are you organizing this week?

Your Knitting Organizer: What do you really need?

Whether you use the Crafter's Tool Butler I reviewed yesterday, a spare project bag, or a ziploc bag, you probably find yourself toting around some knitting miscellany on a fairly regular basis. But what do you actually need to keep on hand? And what can you safely stash in your craft room / office / behind the sofa for irregular use? Here are my suggestions.


Knitting bag essentials:

Stitch markers (A lot. More than any one could ever use.)

Stitch holder, or small length of scrap yarn (Holding mitten thumbs and other live stitches)

Key for your interchangeable needles--or two! (These disappear like socks in the dryer; I wish I knew where they went. You can use a paper clip in a pinch.)

Yarn needle (Seaming, kitchenering sock toes and weaving in ends)

Crochet hook (Provisional cast-ons, dropped stitches and other such emergencies; Knit Picks also sells this emergency fix keychain, which is fabulous.)

Needle and thread (Buttons)

Scissors and/or yarn cutter (Scissors are more flexible, but harder to travel with; finishing projects, steeking and opening stubborn plastic packaging encountered in every day life.)

Needle gauge (NEVER guess what size needle you have in hand!)

Tape measure (Measure gauge, lengths of knit fabric, and yourself.)

A small notebook and pen (Always be ready to take notes on your project; if you modify anything, you'll want to write it down. Target actually has a lovely selection of pocket-sized notebooks. I may be slightly notebook obsessed.)

Lip balm (Chapped lips are no one's friend.)

Emery board/nail file (I've had to stop knitting before because a rough nail kept snagging the yarn; very frustrating.)

Hand cream or lotion bar (Rough hands can also snag delicate yarn; they also feel icky.)

Reference guide (Not a tome, like Principles of Knitting; just a wee pamphlet with basic info, like this one.)

Yarn stranding guide (if you do colorwork.)

Cable needle (if you use one; though I highly encourage learning to cable without one!)

Pattern magnets (if you're a paper pattern user / chart reader.)


Of course, there are other tools we use on occasion, like sock blockers, sweater stones, and ball winders, but those can safely be left in your craft space to be unearthed as needed. You could really hurt your back trying to haul around a swift.


What do you recommend knitters keep in their tool kits?

Review: Jordana Paige Crafter's Tool Butler

Putting my new Crafter's Tool Butler into action coincides nicely with my new year organizing kick.

This was a Christmas gift from my parents, who probably didn't even know what it was, and just stumbled across it on my Amazon wishlist.

That's ok, as sometimes I feel the same way about the things I buy for my dad.

(Well, I usually know what they are, but can't fathom why he needs, for example, 3 different iPad cases.)

Regardless, it was a good random pick on their part, as I've been eager to get my hands on the Tool Butler since it debuted last year.

I've never been happy with my efforts to organize my most essential knitting tools. There seemed to be no single organizer that would hold all the bits and bobs I used most, without approximating the size of my house.

Most recently, I'd been using this little box: . . .

combined with a mish mash of assorted "necessities" in this bag:

You can see, the bag is a mess (I found my missing US6 16" circular needle in there!), and the little box never really worked for me. I guess I can't complain, since I paid all of $5 for it, but it really wasn't quite big enough to hold the items I wanted at hand, and the little compartments never stayed closed, resulting in a lot of stitch markers falling on the floor to become cat toys.

So my goal was to see how much of my essential stuff I could fit in the Tool Butler, and still zip it shut.

The front section of the Tool Butler is divided into smaller compartments:

I personally feel this section could use a few more small, zip compartments, to separate stitch markers, yarn needles, etc., but I think that's a personal preference.

It also has a little card to record your needle inventory, should you be so organized.

I am not.

While perhaps intended for DPNs or needle tips, the compartments are great for tucking tools into: scissors, crochet hooks (if you have a small selection, as I do), pens, and stitch holders, for example.

I happily squeezed quite a few tools in, including some pattern magnets, and used the zip compartment for  smaller notions: stitch markers, safety pins, yarn needles and yarn cutter.

The back section has a number of pockets, presumably for storing circular needles:

The pockets are mesh, so you can see what they hold fairly easily, and the zippers seem sturdy (time will tell). 

I already have a fair needle storage solution, so I decided to use them for other things. I'm happy to report I fit in several small boxes of blocking pins, a roll of highlighter tape, a couple of tape measures, a notebook, and my Knit Picks interchangeable cables, which I've been searching for a home for.

With my Tool Butler packed tight, I really feel I have all the most essential items at my fingertips--no more wandering around the house looking for knitting tools, or re-packing a small project bag with the things I think I'll need for a trip. It fits quite a number of must-have tools and notions in a portable and attractive organizer, so I can just pick up and go, knowing anything I might need is in there.

It's easily small and light enough for long-distance travel too--no more worries about finding yourself in Zimbabwe without your yarn cutter or tape measure.

(I make no promises about your ability to get it through airport security. You're on your own.)

You could certainly also use it to organize your knitting needles, assuming your collection isn't too extensive. And I'm sure non-knitters could put it to good use as well--sewing, art supplies, lock-picking . . . options abound!

The Crafter's Tool Butler is available in 4 colors, and retails for $55. You can pick one up here.


Tomorrow, we'll talk about the essentials you should have in your knitting organizer!

Saturday Sampler: Organize your Knitting . . . and Life

In keeping with this week's organization topic, a few more creative ideas for organizing your knitting--and the rest of your life too! 

Source: iheartorganizing.blogspot.com via Nicole on Pinterest

Post-Christmas idea. 

Source: purlbee.com via Virginia on Pinterest

A simple and cheap needle storage option. 

Source: allfreeknitting.com via Jenny on Pinterest

Identify your keys with knit key cozies! 

Source: pumpkinspins.blogspot.com via Kristen on Pinterest

Use QR codes to keep track of your yarn--especially good for handspun!
(Thanks to the Sava Stitch blog for sharing this idea!) 

Source: confessionsofahomeschooler.com via Kristen on Pinterest

Organize your blog posts with this free blog planner!

Source: craftsy.com via Stephanie on Pinterest

Organizing scraps. 

Source: cabinlife.com via LogCabinStyles on Pinterest

I don't have a cabin, but I love this style of entryway organization. 

Source: taildom.com via Kanani on Pinterest

And you should keep your kittehs organized too. ;) 

Any other organizational tips to share?

New Year's Organization: Stash Wrangling

The next step in the WEBS organizing plan for the New Year is to get your yarn stash in order. This includes sorting, destashing and tracking, so it's a rather involved process.

But it must be done. I buy yarn throughout the year and stuff it in any drawer it fits in. I don't take pictures. I buy it for specific projects, and then forget what those projects are. And then a few times a year, I panic about how much yarn I have, round up a few skeins I don't think I'll use and add them to my destash page.

I need a more defined yarn approach.


The first step was to take a picture of my stash.

Oy.

(I believe the suggestion was to dump it in a big pile on the floor, but Dory will wander off with yarn if I leave it out, so no.)

Isn't it pretty?

But definitely overwhelming.

Meanwhile, Dory snuggled some alpaca.

I then got down to the business of sorting it: yarn to keep, yarn to destash, and yarn for giveaways.

Dory helped.

And when I finished, I had made a significant reduction to the "keep" pile--plenty of yarn on hand for projects, but certainly a more streamlined collection. Meanwhile, the "destash" pile keeps growing:

 

Next up, the tracking. 

I took pictures of all my unphotographed yarns (well, almost; I still missed a few), and got to the business of updating my Ravelry stash.

There are probably any number of ways to track your stash, but I find Ravelry the most convenient. Most of the details you might want to keep track of are already in their database, so you just photo your yarn, add the number of skeins (and possibly the purchase price, if you really want to astonish yourself by tracking your yarn spending) and you're done. You can even go through your queue and assign your stash yarns to specific projects, so you don't forget why you bought them. Like some people I know.

(For a more detailed overview of how to use Ravelry's stash feature, check out this post on the Fresh Stitches blog.)

And finally, the "organization." I decided the best way to divide things would be by weight--though I've tried that method before and failed miserably. But still, why not give it another go?

I now have lace and fingering weight yarns in one set of drawers, sport and DK in another, and worsted+ in the third.

I even have some extra space in a couple of the drawers!

You'll be seeing some of the yarns I decided to re-home in upcoming giveaways. For now, if you'd like to check out the yarns I'm selling off, you can find them here.

New Year's Organizing: WIP Purge

I will preface this post by saying that the photos are pretty lousy--I don't have a lot of daylight to work in during the week. And by "a lot," I mean "any"--the sun is barely up by the time I leave for work, and has already gone to bed by the time I leave the office, let alone get home. I used a bunch of obnoxious Flickr "filters" to make them look marginally more acceptable.

You're welcome.

I'm still busy organizing, inspired by WEBS' new year organization series, and yesterday I tackled my WIPs.

I found 3 baskets full of them.

Oops.

Clearly, I had to take action.

I approached the baskets in a ruthless frame of mind, and wound up with a fair pile of projects to frog:

(Though to be fair, some of these were WIPs I'd already decided to frog, and then had just thrown back in the basket out of laziness.)

This included 2 fairly major frogging decisions.

First, my Girasole blanket:

I adore this blanket.

But can't stand the yarn.

I picked up a bunch of the yarn actually called for in the pattern, Cascade Pastaza, on sale last year, and was excited to work with it because it sounds delightful: 50% wool, 50% llama.

In reality, it's a hairy mess. It sheds like crazy and just isn't fun to work with.

(Although if you want to give it a shot, I'd be happy to sell you the 14 skeins I have!)

I'll definitely be tackling this blanket with another yarn sometime in the (hopefully near) future.


And secondly, my Adhara Shawl.

Sniff.

Unfortunately, the color combo I chose--a red/brown and yellow--just wasn't working out the way I'd hoped.

I thought it would be autumn-y and warm, but instead it's just dull.

I'll be picking a new color combo for this project, probably light and dark shades of a single color, as used in the original, and starting over again at some point.


I also found myself facing 2 projects I couldn't make a decision on. First, this wee sweater:

I started it with a partially used skein, leftover from my Wildflower Cardigan. But in order to finish it, I'll have to start a second new skein, and I'm not sure it's worth it--who is this sweater even for? It's too girlie for the wee Peruanito.

A mystery.

I also dug up the Terry's Pullover I started for my dad. It's actually nearly finished, with one small problem:

I don't know if it's obvious in the photo, but there's a distinct color difference between the first and second skeins of yarn.

It's driving me crazy.

I'm not sure I can live with it.

These two question marks led me to the decision to institute a Two WIP Basket System: one basket for "short term" WIPs, and one for "long term."

Long term WIPs are those I'm not actively working on. They could be for a different season, awaiting an epiphany regarding a mistake I've made so that I can move forward, or, like the last two projects, could be "undecided." I hope to revisit these projects each year to further evaluate.

To make the magical jump to the short term basket, a project must be in active rotation, and must have a project bag!

It currently holds about 5 projects, a reasonable quantity, I think.

Perhaps the best thing about this exercise was the number of needle tips I reclaimed--almost my whole set!

Just waiting to be put to use in even more projects!

Organize your Knitting Life: New Year Guidance

If you resolved to get more organized in 2013--and specifically to organize your knitting life better--you should check out the series WEBS is currently running on their blog:

I'm a little behind myself--but it's only Day 6, so there's time to catch up. WIP organization was the topic for the first five days, and now we're moving on to tackling the stash.

I did a little WIP purge late last year, but I need to take a serious, long, hard look at my WIPs and make some tough decisions. And while my stash is stuffed in drawers and out of the way, it's hardly organized. So I'm quite excited to embark on both tasks, particularly now that I have the time to do it, before baby arrives.

Another project I decided to pursue this weekend all on my own was winding yarn. I have plenty of projects in the pipeline, and while I suppose I could take to wearing skeins of yarn around my neck and calling it a scarf, caked yarn is much more useful.

The biggest challenge here was the yarn for my planned mommy-and-me cardigans--the Coolbreeze cardigan features 8 colors, in addition to the main color, so I had plenty to wind:

Note to self: use only caked/balled yarn for future colorwork projects.

Still, seeing it all wound is really motivating me to get started.

The plan: first, knit the cardigan for myself, as it will take the most time, and use the most yarn. Then, once complete, start the baby cardigan, aiming for a size he'll be able to wear when the weather turns cool again (let's face it, these cardigans aren't going to be completed by the time the weather warms in April/May, so it's better to plan for November-ish--cutesy Christmas cards for 2013??).

And I think you'll all be happy to hear that Dory will be back for her regular post tomorrow. What helpful information will she share? Who knows. At least she's cute.