Don’t let this be you!
Organizing your stash can be an enormous source of happiness.
By shopping your stash first, my rule for over 20 years, you become happy because you can spend your money on new threads, instead of buying the same thread over and over again. This makes you happy because you are buying new stuff and using what you have.
But just like a shop doesn’t jumble all threads in all colors together, organizing a stash makes you happy because you can find things more easily. Your threads and canvases are where you can find them, organized in the way that makes sense to you (by color or by thread type).
There are lots of containers that can hold your stash and when you are doing this look for ones that look beautiful, use your space, and make you happy. I have a huge variety of containers including a sugar canister in the same pattern as my childhood cookie jar, a wooden tea cabinet that was my grandfather’s, and a basket I bought in high school that was made by a friend of my mom’s. By using containers I love for my stash, seeing it makes me happy.
When you are organizing your stash, think about using your space well. Can you put a cabinet on top of this table, or stash it underneath? Can you mount it on the wall. Do you have bookshelves that can hold smaller containers? For me, being able to see my stuff makes me happy because when I need a break, I can think about what I can make with it.
Having an organized stash makes it so much easier to put things away. Creating order out of chaos is something that we’re programmed to like. Our eyes search out patterns, we like neat. By getting in the habit of putting away your used threads regularly, we create happiness for ourselves because we create order out of a jumbled mess.
Finally having an organized stash creates lovely opportunities for stash purposes. Recently, when stitching on Wendy I realized the thread I REALLY wanted for the sash I didn’t have. With an organized stash I could see that and now I have created a happy opportunity to go buy the thread. By knowing what you have you can add to your stash strategically so the threads you love are always there.
About Janet M Perry
Janet Perry is the Internet's leading authority on needlepoint. She designs, teaches and writes, getting raves from her fans for her innovative techniques, extensive knowledge and generous teaching style. A leading writer of stitch guides, she blogs here and lives on an island in the northeast corner of the SF Bay with her family
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