Busting that Stash: Buy Nothing Summer

Okay, I've been thinking a lot about the abundance of crafty stuff in our home, and not just because I've recently started watching Hoarders on Netflix. Nick and I moved from a three-bedroom apartment to a one-bedroom place, so there's considerably less room for all of my supplies. I did downsize quite a bit before we moved, I swear; I even gave away several giant boxes of mixed media items to an artist in Connecticut and sold most of my yarn at a huge discount to a woman who teaches disadvantaged teens who to knit. We made many, many thrift store runs before our move... and yet the boxes are still piled up.

The problem is that everything has a potential use. I'm definitely not a hoarder holding on to completely useless things, but I do, admittedly, have many more things than I am likely to find time to use. I think the problem with letting crafty things go is that a use always turns up... eventually. And frequently after I've given said item away. Sigh...

The issue is that limited space really limits my options. Not only to I need to be super organized, which ain't my strong suit, let's be honest, but I need to get rid of more stuff. If I can't part with it by making donations, then the only logical thing is to part with it by USING it. I have already make a window privacy screen and a Swiffer cover without having to buy anything, so those have been small steps to busting my stash... but I completely countered that, I suspect, by giving in to my desires and buying a bunch of washi tape. (To be fair: I have used said washi tape every day since I've bought it, so I think it's a completely justified purchase.)

So, here's the plan: I'm going to buy nothing for my art from now until September 1st. No new markers, pens, or pencils. No giant dictionaries (ask Nick & he'll tell you that me + dictionaries = obsession). No more washi tape from Pretty Tape or Happy Tape.* No pretty yarns from Darn Good Yarns. [I have been coveting this one for weeks!] No boxes full of recycled wonders from the local recycling center. {This one might be impossible, but I'll do my best!} No yard sale treasures brought home to add to the clutter.

*Full disclosure: I ordered a huge stash of washi tape just this morning. Mwuahaha!

The only exceptions I'm going to make this are:

1) I'll definitely need to buy supplies for the classes I'm teaching. These items are strictly for student use and a required for my work, so these won't count in my Buy Nothing plan. I am, however, going to work on busting my stash by using as much of my own stuff (specifically: scrapbook papers, magazines, & other collage materials) as possible.

2) I might need to make an exception to this rule for business purposes, if I sell out of lockets or something in my etsy shop. This is pretty unlikely though since I think I'm well stocked on most items right now. Still, since I have a huge art sale on September 10th, it's possible that I might need to buy supplies for prepping inventory. Generally, this includes glue dots, zinc washers, and E6000. Maybe some 20 gauge wire or necklace chain. Possibly a spool of thread. Probably I have everything I need on hand or can make do without it if I don't. I am almost out of business cards though, which aren't a craft supply anyway. Just wanted to remind myself!

3) Um, yeah, so if I find something on the side of the road and I gotta have it; it's okay to bring it home. If I do bring something home; however, I must donate or trash something from my stash immediately to make up for it. I am, however, going to avoid my favorite "curb alerts" most of the time... I will be too busy making art anyway!

That's it! Eleven weeks (!!!) of buying nothing for my art. Can I do it? To be honest: I'm not sure! But I'm sure going to do my best! I'm pretty sure I have enough crafty goodies around me that I could craft all day every day for eleven weeks without running out of potential projects! I definitely have enough supplies to make:

• a dozen or so art journals, especially if I make a journal using recycled cardboard and whatever random paper I find in my stash. It's totally possible that with a little ingenuity, I could double this number.
• several full-size quilts or a bunch of smaller art quilts. (unlikely, but possible)
• two decorative styrofoam head sculptures (hey, I gave away two!)
• 20 or so embroidery hoop wall hangings
• 10 mixed media paintings on canvas
• about a billion hemp bracelets
• 300 or so optical lens pendants (seriously)
• umpteen Scrabble tile necklaces
• several dozen bamboo bracelets
• 5 dozen dictionary pencils
• 1 funky recovered couch and 2 matching pillows
• countless zippered pouches

What should you buy less of this summer? I challenge you to bust your stash this summer, too! If you are going to join in the fun, leave me a link to your blog and I'll post it here.

If you decide to participate, feel free to grab this icon and link back to Crafty Moira.

190 x 200 pixels

Random: Studio Destashing

Anyone who knows me, probably knows that I am a major packrat. It's not my fault; it's genetic. Seriously. The packrat gene definitely runs in my family. Being a packrat is not the same as being a hoarder. A hoarder keeps everything and is practically unable to throw anything away. I'm definitely not like that. I go through tossing binges where anything and everything could end up in the trash, on the curb, or at the local thrift store. When I moved to Providence from Greensburg, PA, I got rid of just about everything that didn't fit in the back of my dad's small Toyota, selling all my furniture and trash-picked treasures to fund the trip.

I don't keep things just for the memories attached to them either. I hardly have any items that I keep purely for sentimental value. Sure, I have photographs, letters from friends, and a few mementos from departed loved ones, but it's not like I keep every single photograph, letter, or memento. I have a select few items, like a metal lobster claw that I found on the beach the last time I saw my father before he died, ashes of my dear friend Fiend who suicided in 2002, a half-empty bottle of my grandfather's shaving lotion, but mostly the stuff that I have is of a crafty nature.

Everything has a potential crafty use: old glasses bottles could be used in a mixed media collage, tangled and broken necklaces could be reinvented into new jewelry creations, saved wine corks might eventually be carved into stamps. The problem is the same one that most Americans face: time. Who in the world has time to do all of these crafts? Even I, who works very part-time out in the "real" world and mostly from home can't possibly finish all of the potential crafts that might happen from my crafty stash. And what good does a huge stash of yarn do if it's just hanging out in plastic bins in a closet somewhere?