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Whether you’re tidying up your studio, making room for a new loom, moving, or recovering from a moth incident, there comes a time when every weaver needs to organize their stash. It can be a daunting task, but also inspiring.
If you’re leaning toward daunting, here are a few tips for organizing your studio so that it is functional and inspiring.
As you pull all your yarn out, look each cone or tube over and decide if it’s one you want to keep.
Ask yourself a few questions:
These questions will push you to look at your stash with fresh eyes. The answers will help guide you as you decide what to keep, give away, or throw out.
Next, group the yarn you want to keep into categories, such as fiber type. Put the yarn you want to set free into its own pile. Consider donating this yarn to schools, libraries, or beginner weavers. If it’s brand new and you want to try to recoup some money (to buy more yarn perhaps?), consider selling it.
Don’t put back mystery cones. Identify them by doing a burn test to figure out the fiber.
Label each cone or tube by writing what the yarn is on the end or inside the cone. This helps know exactly what you have if any stickers fall off over time.
The (only) downside to fiber studios is they have a lot of fiber flying around and get dusty fast. Use this opportunity to clean all your shelves thoroughly. Also, make sure you’re happy with where your shelves are. Did you notice light damage on any yarn? If so, now is your chance to do some rearranging.
The most important thing to remember as you get your stash back in place is that you want it to be easily accessible and inspiring. There is no best way to organize your yarn, it should be what works best for you and keeps the yarn free from potential damage.
Here are a few suggestions:
Remember to be mindful of protecting your animal fibers against moths. Store this yarn with cedar blocks or natural repellent sachets, and moth traps. If you have had problems in the past, consider getting clear bins with lids for your animal fibers. Also, protect your yarn from sun damage by keeping it out of direct sunlight.
I think this is just as important as getting the yarn put away. It is so easy to end up with mystery cones if a label falls off. It can also be hard to remember where you got something if you run out. Before you put a yarn away, log that yarn in a system you find useful. For example, take a snip of yarn and keep track of its important info such as fiber, size, color name, where you bought it, when you bought it, price, and dye lot.
Some suggestions for organizing this info:
My favorite part of organizing my studio is getting reacquainted with all the beautiful yarn I have and being inspired to finally turn that yarn into cloth. I also feel so good sending yarn I no longer want out into the world to inspire another weaver. Most importantly, however you decide to organize your stash, prioritize function and inspiration to create the perfect space for you.
Kristin Crane began her career designing jacquard fabrics for the home furnishings industry with mills in the United States and China. Today she writes about pattern and textile design for Design Pool from her home studio in Providence, Rhode Island. Kristin weaves on a Macomber loom, a Mirrix tapestry loom, and sometimes on the go with a tiny Hello Loom. She loves to travel and is fascinated with what cloth tells us about a place and the people who live there. When she’s not in her studio, she can be found exploring the beautiful Rhode Island coastline and is rarely seen without a scarf.
