How did you handle it?
 

Not complaining but would like to hear how you resolved it.



Not complaining mind you but l have too many interests and with those interests come baggage. Love to quilt, sew, crochet, knit, draw, paint and read. But with each craft comes a myriad of necessary supplies....fabric, batting, sewing machines, threads, bobbins, crochet hooks, patterns, knitting needles, yarn, books, sketch pads, brushes, paints......well, you get the idea.

l am truly blessed to be able and to have the desire to pursue those things considering I'll be 80 this August but, truthfully, as organized as I am, it's still just too darn much stuff!!! And, realistically, how much can I honestly expect to accomplish before Gabriel blows his horn?

So,if you've had the same problem, how did you handle it? Pick just one or two things and get rid of the baggage from the rest? And then, how did you pick the one or two you decided to concentrate on? Did you pick ones that required less baggage? Did you get rid of it all and try something entirely new?

I would just keep enjoying the crafts that you are doing, but maybe just shop from your own supplies. No reason to stop doing what you love to do.

I have enough projects I'll have to live a lot longer. Some times the grandkids come over and we use up materials pretty fast.

I hope it's a few years yet before you hear that horn!! In the meantime, if it gives you pleasure you might try giving a few choice items to a few choice people so you can share/see their delight and try to shop from stash.

My neighbor made a "craft will". She had 4 kids. Every kid gets a little bit of something depending on the craft they've shown the most interest in. If their interest changes they can give it to the person of their choice but need to ask within their siblings first. None of the sewing/quilting machines get sold unless all siblings are in agreement. Aside from that at 75 years of age, she isn't ready to let loose of anything yet!! She actually has given a copy of her will to each of her children and it's an attachment in her actual will.

when i downsized for my last major move, i got rid of all of my hand knitting tools due to my arthritis. 3 years later, i am using hand knitting tools again. luckily, i didn't have to repurchase anything... got some when my aunt passed away. the moral... keep what you have as long as you possibly can... you just never know when you'll have the urge to use them again.

Sometimes I have an item that I haven't used for a long time. For example: I had doubles of some quilting rulers. There's a new quilter in my church, so I give them to her.
As to your real question: I have no idea how to decide what goes or stays. Although my stamps might be able to be donated to the prison ministry...it's a sticky wicket to decide.

I have experimented with a lot of different crafts. I try to keep a little bit of every type so that if I want to start over, I have a place to start. For example, I kept brushes not paint or paper. I kept two crochet hooks and a few patterns but not the entire yarn collection and the different sizes of hooks. I kept scrapbook paper but not all the embellishments. So if I want to go back and try it again, I can start with what I have.

Recently I went through all by knitting needles and crochet hooks. Any duplicates, I gave to the senior resource center. Lots of yarn, I made some afghans, gave those to hospice., left over yarn, again to the senior center. As a quilter, I have lots of fabric. My plan for that is sort, cut and label and sew into scrappy twin size. They will be great for dorm room, camping and in the car. And books and magazines. Ever notice how most drs offices have magazines aimed for men and medical issues. I "accidently" leave my book or magazine there.