Getting out of a yarny slump

I have knitting burnout. I’ve had a project on my needles (and occasionally hook) consistently for about 6 years. I knit mostly sweaters so each project is a big undertaking (but always worth it). I also want to get into designing because I miss the community which was knitting alongside you before the craft boom of 2020/2021, and I find traditionally written knitting patterns very difficult to follow. After everything I make, my brain yells “write a pattern”, “make a reel”, “it’s rubbish don’t do any of those things!!”. After knitting a sweater on 5.5 mm needles in a week, I feel very done.

WIP of my last project - The yarn (Malabrigo Worsted is lovely and soft but I put pressure on myself to finish it as soon as possible and it was knit in a week)

Knitting and crochet are mediation. As an introvert, it helps me charge my social battery, minimises anxiety and quiets my brain. If I have free time, I will normally spend it knitting. But Instagram - something which previously had given me community and joy - has warped it into work. When scrolling your brain is bombarded with new designs, new yarn and projects and tricked into thinking you’re missing out or not knitting enough. What you don’t see are the hours it takes each person to knit that sweater, or the hours designers who sell a lot of patterns save by being able to pay sample knitters, graders and tech editors to help with designs. It distorts reality and whilst you might be thinking “it’s only knitting”, it’s a well documented phenomenon (e.g. here) and can happen no matter what you use social media for.

🌻🌻🌻

I’ve felt like this for a while but didn’t really notice it until I came back from a Lake District trip and could not face starting a new project. A recent huge purge of my yarn stash also made me realise how much yarn I had accumulated that would have never made it onto the needles (which I’ll post about sometime in the future because it was very good for facing my yarn consumption habits and decluttering both my house and brain). I knew it was time to take a break, find joy in other things and give my wrists a rest. I posted about it on Instagram to see if anyone had advice on finding joy in crafting once you had lost it, and I was surprised. It was my most liked and commented on post in a looooong while (10.4K followers does not equate to good engagement - something else which was sucking joy from me and it’s silly) and people shared their own experiences and advice which was very helpful!

🌻 Your advice 🌻

The Askrigg Sweater - maybe the last knitting project which brought me 100 % joy!

1) Have a yarn destash. Sell the yarn you no longer love which will help declutter your stash and your brain. I really recommend using Ebay for this. It’s easy to upload and if your parcel gets lost, Ebay are good at sorting it. It’s also free to sell (not an ad!!). Vinted prohibit the sale of yarn on their platform at the time of writing so you can find second hand yarn on there but if you’re selling, you run the risk of your account being suspended etc.
2) Try a new craft. Some suggestions included crocheting, needlepoint and cross-stitch. Oh, and baking! And you don’t have to post about it!!
3) Put a time limit on Instagram. If you feel you can, delete the app for a while. I’ve started doing this and it stops me from scrolling for too long.
4) Stop scrolling Ravelry lists for a while. This will help you stop feeling overwhelmed by what you could be knitting rather than enjoying the project you’re currently working on. Yay for Ravelry not being an app!
5) Take a break. Spend more time outside, exercise, read, play games. I know my Animal Crossing islanders will be complaining they haven’t seen me for several months next time I log on.
6) Knit something silly or small. A scrunchie, clothes for a stuffed friend, a project bag. Something that doesn’t matter so much if gauge is off or if you cast on an extra stitch by accident.

Pattern by Lauren Aston Designs Studio

🌻What I’ll be doing to bring joy back to my knitting 🌻

1) Run a test knit. This will help me find community in my knitting rather than it being a solitary activity. As it’s summer in the northern hemisphere, I’ll open a test call for a simple knitted tee. Nothing fancy but a good basic which you can use as a blank canvas. I’ll be knitting alongside the testers and I have some lovely hand-dyed yarn for the project.
2) Reduce the time limit on Instagram by 15 minutes.
3) Take a break - I’m not going to be knitting anything until I start the test knit.
4) Buy no more yarn - I have a `nicely curated stash after my destash (still more to come!) and I don’t need anymore!
5) Do some baking - I used to bake every weekend and I haven’t done that for a really long time!
6) Read more in the evenings instead of watching TV and knitting. I’m also a book hoarder so have a lot to get through! I stopped doing it so much because there’s nothing to show for it once you’ve finished. And that is silly. It brings me joy and helps me sleep. Having something to post about on Instagram is not important.

Most importantly, working on not feeling guilty for taking a rest. Knitting is not my job and I don’t want it to be. I’m kind to everyone else in my life but I’m not good at being kind to myself which needs some work. Here’s to some happier knitting!

If you have any other suggestions, please leave them below. Also happy to take book recommendations if you have any!

Abbie x