I feel like a junkie. There are needles all over the place. My yarn storage is a mess. I have so many half-finished projects. But all I want is the next high, the next quick project, the next finished thing.
I am a Project Knitter. I knit (and spin, and sew, and weave…) for the stuff. Now don’t get me wrong, I enjoy the process of crafting. There have been so many times when I went to knitting as a balm for my soul, to soothe and ground me. But there have also been many times when I just wanted a project to be done. I want instant gratification. When a shiny new idea hits me, I want to cast on immediately. I find the yarn and the pattern, and for a while everything is good. But then the project doesn’t get done right away. Maybe I’m busy and don’t have a lot of time to knit. Maybe I decide to read a book. Maybe (gasp) I’m knitting something else. And without realizing it, I put the project down for a week or a month or a year. After a while, I have a small mountain of unfinished things. And they weigh on me, because somewhere in the back of my head I know I need to work on them. Something has to be done.
I am very bad at keeping New Year’s resolutions, but one of my goals this year will be to finish up these lurking projects. The nice thing is they’re already half finished. And think of all the needles I will free up! But all I want to do right now is cast on something new.
What do you do when you have a bad case of startitis?
P.S. The coupon code for my newest pattern is still running. Get the Ribless Hat on Ravelry for 18% off until January 18 with the code HOORAY18
Dramatic Lyric 
I’m a bit too disciplined and miss out on ideas and inspiration because I don’t want too many Wips at once.
You make a good point. Sometimes I guess we all need to go a little crazy 🙂
It’s true, after all we mostly craft for fun!
I start them. As you can imagine, I have plenty of WIPs. I cycle back to them eventually and sometimes I just rip them back and move on. I’m more of a process knitter. I don’t often keep what I make. I give it away to relatives, friends, and to people who need a handmade hug.
Isn’t it great to come back to a project where half the work is already done?
lol I have been where you are, and I finally made myself a rule. No more than two WIPs at a time. To ease into it, I would allow myself to cast on one thing for every two finished. That served me well for many years, but I have slipped and currently have a new rule: One sweater, one hat, one shawl and one pair of socks are allowed to be in process. This gives me some slow and fast things, so I can usually cast on something new fairly quickly. Like, right now I have no hat on the needles so if I get the urge to cast something on, it will be a hat. Maybe a ribless one!
That’s a great way to do it. That way you are not deprived at any point, but still being disciplined. I may steal your idea.
Lol it’s not stealing, I give it to you to use as it works for you!