Just Stash January: A New/Old Challenge

It's back, y'all!   Once again I'm embarking on my old standby, Just Stash January! If this is the first time you've ever encountered this, read on for the rules (and my invite to pay along).

I started this challenge is 2014, fully expecting to hate it.  Oh sure, the reasons for it were necessary: it felt refreshing after a season defined by indulgence; it would be an easy way to save money; it would force me to look more creatively at the supplies I already have; it would be excellent training for the zombie apocalypse (or a pandemic! Who knew?).  But when shopping for craft supplies is a favorite (albeit expensive) hobby, it was pretty hard to work up enthusiasm for banning it from my life for a month.

As you can guess, I fell in love with it.  Enough to do it again the following year. And the year after that. And literally every year since then, just without announcing it. Success and tradition both dictate that I should give this a whirl yet again! And for the first time in a while, I'm ready to openly share the experience again.

Intrigued?  Would you like to play along?  It's all pretty simple!  Just make things using craft supplies you already have in your closet. 

But V: what if I want to invite my friends and their craft supplies over and use their stash as well? Is that cheating? Thanks for asking, Internet friend! That's not actually cheating in my book.  No one is spending money, so it's still a win! 

But V: what if I'm on a design team and they send me something I have to use? Can I still play? Great question, Craft World Celebrity! That is also ok! Once again, you aren't spending money and you're still having to think creatively to use it. 

But V: what if I see something I reeeeeeeeaaaaaaally have to have/can't live without/is at an amazing price? That's a conundrum indeed, my fellow Craft Supply Collector! And if you end up in that situation, I suppose I would ask you to just try not using it for the rest of the month, see if you can hold off on purchasing it until after January is over, or just accept that sometimes a situation arises that feels unavoidable. But I will ask you for sure to  consider the same question I had to start asking myself: what about all the other craft supplies you had to have/couldn't live without/was at an amazing price? Did you use them to their fullest? Did you use them at all? I'm not your mom; I can't tell you what to do. But if you're participating, think about why.

But V: what about adhesives? I go through glues and foam tapes at levels envied by cartoon characters?  That's a sticky situation indeed, my Pasty Pal! The only exception to this "just stash" challenge is adhesives.  Hey, you've got to be able to make your fantastic creation hold together! But none of this fancy washi tape shenanigans! You know that's purchasing something decorative! (Wow! I sound like an angry Puritan out of a Hawthorne novel!)

So how do you join? Let me know why you're joining in the comments and every time I post a JSJ project on the blog, I'll include a link to your blog (or YouTube or Instagram: whatever you're rocking) too! If you're on Instagram, please throw in a #juststashjanuary so we can all find you all the time!  (That's not creepy at all!) And finally, I ask that when you posts JSJ-related projects, you credit me with the challenge so others can find out how to participate as well. 

Intrigued?  Would you like to play along?  It's all pretty simple!  Just make things using craft supplies you already have in your closet. 

But V: what if I want to invite my friends and their craft supplies over and use their stash as well? Is that cheating? Thanks for asking, Internet friend! That's not actually cheating in my book.  No one is spending money, so it's still a win! 

But V: what if I'm on a design team and they send me something I have to use? Can I still play? Great question, Craft World Celebrity! That is also ok! Once again, you aren't spending money and you're still having to think creatively to use it. 

But V: what if I see something I reeeeeeeeaaaaaaally have to have/can't live without/is at an amazing price? That's a conundrum indeed, my fellow Craft Supply Collector! And if you end up in that situation, I suppose I would ask you to just try not using it for the rest of the month, see if you can hold off on purchasing it until after January is over, or just accept that sometimes a situation arises that feels unavoidable. But I will ask you for sure to  consider the same question I had to start asking myself: what about all the other craft supplies you had to have/couldn't live without/was at an amazing price? Did you use them to their fullest? Did you use them at all? I'm not your mom; I can't tell you what to do. But if you're participating, think about why.

But V: what about adhesives? I go through glues and foam tapes at levels envied by cartoon characters?  That's a sticky situation indeed, my Pasty Pal! The only exception to this "just stash" challenge is adhesives.  Hey, you've got to be able to make your fantastic creation hold together! But none of this fancy washi tape shenanigans! You know that's purchasing something decorative! (Wow! I sound like an angry Puritan out of a Hawthorne novel!)

So how do you join? Let me know why you're joining in the comments and every time I post a JSJ project on the blog, I'll include a link to your blog (or YouTube or Instagram: whatever you're rocking) too! If you're on Instagram, please throw in a #juststashjanuary so we can all find you all the time!  (That's not creepy at all!) And finally, I ask that when you posts JSJ-related projects, you credit me with the challenge so others can find out how to participate as well.