Decisions, Decisions...

So now that I know I'm going to Japan, the cleansing can begin. There's no way I'm taking everything I own. I can't even take most of the stash, I'm realizing. My big current problem is that there's really not much room for me to pull things out and organize. I'm the kind of person who takes awhile to go through things and makes a HUGE mess in the process. Luckily, from my last move, quite a few things are already in the state they need to be in. The biggest couple of things are clothes and stash. How much of each should I take? What kind of dress code will there be for work? How much room will I actually have for packing things? Decisions, decisions. The sock and lace yarn is all definitely going. You always know that two skeins (or one, depending on the brand) of sock yarn will always give you a good pair of socks. You can also always find a pattern for any length of laceweight yarn, either scarf, small shawl, medium stole, or huge wrap. These things are all small volume- and weight-wise and lace projects take awhile, so I won't be hankering for too much yarn. I'm also bringing all my Art of Disney cross stitch kits, so I'll have enough craft supplies even if I don't take anything else. Of course, if the dress code is business-y and I can wear sweater vests, I'll be wanting to knit as many of those as I can.
How easy is it to get yarn in Japan? And how cheap?

I figure if I can get through the projects that are currently unfinished in Ravelry, that will be a good start. I have until October, so I can get a couple of big-ticket items done, right? I'm also going to invest in those vacuum-sealed bags, so I can take more yarn in less space. Works for clothes, blankets, and pillows too. I don't want to bring too much stuff, but I also don't want to spend a lot of money on things I had sitting at home that wouldn't have taken too much space if packed correctly. I suppose that at that point it could be sent along to me too, but still.

One good thing about going through all my sock yarn soon? A friend who has just started a sock yarn blanket will be getting all my sock scraps, both the ones that I have now, which I'll be sending along soon, and the ones from Japan, which will probably come with interesting Japanese thingies. This helps with stash reduction for me, and a project for her. Good news all around.

I'm pretty sure I'm about a half skein short for Blaze. It needs the same size needles as the Lace Rib Raglan that I still need to rip and re-knit, so the goal is to get Blaze to the point where I attach the sleeves, and then re-do the top of the Raglan and evaluate the yarn situation for Blaze then. I still don't know where I'm living for the rest of the summer, so I don't want to get another skein and play mail tag with it. I have three and a half inches left of the body before I attach the sleeves, so it's not too much longer.

I'm also on the second sleeve of Peasantry, with the front and back complete. I then need to seam it and dye the leftover yarn black for the edging and embriodered accents. That sleeve is my current purse project. And, ooooh, look! The yarn I knew I bought for Rogue was sitting at home with the yarn I didn't bring to Rochester with me. So now I can finish that, and bring four pullovers to Japan with me instead of four WIPs. Yay!