(crossposted at BlogHer)

This is month four of a Year of Stash Busting. Back in January, I suggested we work together using the supplies at hand whenever possible to craft without compromising our design principles, we finish the projects we have on hand or find new ways to use the partially completed UFOs.

Are you enjoying the year so far? Looking at some of the pictures in the StashBusting '09 Flickr group there are folks having great fun! This month, read through the blogs for some great ideas to craft fun, useable items from the stash we have on hand.

Betz White designed charming Reusable Sandwich Wraps for her book Sewing Green, then shared the pattern with us.

Kick the baggie habit! Save money and bring less plastic into the world by using sandwich wraps when you pack lunches. I made a handful of these for my boys and use them every week. (Ours have Batman and Scooby-doo on them and they never get left behind in the lunchroom!) It's fast to make and easy to use, which is a major plus for a busy family.

Wendolonia first dreamed, then created adorable monsters for her boys. She shared the whole creative process.

The other night I had a dream I was making a super cute stuffed monster for Augie. The dream was one of those super realistic ones, where you wake up and you’re not sure if you actually lived it or not. I made the monster out of actual materials in my stash and it was a combination of two different projects I’ve been meaning to put together for a while — a taggie blanket and a stuffed monster kit that I picked up at the Maker Faire last year. The project came out really cute in my dream and when I woke up in the morning, I knew I wanted to make one just like it!

Which is your favorite? The taggie monster or the 7-eyed Cupcake Butt?

MLQKnits blogs serious knitting stashbusting at Odd Ball Knitting. She recently decided to clear out some fun ribbon-like yarns by knitting a shawl for her sister. The resulting posts became Pythagoras for Knitters.

It's a straightforward matter to knit a triangular shawl, especially in garter stitch, and we probably all know how it's done ... cast on 2 stitches, and knit them, then on each following row, increase one stitch at the beginning of the row, usually by knit 1, knit 1 tbl, then knit to the end of the row. When the resulting triangle is big enough for what we want, we cast off. So far, not very difficult ... but how do we know if we have enough yarn for what we want to do?

And that's when Geometry can be our Best Friend ...

I loved geometry in 8th grade which might explain why her explanation of the math did not make eyes glaze over, even before my first cup of coffee in the morning. She shares her pattern for the shawl, too, so go enjoy.

Have you found some great creative ways to bust your stash? Please share below in the comments.

photocredit: Wendy Copley's Flickrstream.


I also blog at: Weight for Deb and BlogHer on Wednesdays and Saturdays.