16 Budget Friendly Crochet Hacks

Worrying about money is no joke, and it’s something that so many of us are contending with right now. And although it’s not top of the financial concerns checklist, being able to continue to enjoy your hobbies is really important, especially in times of stress.

Crocheting can be an expensive craft, but it’s great for your mental health. Fortunately, you don’t need to break the bank to continue to hook up gorgeous creations.

Use what you’ve got

I find it so hard to say no to new yarn. Especially when I see it in person in the store. I also find it hard to not buy new yarn for new projects. But I also have a fairly overly excessive yarn stash.

What I try to do these days is to look carefully at everything on my shelves before I buy something new.

When you are planning a new project, try to use the yarn you already have before you go out and buy some more. That might mean adapting your plans, but you could come up with something even better than you’d originally planned.

Yarn swap with a friend

If you’ve got a knitting or crocheting buddy, then send them a photo of your stash and suggest a yarn swap. A great way for you both to get something new without paying a cent!

Buy second hand

If you haven’t got a yarny friend, then second hand purchases are a great way to get yarn that’s better suited to your budget. Thrift shops, antique shops, or market stalls are all great places to go yarn hunting.

Keep ‘stock’ yarn to a minimum

It’s difficult not to make impulse yarn purchases, and the way I dissuade myself is through shelf space.
Have a defined area in your home that is for yarn, and tell yourself that you aren’t allowed to overflow out of it. It helps to curb the impulse to bring home something new when you know you’ve already used your allotted area. Well… it helps a little!

Save every scrap

Never throw yarn away, no matter how small the scrap, tatty the skein or unpleasant the texture. There is always something you can do with leftovers, from details on amigurumi to padding out your stuffing.
And with that in mind…

Experiment with stuffing

There are so many ways you can fill your amigurumi that go beyond the traditional yarn stuffing. In the past I’ve made use of cushion filling, old duvet contents, and scrap yarn of course. I’ve also experimented with shredded clothing and even old wash cloths (after giving them a good clean!)

Scrap yarn as stitch markers

I own a lot of stitch markers, but honestly I don’t need to. For the most part, I just use a scrap of yarn to mark my place. This method works best if you use a different yarn texture, so the fibers bind a little and it is less likely to fall out.

Reuse yarn by frogging old projects

If you don’t have yarn in your stash, or one that matches your project, then why not look at your old projects. Now obviously don’t undo anything you love or use, but if you have a sweater you mostly made that you decided you now hate (true story for me) then why not just unravel it and use the yarn again?

Blocking board alternatives

Blocking boards are really helpful for crochet projects, but they aren’t actually an essential in the way your hook is. And frankly, traditional blocking boards sometimes aren’t big enough for certain projects anyway.

You can cut out the cost of buying a blocking board completely by weighing down your crochet with heavy books, or stretching it onto a pinboard. I’ve also found pinning it onto an ironing board very effective, as long as you don’t have any crinkly clothes that you’ll need to attend to over that time period!

Cut pattern costs

Patterns costs can really build up for some crocheters. And whilst there are obviously a lot of upsides to paying for patterns from hard working designers, it is possible to find them for free too. You can buy patterns second hand, or use completely free patterns online.

Makeshift shelving

There are costs to crochet that you don’t consider when starting, and one is storage. But you don’t need to break the bank buying shiny new shelving, you can find plenty of great storage solutions at a low price by looking for second hand options or alternatives.

For example, I used cheap shoe racks to store my yarn for ages, and they worked just fine and didn’t look too bad either!

Cheap yarn isn’t always a bargain

Just because yarn is discounted, doesn’t mean you should buy it. I hope you haven’t fallen foul of this before, but I know that I have several times.

I’ll grab a couple of skeins because they’re 50% off in the store, but they weren’t actually yarns I had a project in mind for. On a couple of occasions I must admit they weren’t yarns I’ll ever see myself using, they were just really pretty or soft!

A discounted or low priced yarn is only a bargain if you were going to buy it anyway.

Safety eye alternatives

You don’t need to spend money on safety eyes, they can also be sewn on. Or you can even use buttons from old clothes!

Yarn bowl alternatives

I don’t personally use a yarn bowl, but I often admire them online or in craft stores. And a lot of people find them very practical too. If you feel that a yarn bowl would benefit your crocheting but you don’t want to spend any money, then it’s totally possible to use a bowl from the kitchen, a colander or even just to do what I do and drop the skein on the floor!