Do you set a € limit for yarn when you want to make a specific pattern???

I was browsing online this morning and “found” a really great pattern for a blanket, crocheted in mosaic stitch—it’s absolutely beautiful, with winter motifs.... So I immediately started looking for the right yarn 😇 and then, all of a sudden, I had about 70€ in my cart 😳
How do you guys handle this?
Do you have a “pain threshold”?
I do have the pattern now, but honestly, that’s too much for me. I’d have to look for an alternative online, though… Or wait until the yarn goes on sale again? 

Sort of. I mean, I wouldn’t go out of my way to buy outrageously expensive yarn just for a little crocheted animal, but for a sweater or a blanket.... phew, I think I’d be more obsessed with getting the perfect result in those cases, and I’d worry that using an inexpensive alternative yarn wouldn’t turn out as nice as I’d hoped.
By the way, I really like that many authors here list a few alternatives right away—that way, you don’t have to go through the trouble of searching for a yarn that might be similar.

Thanks for the tip, Veronika. That’s very helpful for us authors. :)

Steffi, I feel exactly the same way as Veronika. With such large projects, quality is important to me. Either I don’t do it at all, or it just costs more. I have to say, though, that there is also good yarn available at affordable prices.

It depends on what I want to make; I always check Hobbii every now and then to see what deals are available.
Sometimes I have a problem with patterns that specify “real” wool, since I don’t use that. I always have to search a bit to find something I can use, but there are plenty of alternatives: cotton, microfiber, bamboo, etc.

I checked Hobbii—the yarn is acrylic. The “Winterglow” skeins are big, but also really expensive because of the color gradient....
I think I’ll start by crocheting kitchen towels from the blanket pattern using cotton 🙈
And after winter, when “Winterglow” goes on its summer break again, we’ll see....

I also really like that the authors at CP often suggest alternatives. The patterns here are just great—so detailed.

  What I’ve noticed is that these “commercial” magazines often only feature projects that use a lot of yarn in different colors, or they just end up being completely unaffordable.... A cardigan that requires 220€ worth of yarn....
But you’re right, Imelda, when you say that the results with alternatives often don’t turn out quite as expected. 

Sorry, I meant Veronika.... About it “not looking like I expected”

Well, before I buy the pattern, I check which yarn is recommended for it—or rather, which one I’d like to use. Then I look online to see where I can get it and roughly how much it costs, as well as the shipping time, since I don’t want to wait forever.
I do set myself a limit of sorts, but it depends on how much I want to make it.
I’d say if I really want to make it, then it’ll cost whatever it costs.

I just took a look there too—I’d think it was way too expensive for acrylic, but since it’s 51% wool, that changes things.

Hi Angie,
unfortunately, the text for the pattern didn’t really say what kind of yarn was used or how much.... The exact details were only in the first part of the MCAL...
As for the amount.... 
Unfortunately.... so this isn’t something I can just make on the side.
I need 3 skeins of gradient yarn (€25 each) and two 400g large skeins..... 
Sometimes I check beforehand to see whether I might already have suitable yarn at home, and then order other colors 🙈 so it’s not so noticeable. 
@Veronika.... maybe I should convert it to 50g? Then it would be a normal yarn price.... But it’s still a bit much for me right now... 

Can you submit Christmas wish lists to anyone?
I have a piggy bank where I toss in spare change every now and then, because otherwise my wallet gets too thick. Once a year, I empty it out and am amazed at how much has accumulated.
A while back, I used that money to download a whole bunch of patterns here—just to stock up on whatever I happened to like at the time.