When you imported your very first PDF, Yarn Squirrel asked where you’d like your pattern files kept. Both answers are sensible ones, and you can change your mind at any time in More → Settings → PDF Storage.
Here’s what each one actually does.
Store in iCloud
Yarn Squirrel copies each PDF into its own iCloud folder and reads from that copy.
- Your patterns open on every device, with nothing to set up
- They keep working even if you move, rename or tidy away the original file
- Nothing to reconnect when you get a new phone or iPad
The trade-off: each PDF then exists twice in iCloud — your original plus Yarn Squirrel’s copy — so it uses that much more of your iCloud storage.
Reference the original files
Your PDFs stay exactly where they are, whether that’s iCloud Drive, on your device, or a folder you keep your patterns in. Yarn Squirrel just remembers where to find them.
- No extra storage used at all
- Your own filing system stays untouched
- Editing or replacing the original file means the pattern shows the new version
The trade-off: each new device will ask you once to point at your PDFs again. Permission to files outside the app can’t transfer between devices — that’s an Apple rule, not a Yarn Squirrel one. Reconnect PDFs handles it in one step, and often in a single tap.
Which should you choose?
If you’d rather not think about it again, choose Store in iCloud and accept the extra storage.
If you keep a carefully organised pattern folder, or you’re watching your iCloud space, choose Reference and be ready to reconnect once per device. It’s a two-minute job, and Reconnecting your PDFs walks you through it.
In the appOpen PDF Storage settings