Chat Back for February 6

Some good questions appeared in the comments this past week, and here are the answers:

Shirley asked . . .

Pappy looks much smaller than I thought when I see him with his Opal "pillow". How much does he weigh?

Pappy the Papillon weighs thirteen pounds. That's large for the breed. Papillon size is usually six to ten pounds.

He's not at all fat. He's a trim, fit boy under all that fluffy fur.


Kathleen asked . . .

The sweater looks fun. Is the pattern in the book or do you have to find all of the different stitches and put together your own?

The main thrust of Janet Szabo's book Aran Sweater Design is all the different constructions of cabled sweaters and how to calculate and design them, but there are four complete patterns at the end.

The Set-in Sleeve Aran is one of the complete patterns.


Kathy asked two questions. . .

1) Do you have a huge stash of yarn on hand or do you always use what you have purchased right away?

For sweater knitting - I buy for the project not for the stash. There isn't a single yarn in my stash where I have enough for an adult sweater.

Sometimes there's a pattern I want to knit and I have the fun of finding and buying the right yarn for it. Other times I have a yarn I want to knit and I have the fun of finding the right pattern for it.

Calculating cost per hour, knitting is actually a very inexpensive hobby when you only buy yarn you have a known and immediate use for.

For CIC knitting - I do have a stash of left over wool, sale wool, mill end wool, gift wool, and odd balls bought for swatching. I have over a year's supply of CIC wool waiting to be knit and plan to knit most of it up before getting more - even if a good sale pops up.

For Sock Knitting - I have a stash, mostly Opal. Probably about two dozen pair worth of yarn, small compared to others but enough to make me happy.

2) Do you always intentionally plan to purchase enough extra for each project so you can knit a CIC item also?

I intentionally purchase enough yarn so I don't need to worry about running out before the project is complete. The more complex the project, the larger the amount of safety yarn.

It's a bonus when the yarn is wool and I can use the leftovers for CIC knitting.

Kathy B asked . . .

What is the best thing about your current age?

The ability to enjoy the little pleasures of life.