Interesting Knitting Book

I recently purchased an interesting knitting book - from Thriftbooks, a favourite online used book store I like to support ...

(Their stated mission is to divert usable books from landfills by reselling them - a concept I totally support!)

But more about the book!

Published in 2001, it's a compilation of favourite patterns from knitting shops around the USA - together with knitting tips.

Confession: I've been a knitter since I was in my teens... so I've been knitting for a very long time. One of my BAD KNITTING HABITS is that I never knit a small sample swatch before starting a sweater. (You're supposed to do that, and measure it - then compare it to the pattern - to make sure that the size will be right. There's nothing more disheartening than putting hundreds of hours into a knitting project, then having to tear it apart and redo it because it's too big or too small. Yes, I've experienced that, too...)

But ... I'm basically impatient. I want to get started on the real thing - even though knitting a 5" square would probably take no more than half an hour.

I know that I'm a loose knitter so I usually make sweaters a size smaller than I want. It's my personal rule of thumb. It usually works.

But what had me smiling in this book of knitting wisdom were the comments - by experts - on HOW TO MEASURE A SWATCH: 

"Gauges can change as you relax" after knitting for a while, wrote one experienced knitter.

"You can't rely on a flat swatch for a piece that's going to be knit in the round," wrote another.

Now, I'm NOT ADVISING NOT KNITTING A SWATCH - but I did feel less guilty about my REALLY BAD HABIT!