A Summer of Mystery

 Kate Davies had a very fun idea for a summer knitting club. A Summer of Mystery focused on the work of Margery Allingham, who wrote the Albert Campion mysteries. Though Kate would not recommend them, I first learned of Albert Campion via the PBS Mystery episodes in the late 80's or early 90's, featuring Peter Davison. From there I moved on to reading some of the books. 

So this club featured a mystery knit-along, a book club, AND a series of knitting designs that were released throughout the summer, inspired by the Allingham novels. There was a reading schedule and a series of essays, by Kate Davies (who is a scholar as well as a knitter) and by guests as well. 

Of the 10 books in the club schedule, I read five. Sweet Danger, Dancers in Mourning, Coroners Pidgin, The Tiger in the Smoke, and Tethers End. It was such fun to revisit these old books - I had a few stashed in my basement (where we have a rather excellent if incomplete mystery library) and the rest I had to order from used booksellers. My local library only has 5 Allingham books, one of which is her memoir of life in WWII Britain, and another a story collection that features ONE of her short stories. And none of them were on the list for the Summer of Mystery. I had only planned to read 4 of the books, but the first one is the one at the mill, when Campion meets Amanda. And somehow, I couldn't NOT read that one as well.

One of my friends told me I was brave to do a mystery knit-along, and unfortunately, they were not wrong. 

I would not have chosen this pattern to knit if it hadn't been a mystery. It's a VERY big wrap. The color choices, unfortunately, were my own. I chose my colors online, of Milarrochy Tweed, the yarn specified in the pattern. To be fair, Kate Davies Design offered yarn packs in several colorways, any of which in the end I would have preferred to mine. I think if I had chosen the yarn in person, I might, just might, have made happier choices. You can buy the pattern and kits for the project from KDD, which is called The Goff Place Mystery, as the project is inspired by Tether's End.

As it is, we were told to choose a dark shade, which is the dark brown Bruce, a light shade, which is the Hirst (oatmeal). Then two shades of medium value which contrast well with one another (this is where I think I made one of my mistakes. These are the lighter gray Birkin, and the Stockiemuir, which is the green. Finally, a "pop" shade, which is the Cranachan, pink color. To critique myself, the green and gray aren't different enough from one another. They are side by side in the old shale border to the big oatmeal square -- but they disappear into one another. And the light gray and oatmeal are not happy together - one or the other of them ought to be different. 

In spite of that, this was a fun and interesting knit. The wedges were especially fun - I could imagine making a wedge only wrap some day.

I very well may find it cozy when winter comes. Or it's possible I'll decide someone else will enjoy it more than I will, and it will move on to another home.

My version of the Goff Place Mystery is on Ravelry here. 

 Do I regret my Summer of Mystery? Not at all. It was delightful to read those old mysteries over the summer, and to have my knitting connected to my reading. I loved the essays about the books, and about England during the time Allingham was writing them. And I learned a lot more about Margery Allingham. If you want to do the same, you could knit Goff Place, or choose one of the other projects inspired by the Allingham books, from the pattern collection and essays that Kate Davies has published based on this summer knitting club, Margery Allingham's Mysterious Knits. And since the mystery has now been revealed, you won't have to be so brave!