Crafting a Mystery: Murderous Knitting and Fiber Foul Play in TV and Books

The murderer stands poised with knitting needles, sharp points glinting. An elderly lady peers over her knitting, keen observation leading to inevitable deduction. A luxurious scarf garrotes an unsuspecting victim.

Yarn crafts can be murder, but how did they get tangled up in mystery?

Any amateur sleuth can tell you; a mystery has a lot in common with a good piece of knitting or crochet. Both require a methodical approach, application of logic, objectivity, and focus. If successful, a distinguishable shape emerges. Loose ends are woven in and suddenly it’s over. The detective gathers all the suspects. Denouement ensues.

Perhaps the connection is obvious. It could be the inherently stabby nature of the pastime. In a blending of genres, T. Kingfisher’s novel, Paladin’s Grace*, has murder, magic, and knitting. Who hasn’t thought of stabbing something when using double-pointed needles or Tunisian hook? Of course, as the paladin reflects, “he’d have to pull the needle out of the sock.” What a nightmare. “. . . then he’d be left with the grim fiddly work of rethreading the stitches.”

Plots, Protagonists, and Purls

In Only Murders in the Building, this fantasy plays out in graphic detail. Mabel, arguably the star of the second season, finds the hapless victim stabbed with a knitting needle. But not all murderous knits are drenched in blood. Murder mystery of any variety provides the purest fiction. The detective solves the case and justice is served. Cozy mysteries are more antiseptic. The opposite of noir, they provide a crime scene with less mess. More analytical problem-solving, less washing blood out of wool.

Related: Seen on Screen: Knit and Crochet Projects in Shows We Love

Agatha Christie is often credited with the invention of the cozy subgenre. In a subversion of spinsterhood, sharp-eyed Miss Marple solves cases through cold logic. She relies on knitting to make her invisible. Her needles provide her with the power of quiet observation as well as contemplation. But she’s not the only one.

Maggie Sefton’s Kelly Flynn subverts stereotypes as well. Previously a corporate accountant, Kelly knits to connect with her recently murdered aunt. Along the way she picks up a whole softball team, knitters all, who help with her investigations. Some of them spin and weave as well. And who can resist a title like Knit One, Kill Two*?

In fact, a lot of knitting detectives come to the craft through personal loss. In the Vampire Knitting Club series*, Lucy Swift inherits her grandmother’s yarn shop. Knitting and crocheting their way through 14 books and two novellas, the conclave quickly becomes her cohort of investigators. More so, they become her found family.

In the Haunted Yarn Shop series*, Kath Rutledge inherits her fiber and fabric shop from her grandmother as well. Except in this case, her grandmother was the prime suspect. Whether they knit, sew, crochet, or cross-stitch, more than ghosts lurk in the shadows. The group of fiber artist friends work together to hook the fiend.

The Link Between Craft and Mystery

This, more than any other reason, may describe why knitting and murder are so linked. The complex web of interconnectivity we have with each other. By pooling their resources—gossip, theories, and observations—they get results. Fictitious feat though it is, they find every murderer within a 100-mile radius. Outside the page, death rarely offers such a tidy resolution.

Still, we could learn a lot from our fictional counterparts. Although, we certainly shouldn’t go out and try to start solving mysteries. Modern mystery mavens throw caution to the wind to nab their suspects. Life, unfortunately, has fewer safeguards and many more absurdities. And murder is hardly a hobby.

Knitting, on the other hand, “has a profound connective power,” as Clara Parkes says in her knitter’s travelogue, Knitlandia*. “The culture and people, the values, they all contribute to an immediate and profound trust in one another.” Regardless of how knitting ties in with murder, we can always strengthen our ties to each other.

Related: Art of Darkness: Gothic, Aesthetics, and Knitting

Whether in person or on the page, knitting offers order and relaxation. And if that fails, there’s always needle-felting to channel our more violent impulses.

Stacey Hoffer is a writer and maker who enjoys pursuing the dark arts of domesticity. You can find her digging in the dirt, spinning a yarn, or deep in a book, often accompanied by her partner, cats, and children. Stay in touch with Stacey at www.staceyannehoffer.com

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Originally published 10/31/2022. Updated 10/30/2023.