#CRAFTS WITH ANASTASIA--TWO-NEEDLE PAW PRINT KNIT MITTENS WITH GUEST AUTHOR PEGGY GAFFNEY

Peggy Gaffney, author of the Kate Killoy Mystery Series of Suspense for the Dog Lover, brings a background of almost fifty years breeding and showing her Samoyed dogs as well as more than twenty years designing picture knit clothing styles for dog lovers. Peggy also authored a series of ten knitting books with designs for lovers of dogs, cats, llamas, and alpacas. Today we welcome Peggy’s amateur sleuth Kate Killoy. Learn more about Peggy and her books at her website. 

My name is Kate Killoy. I'm twenty-four years old, living in Connecticut and my world has always been dogs, specifically purebred Samoyed dogs. My grandfather and father taught me everything about breeding, raising and training them. I've shown our Shannon Samoyeds in the ring since I was seven years old and have learned to like winning.

Unlike me, everyone in my family is a mathematician, my parent as well as my four brothers. I wanted to design clothing, specifically picture knits with designs of dogs, all different breeds, worked into them. So, instead of going to MIT to study math, I went to New York to study fashion design, coming home on weekends for dog shows. When I graduated, Dad and Gramps presented me with my own studio on the second floor of the dog training barn. Here I create patterns of my designs which I market online.

However, my world was turned upside down this year when both Gramps and Dad died within months of each other. I was lost and buried myself in grief, just working with the dogs, until one morning my cousin, supermodel Agnes Forester, kidnapped me.

Agnes dragged me to New York and informed me I had a fashion show of my designs scheduled for February as part of the country's best known dog show. She also said that I looked more like twelve-year old kennel help than a fashion designer. So before I could blink, I'd had a complete makeover and new wardrobe that had me staring in the mirror at, not the Kate I knew, but a beautiful stranger. Then came the contracts which I found myself signing, promising I'd produce my own line of ready-to-wear knit fashions to be worn by dog owners at the fashion show.

Don't ask me how we did, it but with the help of my studio manager Ellen and my crew of knitters, mostly single moms in need of a job with benefits and flexible hours which included child care, we got everything ready on time.

Suddenly, I found myself, along with my Champion Samoyed, Dillon, in New York getting ready to rehearse the fashion show that would feature twenty of my best showdog owning friends and their dogs as models. I'd be showing Dillon and a friend's German Shepherd at the show. The only problem was that the mover and shaker behind this event, Agnes, had suddenly gone missing. Plus, I found she'd been going about disguised as me because the FBI was looking for her. She wasn't answering my texts, and although I was worried, I only had time for a small panic.

Larger panic developed when, after a lunch with the friends who would be running my pattern booth at the dog show, I was shoved into busy NYC traffic. Rescue came by way of a quick thinking handsome green-eyed gentleman who introduced himself as Harry Foyle. He said it was a murder attempt. He helped me back to my hotel and convinced me that someone wanted to kill me and offered to be my bodyguard until I return to Connecticut.

Harry was a former math geek for the FBI who now ran his own security company. I didn't like this plan but he turned out to be a friend of my kennel manager Sal, a retired cop, and I found myself with no choice but to agree to the protection. Before I knew it, he'd dreamed up a cover story and I found myself sharing my hotel room and every waking minute with a fake fiancé. When a text finally came from Agnes, it was a warning to me about someone trying to murder her who may go after me by mistake.

Now I may be a good designer and a great breeder and handler of dogs, but since I'd spent every weekend growing up showing dogs, I'd never learned about guys or dating. So although I am frightened about someone wanting me dead, what really scares me are the new and scary feelings I'm having for the green-eyed charmer who is happy to get completely into his role of  fiancé.

As murder, gun battles, and a secret code involving international intrigue work their way into our show week, Harry and I find ourselves facing risks both to our lives and our hearts.

Two Needle Paw Mittens

designed by Peggy Gaffney

These are the simplest mittens I’ve ever made. They whip up quickly, the thumb lies neatly on the palm and the best part is they are knit on only 2 needles.  My favorite way of knitting these is to work the paw print design onto the palm after you have completed the thumb.  If you have never done picture knitting, check out the website for instructions or add the design to the finished mittens using duplicate stitch.

Right Mitten

Cast on 23 (28, 34, 38, 44) stitches on the smaller needles and do a knit 1, purl 1 ribbing for 20 rows to form cuff. Change to larger needles and knit in stockinette stitch for 9 (11, 13, 15, 17) rows, ending with a purl row. On the next row, knit the first 12 (14, 17, 19, 22) stitches and then place them on a holder. Knit the next 5 (5, 6, 7, 7) stitches. Place the remaining stitches onto a holder.

Form the thumb

Working with only the thumb stitches, do stockinette stitch for 9 (11, 12, 14, 15) rows. On the next 2 rows, decrease 1 stitch each side. Then on the next 2 rows, increase 1 stitch each side. Knit  9 (11, 12, 14, 15) rows and break yarn.

Palm

Place the stitches from their holders back onto the needle so that you once again have 23 (28, 33, 38, 43) stitches. Knit for 18 (22, 26, 30, 34)  rows. On the next row, you will divide your mitten into back and front by decreasing 1 stitch at the beginning of the row, knitting 10 (12, 15, 19, 20) stitches. With a separate ball of yarn, bind off the next 2 stitches, knit 10 (12, 15, 19, 20) stitches and bind off the last stitch. Bind off 1 stitch each side of each piece for 2 rows. Bind off all stitches.

Left Mitten

Work the same as the left mitten, reversing the shaping.

Finishing

Sew the side seams on both the mitten and the mitten thumb. Work in all ends and turn right side out.

Blocking Measurements

When the garment is knit, it should be blocked to shape. If you are working in natural fibers, this can be done by using steam. Caution: steam should not be used with man made fibers. The benefit is that it evens out any uneven stitches and gives the finished garment a professional look. It also allows you to be sure that the fit is perfect. The measurements below for the body and sleeve are arranged by size and are given both in inches and centimeters.

Child’s Small (Medium, Large, Woman’s, Man’s)

Palm Circumference: 4.5 (5.5, 6.5, 7.5, 8.5) in. or 11.5 (14.1, 16.6, 19.2, 21.8) cm.

Hand Length: 4.5 (5.5, 6.5, 7.5, 8.5) in. or 11.5 (14.1, 16.6, 19.2, 21.8) cm.

Thumb Length: 1.5 (1.75, 2, 2.25, 2.5) in. or 3.8 (4.5, 5.1, 5.8, 6.4) cm.

Cuff: 2 in. or 5.1 cm.

Fashion Goes to the Dogs

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#CRAFTS WITH ANASTASIA--KNIT GLITTER YARN SCARF

(Anastasia is in bed with a really bad cold. This craft project first appeared on the blog six years ago.)

Scarves have been a huge fashion accessory for several years now. Women (and many men) wear them year round, even in the heat of summer. However, this time of year we wear them not so much as a fashion statement but to keep our necks warm. It’s cold out there, people!

Because knitting has also seen a resurgence in popularity over the last few years, there are many fashion-inspired yarns on the market and not just in the swanky, expensive knitting shops. You can find them in any craft store and even some big box stores.

Scarves are an easy beginner project for the novice knitter. You don’t need to worry about exacting measurements or following complex instructions. You can make it as wide or narrow, as long or short as you want, and if you choose a bulky yarn and large knitting needles, you can whip up a simple scarf in an evening.

This scarf is made with glitter fringe yarn, but you can choose any bulky yarn that catches your eye. Adjust your width and length as desired and buy additional skeins if you want a wider or longer scarf.

Note: Some yarns contain dye lots. If there is a dye lot on the label, always buy skeins with the same dye lot number.

Glitter Fringe Scarf

Materials:

3 skeins 40 gram Glitter Fringe Yarn

#11 knitting needles

Cast on 15 stitches. Knit 4 rows.

Next row (wrong side): Knit 3, purl 9, knit 3.

Next row: Knit.

Repeat last two rows until scarf measures 48” in length, ending with a wrong side row.

Knit 4 rows.

Caste off.

CRAFTS WITH ANASTASIA--GUEST AUTHOR AND KNITTR CORI LYNN ARNOLD

Cori Lynn Arnold writes police procedurals. She’s also worked as a hotel housekeeper, handywoman, laundry attendant, radio disc jockey, library clerk, historical photographic archivist, mathematics tutor, teaching assistant, artwork framer, photo lab junky, portrait and wedding photographer, high school algebra teacher, Internet security researcher, security analyst, computer programmer and ethical hacker. (With a background like that, she’s got plenty of fodder for many books!) Learn more about Cori and her books here. 

I love to knit - and quilt, and refinish furniture, and throw pottery and … you name it. I’m a sucker for crafty things. I like to tell people that I have enough hobbies for all my characters to live well-rounded lives outside of the pages of my manuscripts.

One of my favorite characters from Scalding Deceit is Assistant District Attorney Kristine Rocha. In one of the opening chapters she’s left waiting outside the Coroner’s office. Waiting isn’t her strong suit, and she’s already angry for being called down to his office. The email she received said that the Coroner was planning on changing his testimony in a murder trail she’d been working on for over a year. She can’t sit still, so she pulls out her needles and yarn to work on a small project that fits in a little pocket inside her briefcase: socks for her nephew Bryan.

Kristine has been knitting since she was five, but she quit the hobby during law school. She picked it up again when she found she needed a way to relax her mind.

Unlike Kristine, I didn’t learn to knit until I was thirty. My grandma owned a knitting shop for forty years and taught knitting for a living. My grandfather was a yarn salesman. So naturally I resisted anything to do with the hobby. My main hobby was quilting, but quilting projects are a little difficult to travel with.

About ten years ago, my grandparents asked me to join them on a fourteen-day cruise to celebrate my grandpa’s recovery (he’d been sick the winter before) and their anniversary. For the first few sea days I occupied myself with reading, but I was itching to do something with my hands. My grandma is always knitting, and watching her always mesmerized me. On about the fifth day I asked her if she had any spare knitting, and if she could teach me to knit. I’ve been knitting ever since.

I started with a dozen scarves, moved on to basic hats, then fancier hats and then I started making mittens, and socks. I’ve knit exactly one sweater. The sweater took me forever, but my husband wears it every winter even though his cheeks turn red and beads of sweat form on his forehead from the thick wool.

One thing my grandma doesn’t like to do is knit in the round on four needles. She’d rather knit flat in stockinette stitch and crochet the seam. I had already knit socks the hard way once when she taught me to knit socks with just two needles. The process is a lot more fun than gussets. When you are putting these socks together it feels a lot like the magic of origami. Only intermediary knitting skills are required: short row shaping using wrap and turn, and Kitchener’s stitch to graft the active stitches on the back of the heel together. You can choose whether to crochet or sew the seams, although my grandma says single crochet is the best way. The best part is this little project tucks away neatly in your briefcase if you ever get stuck outside the Coroner’s office waiting for him to tell you bad news about your case.

Kristine Rocha’s Two Needle Socks

Size: Child’s size for a 4 to 6 year old

Materials:

One skein of sock yarn, super fine weight. (I used “Bernat sox”)

One set of straight US #2 needles or size needed to obtain gauge.

Two small stitch holders

US D (or #3) crochet hook

Gauge:

28 stitches X 36 rows = 4 inches square

Cuff:

Cast on 40 stitches using long tail method. (Feel free to use a really long tail it’ll be useful later)

Row 1: K1, P1 across

Repeat Row 1 for 15 rows.

Ankle:

Row 1: Knit

Row 2: Purl

Repeat these rows for 24 total rows, ending with a Purl Row.

Knit the first thirty stitches and stop. Place the first ten stitches from this row on a stitch holder. Place the last ten stitches from your left hand needle onto another stitch holder.

You now have twenty total working stitches on your needle. Purl these stitches across.

Top of foot:

Row 1: Knit

Row 2: Purl

Repeat these rows until you have 25 rows from the point you put the 20 sts on hold.

(Okay, this next part is a little tough, but it goes really fast. If you need a refresher on wrap and turn I recommend you search for YouTube videos or the very helpful tutorial from Purl Bee: http://bit.ly/1o4wHrR)

Turn the toe:

Row 1: Knit 19 wrap and turn

Row 2: Purl 18 wrap and turn

Row 3: Knit 17 wrap and turn

Row 4: Purl 16 wrap and turn

Row 5: Knit 15 wrap and turn

Row 6: Purl 14 wrap and turn

Row 7: Knit 13 wrap and turn

Row 8: Purl 12 wrap and turn

Row 9: Knit 11 wrap and turn

Row 10: Purl 10 wrap and turn

Row 11: Knit 11, picking up the wrapped stitch

Row 12: Purl 12, picking up the wrapped stitch

Row 13: Knit 13, picking up the wrapped stitch

Row 14: Purl 14, picking up the wrapped stitch

Row 15: Knit 15, picking up the wrapped stitch

Row 16: Purl 16, picking up the wrapped stitch

Row 17: Knit 17, picking up the wrapped stitch

Row 18: Purl 18, picking up the wrapped stitch

Row 19: Knit 19, picking up the wrapped stitch

Row 20: Purl 20, picking up the wrapped stitch

Bottom of the foot:

Row 1: Knit

Row 2: Purl

Repeat these rows until you have 25 rows from the point you finished turning the toe.

Turn the heel (Note: this is exactly what you did for the toe):

Row 1: Knit 19 wrap and turn

Row 2: Purl 18 wrap and turn

Row 3: Knit 17 wrap and turn

Row 4: Purl 16 wrap and turn

Row 5: Knit 15 wrap and turn

Row 6: Purl 14 wrap and turn

Row 7: Knit 13 wrap and turn

Row 8: Purl 12 wrap and turn

Row 9: Knit 11 wrap and turn

Row 10: Purl 10 wrap and turn

Row 11: Knit 11, picking up the wrapped stitch

Row 12: Purl 12, picking up the wrapped stitch

Row 13: Knit 13, picking up the wrapped stitch

Row 14: Purl 14, picking up the wrapped stitch

Row 15: Knit 15, picking up the wrapped stitch

Row 16: Purl 16, picking up the wrapped stitch

Row 17: Knit 17, picking up the wrapped stitch

Row 18: Purl 18, picking up the wrapped stitch

Row 19: Knit 19, picking up the wrapped stitch

Row 20: Purl 20, picking up the wrapped stitch

Congratulations! You now how a wild looking origami project that looks just like this:

Believe it or not, you are almost there!

Pick up the twenty stitches from the stitch holder onto your second knitting needle Be careful to pick them up in the right order! The stockinette from the ankle section should meet together with the purl on the inside of the tube:

Use Kitchener’s stitch to graft the bottom of the ankle section to the back of the heel.

Finish by single crocheting the back of the ankle and the two sides of the sock together. And now all you have to do is make another one!

Scalding Deceit

A string of overdoses in Rochester, New York's bedroom suburbs has Detective Louis Baker and her partner Robert Hicks wondering if the only survivor, a wealthy pharmaceutical manufacturer, is the mastermind behind the tragedies, or the man who can lead them to the devious poisoner.

When botched DNA evidence poisons a rape and murder trial Kristine Rocha, assistant district attorney is struck with a personal crisis. Kristine must navigate the investigation to keep her job, while struggling to hold things in her family together.

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CRAFTS WITH ANASTASIA-- GLITTER FRINGE YARN SCARF

The weather outside is frightful. Why not curl up in a comfortable chair and knit an elegant scarf to wear New Year’s Eve? -- AP

GLITTER FRINGE YARN SCARF

Materials:

3 skeins Glitter Fringe Yarn

#11 knitting needles

Cast on 15 stitches. Knit 4 rows.

Next row (wrong side): Knit 3, purl 9, knit 3.

Next row: Knit.

Repeat last two rows until scarf measures 48” in length, ending with a wrong side row.

Knit 4 rows.

Caste off.