« August 2006 | Main | June 2006 »
Sunday, July 30, 2006
Handmade Dishrags are Hot? Are You Kidding? No!
It’s too hot to knit a big project or think about serious topics in July (then again, since it is so hot, you might want to check out Al Gore’s flick or book, An Inconvenient Truth, if you haven’t done so already).
But in the dog days of summer, none of us want heavy, wool sweaters hanging in our laps. Summer is the time to read light books, to relax, and to enjoy some ice-cold lemonade on the front porch. I even lighten up on my blog reading in the hot months, because I don’t want to sit with my laptop burning my legs.
So, to get my blog fix, I’ve been reading books written by knitting bloggers: Mason-Dixon Knitting: The Curious Knitters’ Guide by Kay Gardiner and Ann Shayne, and Wendy Knits: My Never-Ending Adventures in Yarn by Wendy D. Johnson.
It was for purely selfish reasons that I picked up both of these books.
The first has several rug patterns in it, and since I started working on
The Knitted Rug, I’ve been collecting patterns for rugs. Kay and Ann
include several projects using traditional rug making techniques that
inspired some of the projects in my own book, so I was hooked
immediately. I used yarn for all of my rugs, and they use fabric strips,
potholder loops (remember those things from when you were in first
grade?) and some yarn. They even have a rug made out of a bunch of
knitted dishcloths sewn together. I had to get this book, even though I
figured I probably might never make anything in it or even read all of
the text. I was wrong.
And then a couple of weeks ago, my editor told me that Wendy Knits talks about qiviut. Oh my! My favorite fiber, the oh-so-soft under down of the musk ox, not to be resisted, regardless of the insane cost. So, feeling an immediate affinity for the author, I had no choice but to take a look at her book. As I was flipping through, I found a couple of projects for cats, and I headed straight for the checkout. When I got home and looked at the book in more detail, I was pleased to find that there are patterns scattered throughout the book, including socks, several sweaters, and a lace shawl. The garments are photographed on beautiful, real-sized women instead of emaciated models, which is a feature I always appreciate. The photos are black and white, but they are clear and you can easily see the details of the knitting.
Both of the books turned out to be fun summer reading, and they both include projects and technical tips for knitters. I wouldn’t say they’re literature, but they are like getting together with a good friend for a cup of coffee and a couple of hours of knitting. The writing is light and easy, and will make you chuckle as you compare your own knitting adventures with those of the authors. Those of you who are new knitters, will discover that the knitting universe is larger than you could have imagined!
Oddly enough, both of these books include several patterns for dishrags. I didn’t think anyone made dishrags any more. They seemed like something someone’s grandmother might have made in the 1930s or 40s. But here they were, right in the front of two popular knitting books in 2006. Go figure.
Dishrags, washcloths, facecloths, whatever you want to call them and however you want to use them, these little projects are no longer dorky pieces made from cheap yarn. There are some really cool designs, and they make great gifts (especially with a bar of hand-made soap), and would be hot sellers at craft sales or bazaars. So if it’s too hot to be knitting scarves, baby blankets, sweaters, and other cold-weather charity knitting projects, whip out a pile of dishrags and sell them for your favorite charity. If you make them up into a pretty package with a bar of soap, you can probably even sell them on E-bay.
I’ve included my version of the old-fashioned dorky dishrag pattern here. It’s actually very nice and even trendy if you make it out of a high-quality organic cotton yarn, in linen or hemp, or even in a cotton-chenille or terrycloth novelty yarn. If you get addicted to this technique (which is very possible!), check out the vest made with the same technique in Unexpected Knitting by Debbie New.
I’ve also linked to several other patterns on the web, you can check out the designs in the books I’ve mentioned, or you can just cast on and knit away in an interesting pattern stitch, and bind off when your piece is the desired size. That way you can practice a new stitch and not feel like you’re “wasting” time “just” making a swatch! In addition, you’re making a reusable resource that helps save trees that would otherwise be destined for the paper-towel factory.
Dishrags on the Web
If you still don't believe that knitted dishrags and washcloths are hot, here are some links to check out. There are literally TONS of patterns and pictures on the internet! All of these links will give you ideas. And there's no reason why you can't just make up your own design, using any stitch pattern you want to learn. What better way to make use of your swatches? Use cotton, terry-cloth, hemp, or linen.
This design, called Ms. Funky, is by Naomi Dagen Bloom, and is featured
on her blog,
A Little Red Hen. Made in stockinette stitch with natrural hemp, this
washcloth has couple of garter ridges of red hemp here and there to
spruce up the simple background pattern. The flower is 50/50 hemp/wool,
knitted from
Nicky Epstein's Knitted Embellishments on page 21, "5 Scallop
Garter-stitch Flower." A border of single crochet in a variegated hemp
yarn finishes off the piece.
This mitered square design, called a Right Angles Dishcloth, was also
knitted by Naomi. The dishcloth was designed by Dilys Sutherland and the
pattern is on her
Blossom Knitwear website, along with several other free patterns and some
knitting lessons.
The Dishcloth Botique website has 5 pages of links to dishcloth patterns. Wow, that's amazing. They are made in all different kinds of stitch patterns. Some are rectangles, knit back and forth. Some are circles, knit in the round. There are texture patterns, lace, and colorwork. Whatever your skill level and tastes, you're sure to find something you'd like to knit here.
Knittingforcharity.org has a page with information about using cotton yarn for charity knitting, along with a brief discussion of how you can use your knitted dishcloths for charity. There's a lot more info on the site, too, so it's definitely worth checking out.
Page by Page of Maui is a site that sells handmade gifts from Hawaii. The
site has a page with several free dishcloth patterns, including this
cute lace heart design.
And last, but not least, there's a cool Yahoo! Group that has a monthly dishcloth pattern and knitalong. It sounds like a lot of fun. It's at http://groups.yahoo.com/group/monthlydishcloths/. The group also has a blog with photos of the dishcloths.
Two Dishrag Patterns
These dishrags or wascloths are so easy to knit, you can make several
in one afternoon. Both are made diagonally, knitted from one point to
another, in plain garter stitch. Yarn overs and simple decreases form
the shaping. The blue version is made from plain cotton, with the
increases worked right on the edge for a lacy border. The white version
is made out of a terry-cloth novelty yarn with the increases worked a
couple of stitches in from the edge.
Version 1: Blue Cotton
This version has yarn overs along the edge of the piece, making a lacy border.
Worsted weight cotton yarn (one 50 gram skein will make 2 cloths )
5mm (Size 8 US) knitting needles
CO 5 sts.
Increase section: YO, knit to end.
Repeat until the dishrag is half of the desired size.
Decrease section: YO, k2tog, knit to last 3 sts, k2tog, k1.
Repeat until 5 sts remain.
BO. Weave in ends. Use right away in lieu of blocking.
Version 2: White Terry Cloth
This version has the yarn overs in a couple of stitches, making a firmer border.
Worsted weight terry-cloth novelty yarn (one 50 gram skein will make 2 cloths), if you find a thinner terry-textured yarn, you can use it double.
5mm (Size 8 US) knitting needles
CO 5 sts.
Increase section: K2, YO, knit to end.
Repeat until the dishrag is half of the desired size.
Decrease section: K1, k2tog, YO, k2tog, knit to end.
Repeat until 5 sts remain.
BO. Weave in ends. Use right away in lieu of blocking.