Easy Dishcloth Knitting Patterns

I guess it was after I did my post on washcloth knitting patterns that Pinterest decided I really wanted to see a lot of knit dishcloths and towels. Since that post was strictly washcloths I decided I should share some of the towels, too (though of course they could be knit to washcloth size, too, just make a square instead of a rectangle). With these patterns you’ll be ready to do all your cleaning chores, just as soon as you finish one more row!

Linen stitch is one of my favorite basic knitting stitches that makes a nice solid fabric, which is just what you’d want for a dish towel. This pattern from Arianna Frasca uses linen stitch striped in two colors to make a totally classic, completely gift-worthy knit towel.

The Cilantro Tea Towel from Whileberry is another great pattern that uses basic knits and purls for a fun textured look. It’s shown in a solid color but you could also work the moss stitch section in one color and the rest of the body in another.

Cluck Cluck Boots has another easy dish towel worked in a reversible textured stitch pattern. It looks like rows of seed stitch broken up with rows of garter stitch, so it should be a pretty quick and easy project no matter your skill level.

Purl Soho’s Farmhouse Dishtowels are worked in white with a dash of color at each end for a totally classic look, though of course they can be worked in other colors if white doesn’t seem like a good choice for your lifestyle. This one is a little bit higher in skill level because for part of the pattern you are sliding the work instead of turning it so you work the same row in different colors from the same side of the work. But one you understand how to do it, it’s not really difficult.

The Stay Put Kitchen Towel from Fancy Step Knits on Etsy is perfect for hanging over the oven or dishwasher handle. It’s worked in garter stitch so it’s super easy even if you’re a newer knitter, and the keyhole used to hold the towel in place is just a bind off and cast on.

Generally I like knitting patterns where I feel like you can use whatever yarn you have (because my stash is big enough and I want to use it, thanks) and make a successful project. This is one of those times when a special yarn makes the process that much easier.

The Floral Bouquet Shawl from Xandy Peters uses a specific extended color pooling yarn from Feisty Fibers, which allows you to place the bobble flowers with increasing frequency as you knit the project.

It starts with a solid color yarn, then the two color yarn is added in, and you make a bobble whenever you encounter the color pops. This would be hard to replicate with other yarn that doesn’t have the extended color pooling built in.

The background of the shawl is ribbed, making the project reversible.

The shawl uses fingering/sock yarn and comes out to be an asymmetrical triangle that’s 54 inches/137 cm long and 36 inches/ 90 cm deep and 60 inches/150 cm across the top edge.

Xandy says the pattern is for intermediate to advanced knitters. Knowing how to work traditional bobbles would probably help, but there’s a great video tutorial for how to work the floral bobbles so you can practice on other yarn or even incorporate the bobbles into other projects.

The bobbles are five-petaled flowers but they also kind of look like starfish to me, which could be fun on a child’s cardigan or other pattern. They’d also be fun on the leg of a sock or around the brim of a hat for extra whimsy.

The pattern includes photo and video tutorials, and written and charted instructions. It also includes tips on what to look for if you choose to use different yarn for the project, and instructions on how to dye your own yarn to use in the project.

If you want to give it a try, you can find the pattern on Ravelry.

[Photo: Xandy Peters]

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