Janine's Dishcloths

The last time I met my friend Janine for coffee, I pulled the Bauhaus dishcloths from my knitting bag, just to show her. The look on her face told me that she needed some dishcloths of her own. She loved the colors ("maize" and "seaspray" in Lion Brand cotton), but I didn't like the pattern.

Living in a small house and blessed with a wonderful public library system , I don't buy very many books, but I make an exception for reference books, especially reference books about knitting. One such book is The Knitting Stitch Bible, by Maria Parry-Jones. I purchased this without a clear idea of what use I would make of it.



Light bulb moment: I could play with the stitches in the book while making dishcloths. So far, this scheme is working out well. I practice a stitch in colorful but inexpensive yarn, and by the time I get sick of it, the dishcloth is nearing completion. Then I have a small but useful gift.

Here is the double moss stitch.



And here is the basket stitch.



Another source of stitch patterns is the Lion Brand Stitchfinder. That's where I found the "purl ridges" stitch I used in the following piece.



Janine and I met for coffee again a couple of days ago, and she was thrilled with her new dishcloths. Unfortunately, I had goofed up the bind off on one, which I didn't notice until it was laid out on the table before us, so I had to confiscate it to make corrections. But she has two out of three to start the new year.

How To: Knit a Dishcloth

I like to edge my dishcloths in garter stitch, so I add 2 stitches for the left side and 2 for the right; I use placemarkers to remind me about the edging. Also, I favor the long-tail method of casting on, and thus either start with Row 2 or knit a row before starting the pattern.

How To: Double Moss Stitch a Dishcloth

Cast on in multiples of 2, plus 4 for the garter stitch edge.
Row 1: K2, *K1, P1, repeat from * to last 2 stitche2, K2
Row 2: K2, *K1, P1, repeat form * to last 2 stitches, K2
Row 3: K2, *P1, K1, repeat from * to last 2 stitches, K2
Row 4: K2, *P1, K1, repeat from * to last 2 stitches, K2
Repeat rows 1-4 until height of piece is approximately the same as the width.
Bind off. Weave in ends.

How To: Basket Stitch a Dishcloth

Cast on in multiples of 6, plus 3, plus 4 for the garter stitch edge.
Row 1: K2, *K3, P3, repeat from * to last 5 stitches, K3, K2
Row 2: K2, *P3, K3, repeat form * to last 5 stitches, P3, K2
Row 3: K2, *P3, K3, repeat from * to last 5 stitches, P3, K2
Row 4: K2, *K3, P3, repeat from * to last 5 stitches, K3, K2
Repeat rows 1-4 until height of piece is approximately the same as the width.
Bind off. Weave in ends.