Washcloth Wasteland

I'm whiling away the hours in the washcloth wasteland. Making washcloths has begun to dominate my dreams and fill my waking hours with frantic calculations to see if I can make enough of these little items for everyone on my list.

When I first started, the washcloths seemed to be flying off the needles. What a great, mindless project to fill those hours of waiting at hockey and dance and during school hours. Alas, the honeymoon has ended and I'm quickly tiring of knitting endless washcloths. (I'm having a flashback to the Great Slipper Storm of 2006, when 13 pairs of felted slippers were made and gifted ugggh!)

In an effort to break the monotony, I have designed a scrubbie pattern to tuck into some of the gift packets, in lieu of the handmade soaps (purchased from a friend) that a few lucky loved ones will be receiving.

Last summer I purchased a couple crocheted scrubbies at a Farmer's Market in Iowa. I totally fell in love with these handy little items and wanted to find a pattern for knitted ones. A little research on the web and I found a plethora of crocheted patterns for scrubbies. However, since there was a decided scarcity of knitted patterns and being the creative chick I am, I improvised.

They are not the most glamorous looking items, being a bit lopsided and wonky looking but they'll soon get battered and worn, being used as they were designed to be used. Hopefully, my technique will improve as I make more of them and they'll turn out a bit more aesthetically pleasing.

The scrub pad side is made from nylon netting. I bought 1 yard of the coarsest netting I could find and cut it into 1.5 inch strips, which were tied together. I cast on 18 stitches on size 6 knitting needles and knit in garter stitch until I felt it was the right length for a scrubbie, approximately 4 inches long, and bound off. So far, I've gotten three scrubbies out of the yard and there are more strips left, perhaps enough for one or two more scrubbies.

The yarn side was 22 stitches cast on and knit in the Trinity Stitch pattern until it was the same size as the scrub pad side. The knobby texture of the stitch pattern adds a little scrubbing power of it's own and adds a little bulk to the scrub pad. Then the two sides are crocheted, wrong sides together, with a single crochet edging.

I may make a few of the crocheted versions, just to see if they're any quicker. So stay tuned for more reports from Washcloth Wasteland.