Ten-Minute Dishcloth

This is a pattern I came up with out of necessity. What do you do when all the dishcloths are dirty or have wandered away, the washing machine is full, the dryer is broken, and you just want to clean something? Well in my case, you make a dishcloth. OK that, plus I have a lot of worsted weight cotton I want to use up.

For me a dishcloth has to have some specific requirements:

1. It has to hang over my tap or sink nicely, without dangling too much. Too big and it hangs all in the way of the handle, too small and it falls off into the sink.
2. It has to be fairly open weave if it’s cotton. Stinky dishcloths are gross, and one that doesn’t dry properly, or feels like you’re dragging around a mattress when it gets wet, is not one I am going to reach for.

That’s actually it. We mainly use a dishwasher, so dishcloths in my house are mostly used for wiping counters, and not actually for dishes, but it still has to be worth reaching for.

After a few trials, I came up with a decent size that works for me. Big enough for my hand, but small enough that it’s not falling in the way of the tap. Knobbly enough for scrubbing and making good bubbles, and nice and open also. Here it is in action:

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Will this dishcloth win any beauty contests? Probably not. Mostly because dishcloth beauty contests are not a thing that exists. But, it’s useful, and after I made one, I made two more, and will probably make some more to keep on hand. (We make a lot of messes here.)

It’s just a tuck stitch square, approximately 9″ x 10″, but if you want to make some for yourself and want a step-by-step pattern, you’re in luck, because I wrote it out, and you can download it in PDF form here:

Go forth and make all the squares! If we must clean things, at least we can make fun cloths with which to do it. These also come in really handy for inclusion as part of a housewarming or host/ess gift. Tied up with a pretty ribbon, maybe in a basket with some cleaning supplies…actually this would make a nice body cloth as well, come to think of it. BRB, going to make 10 more of these as washcloths for my kids…