I feel silly asking this but I’ll go ahead. I see a lot of you making knit washcloths. I have never seen or used one before but it seems like a good way to practice stitches and such. My question is how do knit washcloths compare with the regular cloth ones you get in the store? Do they clean any better or worse? What about for your face? Very abrasive? Just curious. Thanks!
I use 100% cotton and I like them much better. I have 2 messy boys and they seem to ‘grip’ better than regular dishcloths. I use them for everything, and I love them! They last longer because they do not get thin like regular dishcloths.
I want to make some super soft face cloths out of cotton chenille. Yum.
I have to agree with butterflymama about how well they stand up. My mom and gram still have dishcloths that my great grandma knitted back in 1987. That prooves how long they last :rofling:
that’s encouraging! Maybe they would also be good for dishes and cleaning too. I buy those cheap blue (or green) and white strip cloths that come in a pack (not sure who makes them) and they work well but don’t hold up very long. A knit one may be just what I need.
I made a bunch of them out of Sugar and Cream and while they make great dishcloths I wouldn’t use them on my face. They just aren’t soft enough. However that abrasiveness works great for cleaning counters or dishes! I got rid of my sponge and use them all the time now.
My husband often asks “what good is it”?
I just tell him that at the end of the world department store shoppers will be running around naked and he will be cozy and warm.
At the end of the world I imagine there will be no more mass produced sponges - knitting dish cloths is yet another useful item to help us survive when everyone else is having shopping withdrawls. :rofling:
Yeah, most of my friends, when they found out I knitted, suggested I should perhaps go make friends with their grandmothers… (though not quite as nicely as that :mad:)
I told them not to come crying to me when Armageddon comes and they don’t have anything to wear.
Honestly, I haven’t tried dishcloths yet. I’ve done some potholders and trivets, but beyond that I’ve been working on an afghan, and now socks. Seems to me that knitted things would be great for scrubbing, though.
I have a bunch of cheap yarn that doesn’t have a label so I don’t know what it is. kind of like craft yarn… maybe red heart or something. Also have one that is like baby yarn…sport weight I think. Do you all think that stuff would work ok for this or should it be cotton? I don’t know what else to do with it. I could use 2 strands together to make it thicker and go faster.
I like knitted dishcloths much better than crocheted ones. They seem to do a better job of cleaning. Don’t thinkI would use anything but cotton for knitting them. Just isn’t worth the extra money to use anything else. Also, can’t imagine using worsted wool acrylic for my dishes or cleaning. The Microspun yarns maybe OK, but I think cotton probably hold up best.
On the subject of knitting for the kitchen, I discovered last summer that not only does mason line knit into some trippy casual bags, it is kicka$$ for making potscrubbers…and coasters (though I crocheted the coasters).
You can get this stuff at your local hardware store… it comes in fluorescent colors like yellow and pink. Look for twisted mason line. Fiber content: nylon/polyester/polypropilene. One roll, 225ft of it cost me all of a buck.
I recommend highly that you do NOT use wooden needles for knitting with it though. The thread hasn’t much give, which menas you will be kissing your bamboo goodbye. Stick with your plastic or metal needles. The line slides well off of these.
Mason line is an interesting idea. what size needle did you use for it?
My Aunt loves the knitted, cotton dishclothes for her face. She says that they work great for exfoliating! There is a site, dishcloth boutique, I think, that has tons of patterns for dishclothes.
The only thing I find odd about knit or crocheted washcloths is how they can be perfectly square until they get soaking wet and for some reason they’re never quite square again until they’ve been washed and dried. It’s probably just the weight of the water pulling it out of shape, but it still looks odd to me.
I believe I used an 11 US for the scrubbie. Anything over an 8 will work, though. The line has no give, but in terms of thickness it is equivalent to a light worsted.
I love the idea for a bag made of mason line.
I work at Home Depot - I am constantly saying we should hold a charity fashion show. All of the fashions to be made with HD items only.
Think about it - wedding gowns of tyvex house wrap (its white and fairly fabric like), golf shoes made of astro turf - Im sure you get the idea 
I’ve made washcloths from all kinds of various fibers. Natural and acrylic. I love them. I love washing my face with them. They really clean them well. Wouldn’t trade my hand knit washcloths for anything. Lettuce soap from Burt’s Bees and a washcloth have been my favorite facial!
I love making washcloths because you can practice stitches, and they work so much better!! My DH does most of the dishes, and he likes them as well. I like to make knobby ones, so they clean and scrub a little better. I also really like Peaches and Cream, instead of Suger and Cream, it’s a lot softer and seems to hold it’s shape better than the Sugar and Cream. I can only find it at Wal-Mart though, usually $1.20 or so a ball.
Peaches and Cream? I’m going to have to run to Wal*Mart and see if mine carries this. I’ve been using Sugar and Cream for mine thus far, but if I want to make face cloths rather than dishcloths, softer is always good.
You can also get it in cones at Wal-Mart for about $7 each. Which turns out to be a pretty good deal.
I wonder how something like Patons Grace would work for a face cloth. It is 100% mercerized cotton (no idea what the mercerized part means!) and I’ve seen it at Michael’s, it is SO soft, much much softer than kitchen cottons.
Or I’ve also thought of Knitpicks ‘Shine’ for face cloths. Really really soft.