The dishcloths should be approximately 7 - 9 inches square. Dont make them any smaller than 7 inches because they will shrink a bit when theyre washed. Buy yarn that is 100% cotton. Some of the most common brands used for dishcloths are Lion Brand Cotton, Lily Sugar n Cream, and Peaches and Cream. Ive put a picture of the 2 different kinds of dishcloths at the bottom of the page. Pick your favorite color and get started!
Garter Stitch Dishcloth
With Size 8 needles, cast on 35 stitches.
Knit every stitch of every row until you have a square (about 35 ridges).
Bind off. Weave in ends.
Dont worry if it's not a perfect square because rectangles work great, too. If you decide to knit a second dishcloth, cast on a few more stitches if your first dishcloth ended up small or cast on a few less stitches if it ended up too big.
Yarnover Dishcloth
If you want a dishcloth that looks a little prettier, heres the pattern that includes a yarnover. A yarnover increases the number of stitches and makes a hole near the border of the dishcloth.
You can click on the Videos link on my home page to watch how to make a yarnover. To make a yarn over, bring the yarn from the back through the middle of the needles to the front and then knit the next stitch as usual. On the next row, you knit the yarn over like a regular stitch.
With Size 8 needles, cast on 4 stitches.
Row 1: Knit 2 stitches, yarn over, knit to the end of the row.
Repeat Row 1 until there are 45 stitches.
Next row: Knit 1 stitch, knit 2 stitches together, yarn over, knit 2 stitches together, knit to the end of the row.
Repeat this row until there are 4 stitches left.
Bind off and weave in ends.
If you want to knit a second dishcloth and your first one was too small, Repeat Row 1 until there are 48 - 50 stitches before you start decreasing. If your first one was too big, Repeat Row 1 until there are 40 - 43 stitches before you start decreasing.
