Happy Valentine's Day!

I knit my very first pair of socks in self striping Opal sock yarn. I was loving the way the striping was working out and so did my daughter. So, I made them for her. Now, if the socks look oddly long, let me explain. Aside from being my first pair and there are mistakes in them, I like my socks snug around my feet because if the sock creases when I tie my shoes it causes the top of my foot to get so itchy that I have actually scratched them til they bled. So, I was making the sock snug around, but that required making it long enough for the stretch to pull up from the length.

Also, this is a toe-up pattern and I am not sure how I feel about it. The heel is not reinforced and starting is very clumsy, but I will give it another go with another yarn to see if I have improved.

Also, Marly from the Yarn Thing podcast left me my first comment. I love Marly! I love her energetic and enthusiastic podcast and use it as a measure of the other podcasts I listen to. Bless you Marly! Visit her blog at http://yarnthing.blogspot.com.

Hugs and Prayers to All
Serene Knitter

Nubbly Checkerboard Dishcloth #1

For this nubbly textured dishcloth I used 4 ply 100% white cotton yarn stitched on size 7 needles. I recommend that you knit this dishcloth snugly. One of the stitch patterns calls for a yarn over, knit 2 pass YO over the 2 knit stitches and off the needle. If you YO loosely you will get a yarn bar across the 2 stitches, and as the pattern develops it gives a pleasant look to the pattern. However, I wanted this dishcloth to have a distinctly nubby texture for scrubbing and wiping purposes, so I recommend the following: When you YO, K2, pass YO over 2 K sts and off the needle that you YO snugly so that the YO cinches up the 2 stitches and adds to the rough texture of the cloth. That said, here is variation #1.

Cast on 44 sts.
Rows 1 thru 8: K44, turn.
Row 9: K6, (YO snugly, K2, pass YO over 2 K sts & off needle, K2) 2 times, (P1, K1) 4 times, (YO snugly, K2, pass YO over 2 K sts & off needle, K2) 2 times, (P1, K1) 4 times, K6, turn.
Row 10: K6, (K1, P1) 4 times, P8, (K1, P1) 4 times, P8, K6, turn.
Row 11: K6, [(K2, YO snugly, K2, pass YO over 2 K sts and off needle) 2 times, (P1, K1) 4 times], repeat once, K6, turn.
Row 12: K6, (K1, P1) 4 times, P8, (K1, P1) 4 times, P8, K6, turn.
Rows 13 thru 16: Repeat Rows 9 thru 12, once.
Rows 17 & 18: Repeat Rows 9 & 10 once.
Row 19: K6, [(P1, K1) 4 times, (YO snugly, K2, pass YO over 2 K sts & off needle, K2) 2 times], repeat once, K6, turn.
Row 20: K6, P8, (K1, P1) 4 times, P8, (K1, P1) 4 times, K6.
Row 21: K6, [(P1, K1) 4 times, (K2, YO, snugly, K2, pass YO over 2 K sts and off needle) 4 times], repeat once, K6, turn.
Row 22: K6, P8, (K1, P1) 4 times, P8, (K1, P1) 4 times, K6.
Rows 23 thru 26: Repeat Rows 19 thru 22 once.
Rows 27 & 28: Repeat Rows 19 & 20, once.
Rows 29 thru 48: Repeat Rows 9 thru 28, once.
Rows 49 thru 58: Repeat Rows 9 thru 18 once.
Rows 59 thru 66: K44, turn.
Bind Off.

About Dishcloth Patterns

For those of you who are wondering why I am totally locked into making dishclothes and may think I am a knitting newbie I want you to know I can knit, crochet, sew, quilt and embroider a wide variety of other things. The reason I am so focused on dishclothes is that I am making bundles of these to include in the pile of shower prizes to be given away at my daughter's bridal shower.

Yes, that is right. My lovely, precious, sweet bundle of happy energy is getting married later this year. So, please be patient with the dishcloth phase and keep checking in with my blog and as I progress you will see more original patterns.

Dishcloth suggestions:

Shrinkage: 100% cotton dishcloths do shrink up a bit, and that is a good thing. It makes the dishcloth stitches tighten up and it makes the cloth thicker.

Cleaning the dishclothes: To keep the dishclothes from staining wash them in Dishwasher Detergent instead of laundry detergent. You can throw your dishclothes and dishtowels in the washer with a couple of scoops of dishwasher detergent and they will come out very clean.

Another Cleaning Option: If you have a dishwasher...use your dishcloth and just before you run your load of dishes, hang the dishcloth over the bar on the top rack closest to the wall of the dishwasher. It will come out beautifully clean and you will never have a nasty, sour dishcloth.

One last note. For reasons that I don't understand (I am certainly not a professional photographer) some of the photos come out somewhat dark and the white dishclothes look a little smudged and dirty. They are pristine clean so I cannot explain why they look like that. My apologies for the poor photo quality.

Let me know how you like the patterns.

Hugs and Prayers
Serene Knitter

Nubbly Checkerboard Dishcloth #2

This Dishcloth is worked in 4 ply, 100% cotton yarn on size 7 needles. I used white so that the focus in on the texture of the pattern and not the color variations.

Cast on 48 sts.
Rows 1 thru 8: K48, turn.
Row 9: K6, (YO snugly, K2, pass YO over 2 K sts & off needle, K2) 3 times, (P1, K1) 6 times, (YO snugly, K2, pass YO over 2 K sts & off needle, K2) 3 times, K6, turn.
Row 10: K6, P12, (K1, P1) 6 times, P12, K6, turn.
Row 11: K6, (K2, YO snugly, K2, pass YO over 2 K sts and off needle) 3 times, (P1, K1) 6 times, (K2, YO snugly, K2, pass YO over 2 K sts and off needle) 3 times, K6, turn.
Row 12: K6, P12, (K1, P1) 6 times, P12, K6, turn.
Rows 13 thru 28: Repeat Rows 9 thru 12 4 more times. Total of 20 rows.
Row 29: K6, (P1, K1) 6 times, (YO snugly, K2, pass YO over 2 K sts & off needle, K2) 3 times, (P1, K1) 6 times, K6, turn.
Row 30: K6, (K1, P1) 6 times, P12, (K1, P1) 6 times, K6.
Row 31: K6, (P1, K1) 6 times, (K2, YO, snugly, K2, pass YO over 2 K sts and off needle) 3 times, (P1, K1) 6 times, K6, turn.
Row 32: K6, (K1, P1) 6 times, P12, (K1, P1) 6 times, K6.
Rows 33 thru 48: Repeat Rows 29 thru 32 4 more times. Total of 20 rows.
Rows 49 thru 68: Repeat Rows 9 thru 28, once.
Rows 69 thru 76: K48, turn.
Bind Off.