Thursday, October 28, 2010

Christmas knitting.

For the past five years, I've knitted dishcloths for my kids' teachers and presented a set of three with some handmade soap during the holidays.

Why dishcloths?
  • They're fun to knit.
  • The cotton yarn makes a sturdy, mildew-resistant, longlasting dishcloth.
  • I get to play with patterns: Ballband and Chinese Waves, Waffle and Checkerboard, Grandma's Favorite and Tweed, Circles and Lineoleum.
  • They're gender-neutral - everyone can use a dishcloth (or three).
  • They're practical AND unique.
The teens have a total of 12 teachers between them. The volume of knitting will go down next year because my oldest heads to college (I don't think college professors are expecting gifts from parents). I'll actually miss the lengthy giving list because that'll be another door closed on my kids' childhood.

I'm nearly finished with the teachers' sets. Next, I want to knit some for hostess gifts and just-in-case giving.

And a few more for myself. My last batch, knitted a few years ago, is finally showing some wear.

Knitternall 100 Giveaway Reminder:  When my "followers" total 100, I'll give away a hand knit lace shawl in your choice of colors to one chosen at random! (The pattern is Haruni by Emily Ross.)

Happy knitting!
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5 comments:

  1. kbgOctober 28, 2010 at 8:39 PM

    Meredith was going to knit washcloths for her aunts/grandmas -- similar to dishcloths -- any tips for her?
    Also, how does one become a "follower?"

    Kim B.

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  2. knitternallOctober 28, 2010 at 8:55 PM

    What a great gift - her aunts/grandmas will love them. There are a kazillion free patterns on the internet - she can choose one that she feels comfortable with. I'll PM you some links. Follow? Click "Follow" in the upper right section of the blog - you need a Google or gmail account. Thanks!!!!

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  3. QuinnOctober 28, 2010 at 9:54 PM

    I cannot believe how long cotton washcloths/dishrags LAST!

    ReplyDelete
  4. kbgOctober 29, 2010 at 6:54 AM

    I have to say I was skeptical of the "knitting a washcloth" idea but Meredith assured me it would work as long as we used 100% cotton yarn. So who knew?? I'm not the craft genius. (Nor apparently, the blog genius -- finally found the "follow" button -- now I just need to figure out how to upload a cute little pic of me like all your other tech-savvy followers)

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  5. AnneOctober 30, 2010 at 1:36 PM

    I also knit wash/dish clothes for m kids' teachers. Although usually only give 1 or 2 clothes with homemade soap or last year, homemade jelly. Kim you can find the cotton yarn all over the place, peaches & cream is one brand.

    My favorite pattern is knit 2 rows garter stitch (all knit) and then 2 rows knit 1 purl 1, use an even number of stitches, 42 to 50 stitches wide.

    ReplyDelete

Thanks for sharing your thoughts - it's great to hear from you!