Crochet Dishcloth Pattern: The Simple Cotton Cloth That Outlasts Every Sponge

A crochet dishcloth is the most practical thing you will ever make in twenty minutes. It scrubs better than a sponge, dries faster, goes in the wash, and lasts for years. It is also the best drill for any stitch you are learning, because a 20 cm square uses the stitch several hundred times.

Here is the base pattern with three stitch options, plus a border that keeps it flat.

Materials

• Yarn: worsted weight (category 4) 100% cotton, about 50 to 60 m per cloth. A 100 g ball makes three.
• Hook: 5.0 mm (US H-8).
• Yarn needle, scissors.

Finished Size

About 21 cm square after the border.

Option 1: Single Crochet Cloth (Best Scrubber)

Chain 31.

Row 1: sc in 2nd ch from hook and in each ch across. 30 sts.

Row 2: ch 1 (does not count), turn, sc in each st across. 30 sts.

Repeat Row 2 until the piece is square, about 30 to 32 rows. Do not fasten off; go to the border.

Dense, thick, and the best at scrubbing. Curls the most before the border.

Option 2: Half Double Crochet Cloth (Fastest)

Chain 30.

Row 1: hdc in 2nd ch from hook and across. 29 sts.

Row 2: ch 1 (does not count), turn, hdc in each st across. 29 sts.

Repeat until square, about 22 rows. Softer, faster, still absorbent, and good for washcloths for the bathroom.

Option 3: Seed Stitch Cloth (Prettiest, Lies Flat)

Chain 31 (an odd number).

Row 1: sc in 2nd ch from hook, [dc in next ch, sc in next ch] across, ending with sc. 30 sts.

Row 2: ch 1, turn. sc in the first st, [dc in next st, sc in next st] across.

You always put a sc on top of a dc and a dc on top of a sc, which creates a pebbly, reversible texture. Repeat Row 2 until square, about 26 rows. This one barely curls at all.

The Border (All Options)

Round 1: ch 1, sc evenly around all four sides, working 3 sc in each corner stitch. Along the side edges, place roughly one sc per sc row, or one sc per hdc row plus an extra every few rows so the edge lies flat. Join to the first sc with a slip stitch.

Round 2 (optional): ch 1, sc in each st around, 3 sc in each corner sc. Join.

Fasten off, weave in ends.

For a hanging loop, at one corner of the last round chain 10, slip stitch back into the same corner, and continue.

Getting the Edge Right

The side edges are where borders go wrong. If the side of the cloth is ruffling, you put in too many sc along the edge; if it is pulling in, too few. For sc rows, one border stitch per row is right. For hdc rows, use three stitches for every two rows. For dc rows, two per row.

Making It Square Without Measuring

Fold one corner of the cloth diagonally to the opposite edge. If the edges line up, it is square. Crochet stitches are wider than they are tall, so a cloth with 30 stitches needs more than 30 rows of sc and fewer than 30 rows of hdc.

Colors and Stripes

Cotton comes in beautiful solids and variegated colorways, and dishcloths are where variegated yarn actually looks good. For stripes, change color at the start of a row by pulling the new color through on the last yarn over of the previous row, and carry the unused color up the side; the border covers it.

Care

Wash hot, tumble dry. Cotton shrinks a little on the first wash and then stops. A cloth that has become dingy can be boiled for ten minutes with a spoon of baking soda. When it finally wears through, usually after two or three years, compost it if it is undyed cotton.

Why Make a Dozen

Dishcloths are the ideal gift filler, the perfect way to use up single balls of cotton, and a superb way to test any new stitch pattern before committing it to a blanket. A basket of six in matching colors makes a housewarming present that people genuinely use.