I have had to take a good look at my yarn supplies this year so that I can tackle my goal to use 75% of my yarn by the end of 2020. You can read more about my goal here. I started the year with limiting my yarn purchases and picking creative projects to use up some of my yarn. With the recent current events, I have had to rely more heavily on my stash than before. No more running to the craft store really quickly to get another skein that I need.
I’ve been feeling a lack of creative inspiration with all the stress I am feeling related to COVID-19 in the world and at my hospital job. The combination of limited access to new yarn and dwindling creative energy has made it really hard to actually use my stash and fill my extra time with crochet.
It is in this light that I have a free pattern! When I looked at my stash, I saw no prospects for future projects. I thought the best place to start crocheting again was to take all the small balls of leftover yarn I have and try to use them up. I could scratch those skeins off the list by making some small, easy projects. Then, I realized that many of those balls of yarn were more than a decade old, scratchy acrylic yarns that I had received in my childhood when I first began to crochet. If you think some worsted weight acrylic yarn is scratchy now, just look at older yarns and see that it was much, much worse. Ew. I did not want to crochet with that stuff.
I had been brainstorming a cute washcloth pattern to put up on the blog for a while, and suddenly I had an idea. I never actually used any cute crochet washcloths I make because I pick soft yarn in a cute color and I do not want that cute washcloth to get tattered. It’s kind of like how you don’t want to burn your most expensive candle because it’s just too pretty. I’m not sure if anyone else has this desire to keep their crocheted items untouched by human hands. I was thinking, though, that I could gladly use up my gross old stash yarn to make rags for cleaning, without feeling bad about them getting used. And thus: The Sweet Pea Rag is born.
We use rags to wipe down counters and clean many surfaces in our home because it uses less paper towels so it is better for the environment. I have a little basket in our kitchen where we put any old washcloths not suitable for washing your body. This would be the perfect destination for my old stash yarn projects!
If you also have ugly, old, or scratchy acrylic yarn that you just want to use up and get out of your stash, check out the pattern below to make a simple, textured rag. Or, if you have no qualms about using a cute crocheted washcloth, you can use your nice acrylic or cotton yarn to follow this same pattern!
Sweet Pea Rag/Washcloth
Materials:
- H/5.5 mm crochet hook
- Worsted weight acrylic or cotton yarn
- Tapestry needle (for weaving in ends)
The finished cloth will measure approximately 8’’ by 8’’.
Abbreviations:
- Ch: chain
- St: stitch
- Sk: skip
- SC: single crochet
- HDC: half double crochet
- DC: double crochet
- FO: fasten off
[ ] denotes a section of the pattern that will be completed in the same stitch.
** denotes a section of the pattern that will be repeated.
Row 1: Ch 32
Row 2: [SC, HDC, DC] in 2nd Ch from the hook, sk 2 Ch, *[SC, HDC, DC] in next Ch, sk 2 Ch* repeat from ** until one Ch remains, SC in last Ch, turn
Rows 3-24: Ch 1, [SC, HDC, DC] in first st, sk 2 st, *[SC, HDC, DC] in next st, sk 2 st* repeat from ** until one st remains, SC in last st, turn
At the end of Row 24, FO and weave in your ends.
I hope you get great use out of your yarn stash by making some environmentally friendly rags for cleaning, or some spa-worthy washcloths for pampering yourself. Let me know in the comments below or on Instagram @crowchetcreations or through the hashtag #crowchetcreations how your stash busting is going during this time of quarantine!
Stay safe and healthy.
XO, Emily
