I really enjoy making crochet dishcloths and washcloths. In my opinion you can never have too many. Today I’ve got two free dishcloth and scrubbie patterns for you to crochet, plus a in depth review of five styles of dishcloth yarn.
This dishcloth yarn review and free Washcloth Crochet Pattern is a collaboration with American Yarns. This post contains affiliate links
The variety of dishcloth and scrubby yarns on the market is endless. I picked up a random assortment from American Yarns to try out their current range, some of the yarns are just brand new to their store.
There were really so many pretty colours and styles to choose from that it was hard to narrow this yarn review down to just these handful.
I think I selected a good variety, and gave them a test run on two styles of dishcloth crochet patterns, which you can find if you scroll down.
Both these crochet patterns combine beautifully to make a lovely dishcloth and scrubby set. A perfect little gift for a friend or neighbor, as a housewarming gift, or even a stocking stuffer at Christmas.
I’ve taken all the guess work out of picking a yarn, and have reviewed five dishcloth yarn ranges from American Yarns individually, with pros, cons and recommended uses.
And because I’m super thorough, I’ve been using them too wash and clean too. I really wanted to see how they worked for washing dishes, scrubbing pots, and wiping down surfaces.
All this dishcloth testing has the added bonus that my kitchen is now sparkly clean!
Which Dishcloth Yarn should I choose?
With so many varieties of dishcloth yarns on offer, it can be hard to decide which one to choose.
There is no right or wrong answer, it really depends on what you are going to use your cloths for.
As a general rule, yarns made from cotton, bamboo, or purpose made synthetic yarns are well suited. Avoid acrylic, wool or wool blends.
Here are the yarns I tried, along with my thoughts, in no particular order:
1. Lily Sugar ‘n Cream Assorted varieties
About
- 100% cotton
- 10ply worsted weight
- 86-109m depending on variety
- Available in 96 colours/designs inc solids, speckle, ombre, stripe, variegated, scented
- Featured colour = Pot Puri Print
Pros
- Huge colour range
- Easy to work with
- Nice stitch definition
- Absorbent
- Hard wearing
- Natural Fiber
- Chunky yarn works up fast
- Great for beginners
Cons
- Tends to split when crocheting, loose twist
- Takes a while to dry
- Can shrink/fade with prolonged use
Recommended Uses
- Absorbent cleaning cloths for kitchen and bathroom
- Paper towel replacement
- Body washcloths
- Face scrubbies
- Best to make single layer cloths for quicker drying
- Good for Crochet and Knitting patterns with texture or patterned stitches
Thoughts on Lily Sugar ‘n Cream Cotton Yarn
This yarn is a great all rounder and is my go-to yarn when it comes to making washcloths and cleaning cloths. The cotton can get a bit stiff when line dried. I’ve made plenty of kitchen cloths which I use for general cleaning with Lily Sugar ‘n Cream that are still going strong many years later. Expect to get around 3 Simple Dishcloths per ball.
2. Lily Sugar ‘n Cream Scrub Off
About
- 100% cotton
- Variable weights in one ball
- 97m
- Available in 9 colours with each ball including smooth yarn in 2x solid and 1x variegated, and scrubby yarn in both solid and variegated
- Featured colour = Energetic Pink
Pros
- Surprise colour changes are fun
- Absorbent
- Hard wearing
- Natural Fiber
- Scrubbie section is good for cleaning
Cons
- Scrubby yarn section is difficult to work with and can be hard on hands
- Takes a while to dry
- Can’t really control how colours will look
- Knitting/crochet patterns need to be simple, hard to control gauge and tension with textured yarn
Recommended Uses
- Cleaning cloths for kitchen and bathroom
- Exfoliating Body washcloths
- Best to make single layer cloths for quicker drying
- Good for patterns that highlight stripes
Thoughts on Lily Sugar ‘n Cream Scrub Off Yarn
This yarn is fun to work with if you like random colour changes. The smooth section of the yarn is beautiful to work with and glides over the hook. The textured section is quite difficult to crochet with and a bit rough on hands. I wouldn’t recommend for a beginner. I would use this yarn again.
3. Red Heart Scrubby Sparkle
About
- 100% polyester
- 8ply ribbon style yarn
- 159m
- Available in 13 colours
- Featured colour = Pink Grapefruit
Pros
- Very pretty sparkly tinsel like effect
- Hard wearing
- Quick Drying
- Makes bubbles in soapy water (like a sponge)
- Surprisingly easy to work with – easy to see stitches
- Good for strong scrubbing without damaging surfaces (non-scratch)
- Large ball goes far
Cons
- Feels prickly
- Non-absorbent
- Feels like plastic
- Thin yarn is a bit slippery
Recommended Uses
- Pot scrubbers
- Great for cleaning non-stick cookware
- Combine with cotton yarn to add scrubbie section on plain dishcloths
Thoughts on Red Heart Scrubby Sparkle Yarn
I actually loved working with this yarn, it’s like mini tinsel that sparkles in the light. Apart from feeling a little prickly on hands, it is smooth to work with and glides nicely over the hook. I’d recommend it for small scrubbies.
Does a good job on greasy dishes with hot water and detergent, and great at getting sticky baked-on bits off pots and non-stick cookware. Rinse and squeeze out, and the scrubbie dries quickly.
Not good for wiping surfaces. Use as you would a Brillo pad or brush. Hardly made a dent in the big ball, this yarn goes really far, especially when combined with a plain cotton yarn.
4. Red Heart Scrubby Cotton
About
- 100% cotton
- Textured yarn
- 121 yd-145 yd (depending on variant)
- Available in 18 colours in solid and prints
- Featured colour = Jade
Pros
- Solid colours are very vibrant
- Absorbent
- Hard wearing
- Natural Fiber
- Great texture for scrubbing
- Hides mistakes
Cons
- Difficult to work with as loops catch on each other and can be hard on hands
- Takes a while to dry
- Knitting/crochet patterns need to be simple, hard to control gauge and tension with textured yarn
- Hard to make out stitches
Recommended Uses
- Cleaning cloths for kitchen and bathroom
- Exfoliating Body washcloths/mitts
- Best make single layer cloths for quicker drying
- Simple patterns
Thoughts on Red Heart Scrubby Cotton Yarn
This textured yarn is quite difficult to crochet with and a bit rough on hands. I wouldn’t recommend for a beginner. Makes a good, hard wearing dishcloth but frustrating to work with.
I’d combine it in stripes with a smooth yarn or use as a corner/small section. You need to feel for the stitches as the textured yarn hides the stitch loops. On the plus side it’s also great at hiding mistakes.
5. Red Heart Scrubby
About
- 100% Polyester
- Textured yarn
- 73m + (depending on variant)
- Available in 33 colours in solids, prints and stripes
- Featured colour = Stripes Cool Mint
Pros
- Fun Vibrant colour range
- Stripes are entertaining to work with and look good on spiral style patterns
- Hard wearing
- Great texture for scrubbing
- Hides mistakes
- Dries quicker than cotton (not as quickly as sparkle)
- Not as hard on hands as cotton scrubby textured yarns
Cons
- Difficult to work with as loops catch on each other
- Knitting/crochet patterns need to be simple, hard to control gauge and tension with textured yarn
- Hard to make out stitches
- Not very absorbent
Recommended Uses
- Pot scrubbers
- Great for cleaning non-stick cookware
- Dishcloths
- Combine with cotton yarn to add scrubbie section on plain dishcloths
- Gentle enough for body exfoliation cloths and mitts
Thoughts on Red Heart Scrubby Yarn
Although not as difficult to work with as the cotton textured yarn, it’s still a bit tricky. Makes a good, hard wearing dishcloth for washing up, but not absorbent for wiping benches. I’d combine it in stripes with a smooth yarn or use as a corner/small section.
You need to feel for the stitches as the textured yarn hides the stitch loops. On the plus side it’s also great at hiding mistakes. I think the striped yarn is fun.
Cintia’s Final Verdict
Working with all the different dishcloth yarns was an interesting exercise.
My top picks are: Lily Sugar ‘n Cream for ease of use and absorbancy, and Red Heart Scrubby Sparkle as it’s the easiest to work with out of all the scrubby yarns, and looks cool. Combining both of these yarns in one Spiral Scrubbie turned out great!
Honorable mention: Lily Sugar ‘n Cream Scrub Off for the novelty of working with a yarn with multiple patterns and textures.
Regardless of the texture of the dishcloth yarns featured, they all work great with the Simple Dishcloth pattern I’ve written below.
Try These Two Easy Crochet Dishcloth Patterns
Simple Dishcloth Crochet Pattern
This super simple dishcloth pattern is a real all-rounder!
Depending on what yarn you use it can be a body washcloth, a kitchen cleaning cloth or a pot scrubbing dishcloth.
With no fancy stitches required, this basic crochet dishcloth pattern can be whipped up in under 30min.
I’ve designed it to work with all textures of yarn, and especially very bumpy scrubby yarn.
Textured scrubby yarns can be hard to work with because you can’t really see the stitches properly. I’ve got a handy pattern hack that will make working this crochet pattern in any yarn a breeze!
If you are new to crochet, making a simple dishcloth is the perfect practice. Start by choosing a smooth cotton yarn for your first project.
Make a big pile of these to give as gifts or to use around your own home.
They are perfect for all sorts of cleaning jobs, and go straight into the washing machine when you are done.
Love to crochet? Need to improve your technique? Get over 80 crochet classes on Creativebug – Start your free trial here
To make the Simple Crochet Dishcloth
Finished size:
Approx 15x15cm (6″x6″) – will vary slightly depending on yarn – gauge is not critical for this project.
You will need:
- Dishcloth cotton or scrubby yarn of choice
- 5.0 mm crochet hook
- Yarn needle
- Scissors
Crochet Stitches used (US terminology):
- Ch – chain
- hdc – half double crochet
Crochet Dishcloth Pattern instructions:
Worked flat back and forth. Turn after each row. 2 ch in each row DOES NOT COUNT as a stitch.
All hdc stitches are worked into gap between stitches on previous row – NOT top of stitches.
Note: Working in between the stitches makes it much easier to work with the textured yarns where it is easier to ‘feel’ for the gap, as opposed to finding the top of the stitch.
Set up row – chain 20
R1 – work 1 hdc into 3rd stitch in chain, then 17 hdc across. (18 st)
R2 – ch 2 turn, work one hdc into each gap between stitches to the end. (18 st)
R3-R19 – Repeat Row 2 (to make a square – Add or remove rows as necessary)
To finish – break off yarn and weave in ends.
Spiral Scrubbie Crochet Pattern
I found this easy scrubbie pattern by Judith Prindle on Ravelry. It’s very popular, I imagine because it’s so easy to make and only uses a small amount of yarn.
Ideal to make with odds and ends of dishcloth yarn, and looks particularly fun when you make stripes in contrasting colours to show off the spiral effect.
Finished size:
Approx diameter 10cm (4″) – will vary slightly depending on yarn – gauge is not critical for this project.
You will need:
- Dishcloth cotton or scrubby yarn of choice
- 5.0 mm crochet hook
- Yarn needle
- Scissors
Crochet Stitches used (US terminology):
- Ch – chain
- Sc BL– single crochet (into back loop)
- Sc inc – single crochet increase
- Sc dec – single crochet decrease
Spiral Scrubbie Pattern
Follow the written pattern on Crochet Patterns Only or follow along in this video post. If you prefer a crochet chart, try using this Japanese pattern.
Make sure you leave plenty of yarn at the start and end of crochet to sew with later.
Spiral Scrubby Assembly
The assembly was a little unclear in these patterns so I thought I’d include some step-by-step images to help clarify the process here.
1. Once you complete the crocheting section of this pattern you should have an elongated diamond shape (Parallelogram) with diagonal ridges. Lay flat with yarn ends towards you.
2. Bring pointy tips to center to line up short ends and make a square shape.
3. With longest yarn tail. sew up diagonal seam line, you will now have a cylinder. Then make a running stitch around both top and bottom of cylinder with remaining yarn ends.
4. Pull yarn ends to gather opening closed, then flatten shape into a circle. Tie off ends with each other and weave in.
To make a Striped Spiral Scrubbie
This pattern look very effective when you alternate between a smooth and textured yarn in contrasting colours. I’ve used my two favourite and most easy to crochet with yarns, Sugar n cream cotton and Red Heart Scrubbie sparkle.
Alternate yarn every 2 rows and run yarns up side. It’s easier to start (and finish) with the smoothest yarn.
Follow step-by-step instructions as before to make this cute spiral scrubbie that looks like a sea urchin.
You may also enjoy these Knit and Crochet Washcloth & Dishcloth Patterns:
- Tunisian Crochet Washcloth Pattern
- Watermelon Dishcloth Pattern
- Rainbow Crochet Washcloth (c2c)
- Stripe & Tassel Knitted Washcloth
I hope you enjoy making these free crochet dishcloth patterns – Tag me on Instagram @mypoppetmakes if you make your own, I’d love to see them.
Feel free to leave any questions or queries in the comment section below and I’ll answer as soon as practicable.
All yarns featured are available from www.americanyarns.com.au
