dear diary,
log cabin dish cloths
To make a quilt has been a long ambition of mine, but somehow I never seem to find the time to start a new venture and persevere with it long enough before knitting or crochet calls.
traditional log cabin quilt
Log Cabin quilts in particular have held a long fascination. Always worked from the middle out using strips of fabric resembling logs, these quilts have a very long history, especially in America. Some people even claim they represent the spirit of Abraham Lincoln, the log cabin President, and the simple pioneering values of frontier America: honesty, hard work, humility and liberty. True or not, the simplicity of these quilts certainly make them very appealing and there are many beautiful photo examples to see on the internet.
sennybridge quilt made near brecon in wales – early 20th century – brecknock museum
Never finding time to sew a quilt made me think that it must surely be possible to achieve this with knitting. I set forth and gave it a go, and what better way to work it out than by making a humble, yet very useful dishcloth, simply worked in garter stitch throughout.
Here is what you do…
First you knit the inner square (left), cast off and then turn the work 90 degrees clockwise and pick up stitches (one for each ridge) and knit as many rows as you like. Cast off to last stitch, turn 90 degrees and do same on each side.
When you have done all four sides of the middle square you do the same again for the outer square. If you want this to become a huge dish cloth, a towel or even a blanket just keep going this way until you are satisfied with your result.
Here are two I made earlier…
For those of you who want to try their hands on this because, like me, you like small quick little projects that are very useful and make great gifts, here is the link to the FREE pattern.
Enjoy! xx