2014 The Christmas Present, Handmade

Lisa had been receiving knitted dish cloths from Dave Grand-ma every Christmas until a couple of years ago.  She loved them and said it was very useful dish cloth.

Hiroko has always been thinking about making this dish cloth.  Can you see half of the dish cloth at the back of the photo?  Hiroko made it as a sample and has been using it since last Christmas.  Two clothes in front of the photo were made recently as a sample.  Hiroko couldn’t find the suitable thread for this cloth. The cotton thread Hiroko used for making samples are not real thread.  Hiroko searched at the Amazon market, and found them.  It was called “Kitchen Cotton.”

Hiroko ordered them, and it came.  It was very tightly twisted, thin thread.  The pictures of the dish cloth, wash cloth, animals, and bags are on the wrapping paper.  It means this thread is good for making these things, Hiroko thought.

There are so many different stitches for the knitted dish clothes in the internet.  Hiroko looked at the images of the Japanese internet for the dish clothes, because no dish cloth was used when Hiroko was in Japan.  Hiroko didn’t know how to say “dish cloth” in Japanese. 

There are so many dish clothes - knitted ones, sponge ones, even gloves dish cloths.

Hiroko realized that American and Japanese wash cloths are different.

Two Japanese wash clothes (left) and one American wash cloth; about 6 inch square

Japanese wash cloths are very long; the photo one was hold in half.  Many Americans who went to Japan said this long wash cloth is useful to wash the back.  Dan-san loves to use the extra long wash cloth made with nylon.

About this wash cloth, Dan-san and Hiroko had problem in Paris.

Any hotels in the United State, there are always bath towel, hand towel, and wash cloth, but not at the hotel in Paris.  There weren’t any wash cloth.  So Dan-san and Hiroko went to a market and tried to tell them we needed the wash cloth.  The store clerk showed them a small towel bag, half the size of an American wash cloth.  They hesitated to buy the bag, and then the clerk put his hand in the bag and showed them how to wash.  Hiroko remembered she couldn’t use it very well. 

Blue towel bag is the similar to Paris’ wash cloth.

From this sample, Hiroko made wash cloth glove.  This orange/light blue glove is sample wash cloth.

There is an opening for the thumb in this glove wash cloth.  It will be very easy to use.  Hiroko will make it for herself to try, because this will be one of Hiroko’s Christmas Presents.  As for the present, it has to have two different color gloves for the right and left hand.