Free Knitting Pattern: Retro 1970s Tea Towel / Dishcloth

Brighten up your dishwashing chores and inject some groove into your kitchen with this 1970s-inspired three-colour retro tea towel. 

This is an ideal project for getting started with colourwork knitting and those wishing to get more practice in managing several balls of yarn in a quick and simple project. The colour motif of the pattern is achieved by slipping stitches and the texture is created by simply knitting and purling.

Knitted in a colour scheme that is synonymous with the '70s (green, brown and orange), doing the dishes will never be dull again. Promise. 

The measurements of the finished piece depend on the number of pattern repeats worked, giving you the freedom to create a tea towel or a smaller dishcloth-size finished piece. 

If you stick to the colour  pattern in the instructions, you will produce a tea towel measuring app. 31cm (length) by 28cm (width) unblocked. (I didn't actually bother to block my finished tea towel, because, guess what..., it's a tea towel and will be put to work as such.) 

1970s Retro Tea Towel (and true vintage Arcopal Scania cups and coffee jug)

For the tea towel in the images I used Drops Paris dishcloth cotton yarn in Parrot Green (Shade Code 72), Brown (Shade Code 44) and Orange (Shade Code 13). The recommended needle size for this yarn is 5mm (US size 8), but I decided to knit on 4mm needles (US size 6) to create a denser fabric. 

The pattern is, of course, suitable for all aran weight dishcloth cotton yarns and, for all those not keen on the '70s vibes, other colour combinations are available. 

Sneak Peek of the New Pattern: 1970s Retro Knit Tea Towel / Dishcloth

!!! Update: The pattern is now live and available on the blog via this link. !!!

My pattern for a 1970s inspired retro dishcloth / tea towel is about to go live. Whilst I am putting the finishing touches to the upcoming pattern post, here is a little sneak peek of the initial test knit. 

As a lover of bold '70s colour combinations and having recently gotten more interested in colourwork knitting, this project combines colourwork practice with the visual stimulus of vintage 70s vibes.

The Weekly Swatch: Plaid Effect Knit Stitch Pattern

Creating a plaid effect in knitting is a lot less complicated than it looks. The two-colour plaid I have prepared in this knitted swatch requires a multiple of 8 plus 2 stitches and is knitted with two colours over 10 rows. 

Aside from knitting and purling, this stitch utilises elongated stitches. The elongated stitches are created by wrapping the yarn twice round the needle when knitting the stitch. The 'long stitches' are subsequently slipped either with the yarn held to the front or to the back of the work, creating the effect of vertical loops located on the top of the fabric. 

Plaid Effect Knit Stitch 

The Weekly Swatch: Three-Colour Balloon Knit Stitch

 

After the Two-Colour Balloon Knit Stitch in my last post, this post showcases the Three-Colour Balloon Knit Stitch. 

It's essentially the same knit stitch with the addition of a third colour on rows 11 to 16. The stitch motif requires a multiple of 8 plus 4 stitches and is worked over a total of 16 rows. All stitches are slipped as if to purl.

The Weekly Swatch: Two-Colour Balloon Knit Stitch

Having more fun with simple colourwork, next up we have the Two-Colour Balloon Knit Stitch. This stitch requires a multiple of 8 plus 4 stitches and is worked over a total of 16 rows. All stitches are slipped as if to purl.

The Weekly Swatch: Garter Brick Knit Stitch

 

Sticking with the colourwork theme for the weekly swatch, here is another colour fix, the Garter Brick Knit Stitch. 

Alongside the colour, this stitch has a super squishy texture. The Garter Brick Stitch requires a multiple of 6 plus 2 stitches and is worked over a total of 12 rows, with rows 5, 6,11 and 12 being repeats of rows 3, 4, 9 and 10 respectively. In between it's just simple knit and purl. 

The Weekly Swatch: Two-Colour Loop Knit Stitch

 

Injecting a splash of colour with this week's knit swatch...

The Two-Colour Loop Stitch is super simple and rewarding. The loop effect is achieved by mostly knitting, some purling and slipping lots of stitches. 

It's worked over eight rows and requires a multiple of four plus one stitches. 

Two Colour Loop Knot Stitch

Vintage 1980s Knitting Patterns - Part 11: The Kaffe Fassett Special

Time for another fix of 1980s knitting patterns. 

As no review of 1980s knitting patterns would be complete without making reference to the knitwear designs of Kaffe Fassett, a designer synonymous with 80s knitwear and best known for his elaborate colourwork creations, I decided to feature some of the patterns from Glorious Knitting, Fassett's seminal 1985 collection of knitting patterns, in today's instalment of my ongoing series on vintage 1980s knitting patterns. 

Originally published by Century Hutchinson and now out of print, second-hand copies of this vintage publication are widely available in both paperback and hardcopy formats and I highly recommend getting your hands on this classic. 

Even though the patterns in Glorious Knitting may seem daunting at first sight and some of the bolder statement pieces in this collection may not be to everyone's taste, Glorious Knits is a fantastic showcase of the possibilities offered by integrating colourwork into knitwear design.

The book has an extensive section on colour knitting, in which Fassett sets out his approach to colourwork (not colour theory!) and knitwear design, before introducing us to the elements and motifs constituting the building blocks of his designs.

 

Kaffe Fassett Striped T-Shirt