Tawashi the dishes…

OK, I’ve been telling myself this bad pun all day, (as well as to James and the kids), and it still makes me giggle, so I’m sorry for subjecting you to it. Tawashi is Japanese for “dish scrubbie.” (No, that’s not a literal translation, it’s just what I’ve been told at Tawashi Town [ravelry link], my new favorite group on Ravelry.)

I grew up in a household of folks who used dishrags cloths to wash the dishes and wipe up the counters [ETA: my mom wrote and suggested I need to note that we actually distinguished between dish cloths which are special cloths just for dishes and countertops and "rags" which are old worn out cloths that are used for yuckier jobs like wiping floors and cleaning dirtier messes].

James, on the other hand, likes sponges and scrubbies… I wasn’t convinced until I discovered cute ones you can crochet. Recently, there’s been a big surge in tawashi popularity, and now there are lots of patterns online (in Japanese) showing how to make them. You don’t have to read Japanese because the patterns are all done with charts and diagrams.

In Tawashi Town, I heard about special yarn for scrubbies that was super-scratchy acrylic (good for scrubbing), and treated with special silver ions to make it antibacterial. I found a link to some on Etsy, and last night, when we got home from the bus stop, it was on our stoop. Selma was more impressed with the Japanese newspaper that the package was wrapped with than the yarn.

Cafe Kitchen Yarn

This morning, I used the tawashi as a creative warm-up to get my brain and fingers going before starting work on a sweater. Here’s the result getting some sun near a patch of chives in the yard.

Ohina Doll Tawashi

Hopefully, when her break’s over she’ll get to work because I could use some help with the dishes!

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  • http://www.girlontherocks.com/knit/blog karrie

    I am another happy resident of tawashi town! They are so fun!

  • http://www.girlontherocks.com/knit/blog karrie

    I am another happy resident of tawashi town! They are so fun!

  • http://thepurloinedletter.blogspot.com The Purloined Letter

    This is just too cute and too useful. Wonder if I can figure out how to make a knitted one…?

  • http://thepurloinedletter.blogspot.com The Purloined Letter

    This is just too cute and too useful. Wonder if I can figure out how to make a knitted one…?

  • Mary O’Neill

    Amy, in the household where you grew up, we said “dish CLOTH,” not “dish rag”! What would grandma think! ;-)

    mom

  • Mary O’Neill

    Amy, in the household where you grew up, we said “dish CLOTH,” not “dish rag”! What would grandma think! ;-)

    mom

  • http://celiaescuela.blogspot.com/ celia

    Wow, I don’t even know what a Tawashi is but I may try to make one if I’ll ever be clever enough to understand the charts!,lol…

  • http://celiaescuela.blogspot.com/ celia

    Wow, I don’t even know what a Tawashi is but I may try to make one if I’ll ever be clever enough to understand the charts!,lol…

  • http://www.croshique.blogspot.com Mary Sarah

    These are cute! I’ve never seen them before. Thanks!

  • http://www.croshique.blogspot.com Mary Sarah

    These are cute! I’ve never seen them before. Thanks!

  • http://yarnsandmusings.com Deneen

    I saw that yarn on etsy and wondered about it, the antibacterial was interesting, but the acrylic part stumped me for usage as a dishrag (what we called em too).

  • http://yarnsandmusings.com Deneen

    I saw that yarn on etsy and wondered about it, the antibacterial was interesting, but the acrylic part stumped me for usage as a dishrag (what we called em too).

  • http://ritesofpassage.us Debbie

    Hmm. The Etsy link seems to be incorrect, just linking back to this post.

  • http://ritesofpassage.us Debbie

    Hmm. The Etsy link seems to be incorrect, just linking back to this post.

  • http://cocosmami.blogspot.com/ Barbara

    I have to get some of this yarn :) ! I have a couple of these Japanese books (remember we both have the same one) that I got in Japan Town in San Francisco. This is a hoot!

  • http://cocosmami.blogspot.com/ Barbara

    I have to get some of this yarn :) ! I have a couple of these Japanese books (remember we both have the same one) that I got in Japan Town in San Francisco. This is a hoot!

  • Pingback: antibacterial kitchen counters

  • yae

    I have found a website that sells the yarn above.

    http://www.selectyarn.com

    This website seems to sell Jpanese knitting books and Japanese yarns. Yarn are only sold to retailers, but we will be able to buy these yarns throughout the retailers soon or later!

  • wandabarron

    i can't even find the chart and i would love to make these Do you by chance have the pattern in english

  • http://www.thehookandi.com plainsight

    Hi wanda–when you get to the Japanese page with the little scrubbie dolls,
    click on one of the dolls and it will download a PDF file with the
    instructions. Hope this helps!

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