The Power of Conversion (tutorial & story)

This entry came to be because of a request from one of my customers who has also become a very dear online friend.  So thank you, Melissa, Tweep Extraordinaire! (Follow her @coppertop97.)

A few evenings ago Melissa and I were discussing new patterns. She asked if I had any plans to produce any dishcloths. Until she mentioned it I really didn't see the need, so my answer was no. I explained to her that any of my pot holder patterns could easily be used to make dish cloths, so it really didn't make sense to write separate patterns for that purpose.

But she got me thinking. . .What if I did?  At least one person had already figured out how to make the Big Girl Pot Holder into a dish cloth. Another had made beautiful cloths simply by using the basic stitch area of the Big Girl Towel. The more I thought about it, the more it seemed to make sense to me. So, for those of you itching for dish cloths, this is your lucky day.

I understand that not everyone feels confident enough to follow a tutorial for pattern conversion. For those folks I'm working on rewriting most of my pot holder patterns and making them available as dish cloth patterns. If you've already purchased any or all of my pot holder patterns (or you want to try the freebie), read on:

The two basic elements common to every one of my pot holders are the decorated/textured side and the plain/flat side. The two sides are then joined with a round of single crochet. In order to make a dish cloth all you really need to do is make one side or the other and then work your sc border around the single layer, easy peasy! So, let's say we want to convert the Big Girl Pot Holder (which is available for free HERE).

Simply work the textured side then ch1, sc evenly around each side working 3sc in each corner, join with sl st in 1st sc, fo, weave in ends. Ta dahhhh! You now have a Big Girl Dish Cloth.

The now famous Big Girl Pot Holder

Now you can use the same steps to turn the flat side into a dish cloth OR employ the same process to make dish cloths out of any of my other pot holder patterns.  The only pattern I will not be converting and don't recommend converting is the Cross Stitchable Pot Holder. With all of the top stitching, it would not make a great dish cloth, but you're welcome to try it if you wish. (I will not be doing so myself)

For those crocheters who would rather follow one pattern from start to finish, I promise to have the conversion for the free Big Girl Dish Cloth posted by the end of the month. Others will follow later and be available in my Etsy and Ravelry shops.

 As always, much love and Happy Crocheting!