ROOSTER Cloth

ROOSTER Cloth by Ezcareknits

What is Being Made

The ROOSTER Cloth is a knitted dishcloth or washcloth designed by Ezcareknits for Easy Care Baby Knits, LLC. This practical kitchen textile measures 7 inches wide by 7¼ inches tall (18 cm by 18.5 cm) when finished, making it an ideal size for everyday cleaning tasks. The finished cloth features a decorative rooster motif created through strategic purl stitches that form a pattern against a stockinette background.

Craft and Techniques

This project is created using the knitting craft, making it suitable for knitters of all skill levels, particularly beginners. The pattern uses fundamental knitting techniques including casting on, basic knit and purl stitches, and binding off. The rooster design is achieved through intarsia-style colorwork created with purl stitches, where purled stitches are strategically placed on a knit background to create visual contrast and form the decorative motif. This technique requires following a row-by-row pattern guide that specifies exactly where knit and purl stitches should be placed to build the design.

Stitches Used

• Knit Stitch (K): The primary stitch forming the background fabric and creating the smooth stockinette texture
• Purl Stitch (P): Used strategically throughout the pattern to create the rooster design through contrasting texture and visual interest
• Cast On: Initial stitch setup creating 37 stitches on the needle
• Bind Off: Final row worked in knit stitch to secure all stitches and finish the cloth edges

Materials and Tools

The ROOSTER Cloth is crafted from 100% cotton yarn in a medium/worsted weight, requiring approximately 60 yards of yarn total. Cotton yarn is an excellent choice for dishcloths and washcloths because it is absorbent, durable, and easy to care for. The pattern calls for straight knitting needles in size 7 (4.5mm), though knitters should select the needle size that achieves proper gauge with their specific yarn. A darning needle is needed for finishing and weaving in any loose yarn ends after the cloth is complete.

Pattern Structure

The pattern consists of 56 total rows worked flat on straight needles. The first 7 rows are worked entirely in knit stitch to create a garter stitch border. Rows 8 through 50 contain the main pattern section where the rooster motif is created through alternating knit and purl stitches in specific sequences. All wrong-side rows (even-numbered rows) from row 8 through row 50 are worked as knit across, which maintains consistency in the pattern. The final 6 rows (rows 51-56) return to knit stitch across to create a finishing border, and all stitches are then bound off in knit stitch to complete the cloth.