Homemade Dish Scrubbers

Replace store-bought scrubbers with an inexpensive homemade dish scrubber.

Homemade dish scrubbers are made in several ways. Although one method requires knowledge of knitting or crocheting, anyone can make a puffy nylon scrubber --- much like bath "poofs" sold in stores --- using only nylon netting, nylon thread and a large needle. Several yards of nylon netting, available at most craft stores, will provide enough material for numerous scrubbers, saving you money on store-bought scrubbers.

Things You'll Need

• 72-inch wide nylon netting or coarse tulle
• Nylon thread
• Large needle
• Scissors
• Coarse cotton yarn (optional)
• Size 9 knitting needles or size "I" crochet hook

Instructions

Making a Nylon Scrubber

1. Cut the nylon netting into three 6-by-72 inch strips. Lay all three strips on top of one another, evenly lined up.

2. Thread your needle with the nylon thread. Sew lengthwise down the middle of the strips with long stitches, spaced approximately one inch apart, until you reach the end of the strips.

3. Hold the strips in one hand and the thread in the other, and pull back on the strips until they form a ball. Wrap the thread around the center of the ball and tie a knot. Cut the ends short and tuck them into the knot. Fluff the scrubber to finish it.

Making a Knit or Crochet Scrubber

1. Decide how complex a dish scrubber you want to make. With the coarse yarn and netting or tulle cut into strips or the coarse yarn and nylon yarn, you can knit or crochet any simple pattern, depending on your skill level. Using netting as "thread" requires some preparation, however. Cut the netting or tulle into 1-inch-wide strips and tie the strips together end to end to make a coarse "thread."

2. Gather your cotton thread and nylon thread or homemade nylon "thread" and tie them into a basic slipknot as though they were one thread. Treating the two threads as one, form the slipknot by creating a loop in the joined threads; from one of the loose ends, draw another loop through the original loop and pull it tight.

3. Cast on 25 stitches, and knit or crochet your scrubber as desired. A typical scrubber is 3.5 by 5 inches. Knit or crochet as many rows as necessary to reach 5 inches or your desired length.

4. Tie the thread off as you normally would for a knitted or crocheted project, cut the thread and tuck any loose thread end back into the weave of the scrubber.

Tips & Warnings

• If you choose to knit or crochet a scrubber, keep in mind that a more solid surface of evenly knit or crocheted rows will provide a larger scrubbing surface, but a more open weave, which will be more difficult to knit or crochet, will dry out faster.

• If you are knitting or crocheting a scrubber, match your yarn to your netting or tulle for a pretty scrubber.

• Use metal knitting needles or a metal crochet hook. The nylon will slide more easily over a metal surface.

References

• "Deseret News: Nylon Scrubber is Easy to Make"
• Tweezle Tripod: Crocheted Scrubbie
• Berlins Whimsy.Typepad: Knitted Dish Scrubbie Pattern Tutorial

Resources

• Knitting Help: Casting on Stitches