Earth Day Traditions: Two (Temporarily) Free Patterns
UPDATE: The towel patterns are no longer available for free but can be purchased here.
Two years ago I started a tradition. In 2018, on a whim, I designed a couple of tea towels that I thought would be fun to share for Earth Day as a way to encourage a more zero waste mindset in the kitchen. I had no idea that I was designing what would instantly become two of my most successful patterns to this day! The Alsace and Marseille Tea Towels turned out to be some of your favorite designs, and it sparked an idea to make this annual project. Last year I released the Barrow and Waverly Hand Towels for Earth Day and they too have become top sellers. So what do I have up my sleeve this year? Introducing the Brimfield and Berkshire Dishcloths! Scroll down for both patterns or purchase the printable, ad-free patterns here.
In keeping with tradition, I've designed two new eco-friendly patterns - one knit, and one crochet - that will be free starting today for three days! You can find these designs below until Friday, April 24th at 11:59pm EST, after which they will return to normal pricing and join my Purposeful Patterns initiative whereby $1 from the sale of each pattern will be donated to the Natural Resources Defense Council. The mission of the NRDC is to protect the basics - air, land, and water - and to defend endangered natural places, with an eye toward how these long-term decisions affect humans.
Last year when I designed the Barrow and Waverly Hand Towels for Earth Day 2019, I spoke about the Kiss the Ground organization and their work to save the soil, which is what many scientists and environmentalists have claimed to be a key strategy in preventing the extinction of life on earth as we know it. In the Goop podcast episode "How Soil Health is Reflected in the Gut," Dr. Zach Bush mentions that the Earth is so willing to return to balance if we just give her the chance. He says that just one year after implementing organic farming practices on previously barren land, an influx of animals and insects return and the fertility of the soil improves dramatically.
Sharp declines in air and water pollution have been seen in the time that our world has been put on pause due to COVID-19. Wildlife is returning to habitats previously taken over by human traffic. According to Gina McCarthy, head of the NRDC, some Indian people are able to see the Himalayas for the first time due to the veil of air pollution lifting. I hope we can all recognize how much work we still have to do and the dramatic measures it takes to reverse the damage that has been done. It will be so important for us to continue our efforts to save our planet!
While replacing paper towels with reusable dishcloths is only a small step in the enormous fight to save the planet, it's small steps that will lead to big impact. I hope these handmade beauties will serve as a reminder to make choices each day that will help our world and future generations.
The inspiration for these designs came from classic gingham or checked towels. I put on a modern spin on them and chose unique colorwork patterns that offer a bold but sophisticated aesthetic. Each towel takes only two skeins (one of each color) of Lion Brand Yarn Re-Up, which at only $1.99/skein will cost you less than $4 per towel to make! Re-Up is eco-friendly in its own regard as it is made up of 85% recycled cotton and 15% polyester. It takes approximately 20,000 liters of water to make 1 kilogram of cotton, so by using each 70 gram ball of Re-Up instead of another kitchen cotton you are saving 1,400 liters of water.
The Brimfield Dishcloth
The Brimfield Dishcloth is an easy level knitting pattern and the techniques involved are the knit stitch, slipping stitches, and changing colors in rows.
Purchase the printer-friendly, ad-free PDF here.
The Berkshire Dishcloth
The Berkshire Dishcloth is an easy level crochet pattern and the techniques involved are the single crochet stitch and the single crochet 2 together decrease.
Purchase the printer-friendly, ad-free PDF here.
Looking for other ways to reduce waste in your daily routine? Check out the French Market Bag and Farmers' Market Tote patterns!
Don't forget to share your projects made using Two of Wands patterns on Instagram with the hashtag #crewofwands so your post will get featured on my site and you'll be in the running for monthly pattern giveaways!
Check out the #crewofwands community page here.
The patterns and photographs of items on this site are the property of Two of Wands and are for personal, non-commercial use only. These patterns files are protected by US copyright, and you may not distribute or sell them electronically or physically. Small batch sales of finished pieces made from these patterns are permitted, but seller must use their own photographs and credit must be given to Two of Wands as the designer.
