Simple Handwoven Cotton Dish Towels
Here’s a simple, yet beautiful pattern for dish towels that I wove using my rigid heddle loom. It only requires two colors: beige and green. Still, you could add more colors if you wanted to. Plus, this pattern requires only plain weave which means that no color changes is needed while weaving those simple handwoven cotton dish towels.
Disclaimer: Links included on this page might be affiliate links. This means that if you purchase a product or service with the links that I provide, I may receive a commission. Please note that there is no additional charge to you. Thank you for your support!
The dish towels were woven using Brassard 8/2 cotton for both warp and weft. I love using Brassard cotton for my projects because it is really good quality and it comes is a large variety of colors. Also, it’s very absorbent and it is perfect for sturdy dish towels!
Here’s where you can buy the same yarn. Note that the colors used are Ivoire (1451) and Olive fonce (8266). https://woolery.com/maurice-brassard-cotton-yarn-8-2.html?aff=214
For the warp, I singled the threads in my heddle size 15 dpi (30/10). I did not feel the need to double the warp threads. The final cloth is thin and has a nice drape which is perfect for doing the dishes!
The Pattern
For the pattern, everything happened in the warp. I used beige yarn for most of the warp and I added a simple touch of color in the form of stripes. I used dark green to create those thin stripes of color. Still, any dark color such as navy blue or burgundy would have worked great. I added the stripes of color at every 2”. In other words, I warped 2 inches of beige, then I added one stripe of green. After, I warped for 2 more inches of beige and I added another stripe of green. I continued like that until I reached a width of 24” (60cm).
The green stripes were thin as they were made with only two threads. This means that while direct warping, I only pulled one loop of the green color. Then I had one thread of green in the hole and one in the slot of my heddle.
Then for the rest of the project, I wove plain weave. I warped for 104” (2.6m) and I managed to weave for 84” (2m10). Once the project was off the loom and washed, I had about 75” (1m87) of fabric. I then cut it into 3 dishtowels of about 60m (24”) each. I hemmed the ends with my sewing machine.
Thank you for this dish towel pattern woven on a rigid heddle loom. I am just beginning to weave and wanted to do some dishtowels. This pattern is easy enough that I think I can handle it.
Thank you for you comment, I’m so glad I could help you! Good luck with weaving your first dishtowels 🙂
What width loom do you use?
My loom is 32″ (80cm) wide. For this project of the simple handwoven cotton dish towels, I wove a width of 24″ (60cm).
I got a great deal on a loom (actually two looms) at a garage sale this weekend and found your site while looking up how to use it. I’ve watched several of your videos and now feel confident to give it a try. Your videos are very easy to follow and I really like your direct warping method. Looking forward to see how my first project comes out. Will probably start with something simple like this dish towel.
Wow, 2 looms! You are so lucky! I’m glad I could help 🙂 I wish you lots of fun on your first project.
Thank you for this tutorial. I love clean, simple, classic patterns!
You are welcome! 🙂
I only have a #12 heddle. Should I double my strings in each hole and slot or will single strings work? Thanks
If you plan on using 8/2 cotton like me, I think it’s best to double your threads in each hole and slot. Otherwise, I believe that the towel will be a bit too thin. I hope this helps 🙂
I am so new in this wonderful craft. In South Africa. Thank you for this pattern. Wish I can buy that yarn.
Regards. Annatjie
Welcome into the wonderful world of weaving! I’m sorry, I wish I could help, but I don’t know much about yarn shops in South Africa.
Did you use a single weft thread to weave or did you use double?
I used a single weft thread of 8/2 cotton to weave 🙂
Your towels are so beautifully woven. Even though the pattern is simple, getting them to look like that is hard. I am new to the rigid heddle and find that I am having trouble getting a consistent beat and have a tendency towards a “frown”. Also the left side of my warp consistently becomes more loose than the right side. I can’t figure it out. Thank you for sharing your infinite weaving wisdom.
Thank you so much! I have recently made a video in which I give more details on how to achieve neat selvedges. There might be some tips there to help you. Here’s the link: https://youtu.be/U5KSrkCPR8I Selvedges usually come easier with time and experience. To me, it sounds that some of your issues are tension related. I give a few tips about that in my video. I hope it can help!
Thank you for explaining in simple terms for the beginners like me. If I double the warp because I have a 12 heddle, should I double the weft?
That’s a good question! I believe that both options would work, it really comes down to personal preferences. My advice would be test it out. You could weave a small section with your weft doubled and another section where it’s not double and see what you prefer.
Do you also hem each end on the loom even if you are going to be
machine hemming?
Thank you,
Heather
You don’t necessarily need to hemstitch both ends, but I find it’s always good the secure the ends, especially if you’re not machine hemming them right away. This reduces the risk of unraveling. In this case, I washed the projet before hemming it, so securing the ends was very important! Note that simple overhand knots could have worked fine in this case too!
Good morning. I love your videos. Thank you for them. They were a great help when I started with a rigid heddle loom. For dish towels I have been using 8/2 doubled in the warp and then single in the weft. Do you use single in the weft?
Thank you.
Thank you so much for you nice comment! So far, I have mostly woven with a single weft thread and I like it! However, it’s totally possible to double it. The best way to see what you prefer would be to test it out!
I am teaching my 14 year old grand daughter to weave on a rigid heddle. I think this is perfect.
Great! I’m glad it can be useful 🙂 It’s so nice that you are teaching the next generation of weavers!