Free Elephant Dishcloth or Afghan Square Knitting Pattern

Free Knitting Pattern Elephant Washcloth Afghan Square

By popular demand, our latest creation is a free knitting pattern for a elephant square! I love getting suggestions for new squares, and this one was suggested by many of you. This square would work great as a washcloth or dishcloth, or you could put it together with some of the other squares to make an afghan or blanket (all my squares are the same size). Finished square approximately 22 cm x 22 cm (8.5 inches x 8.5 inches)

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Free Afghan Square Knitting Patterns
Click here to view my other free washcloth and afghan square patterns

Size and Materials

Size depends on yarn and needle size used – with DK/Light Worsted Weight yarn and 4 mm (US 6, UK 8) knitting needles, finished squares are approximately 22 cm x 22 cm (8.5 inches x 8.5 inches)

Any sized needle and yarn can be used (please refer to yarn label for recommended needle size), however different needle and yarn sizes will produce different sized squares, so if you plan to make an afghan or a set of these it is best to use the same needle size and yarn for each square.

Chart Instructions

On Right Side: Knit white squares and purl black dots

On Wrong Side: Purl white squares and knit black dots

Cast on 45 stitches and start at bottom left hand corner of chart with a wrong side row.

Free Knitting Pattern Elephant Washcloth Afghan Square

Written Instructions

Cast on 45

Work 7 rows of (K1,P1) to last stitch, K1

Row 8: K1, P1, K1, P1, K37, P1, K1, P1, K1

Row 9 and all odd numbed rows: K1, P1, K1, P1, K1, P35, K1, P1, K1, P1, K1

Even Rows 10-12: K1, P1, K1, P1, K13, P4, K11, P4, K5, P1, K1, P1, K1

Row 14: K1, P1, K1, P1, K13, P4, K10, P5, K5, P1, K1, P1, K1

Row 16: K1, P1, K1, P1, K13, P4, K9, P6, K5, P1, K1, P1, K1

Row 18: K1, P1, K1, P1, K13, P4, K1, P7, K1, P5, K6, P1, K1, P1, K1

Row 20: K1, P1, K1, P1, K13, P19, K5, P1, K1, P1, K1

Even Rows 22-28: K1, P1, K1, P1, K12, P20, K5, P1, K1, P1, K1

Row 30: K1, P1, K1, P1, K11, P20, K1, P1, K4, P1, K1, P1, K1

Row 32: K1, P1, K1, P1, K9, P20, K4, P1, K3, P1, K1, P1, K1

Row 34: K1, P1, K1, P1, K8, P16, K9, P1, K3, P1, K1, P1, K1

Row 36: K1, P1, K1, P1, K5, P20, K7, P1, K4, P1, K1, P1, K1

Row 38: K1, P1, K1, P1, K4, P21, K12, P1, K1, P1, K1

Row 40: K1, P1, K1, P1, K3, P22, K12, P1, K1, P1, K1

Row 42: K1, P1, K1, P1, K3, P4, K2, P9, K1, P4, K14, P1, K1, P1, K1

Row 44: K1, P1, K1, P1, K3, P3, K6, P4, K21, P1, K1, P1, K1

Row 46: K1, P1, K1, P1, K3, P3, K31, P1, K1, P1, K1

Row 48: K1, P1, K1, P1, K4, P3, K30, P1, K1, P1, K1

Row 50: K1, P1, K1, P1, K5, P4, K28, P1, K1, P1, K1

Row 52: K1, P1, K1, P1, K7, P4, K26, P1, K1, P1, K1

Row 54: K1, P1, K1, P1, K9, P3, K25, P1, K1, P1, K1

Row 56: K1, P1, K1, P1, K37, P1, K1, P1, K1

Work 7 rows of (K1, P1) to last stitch, K1

Cast off, weave in ends and block.

8 Comments

  1. Thank you so much for these patterns. Some are going to be dish clothes and some I’m making panels for a blanket.

  2. This is probably a very silly and obvious question but what does weave in ends and block mean please? Xx

    1. Weave in ends just means sew in the ends of the yarn from casting on and casting off so they are hidden and the square looks finished. Blocking is straightening the square – I do this by placing it on a foam square (like the large foam jigsaw puzzle pieces children use as play mats) and using sewing pins to pin it out flat. Then I wet the wool with hot water whiles it’s pinned to the mat and let it dry. It makes the square flat and even and means the image shows better.

  3. Are you able to make this pattern into a whole blanket? I love this it’s so cute I want to make it a big baby blanket for my unborn daughter!

    1. You could try knitting it with bulky wool on large needles and add more seed stitch (knit one purl one) stitches to the border (the first and last seven rows and first and last 5 stitches of each row form the border)

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