The Sea Foam Scrubber: A Free Knitting Pattern for a Textured, Exfoliating Bath Mitt with Picot Edging
Elevate Your Shower Routine: The Sea Foam Scrubber Bath Mitt
Transform your daily shower into a luxurious spa experience with this beautifully textured, exfoliating bath mitt. Featuring a gentle slip-stitch pattern that creates a soft, nubby surface, this quick and satisfying project is perfect for beginners looking to explore textured knitting and delicate picot edging. Knit in absorbent, machine-washable cotton, this mitt lathers beautifully and provides just the right amount of gentle exfoliation. The calming coastal color palette—cream with a seafoam green trim—makes it an elegant handmade gift or a treat for yourself.
Materials Needed
- Yarn: Lily Sugar'n Cream or similar worsted weight 100% cotton yarn (1 ball of 'Ecru' for the main body, and a small amount of 'Sea Foam' or 'Robin's Egg' for the picot trim)
- Needles: US Size 6 (4.0 mm) knitting needles, or size needed to obtain gauge
- Notions: Tapestry needle for finishing and weaving in ends
- Gauge: 20 stitches and 28 rows = 4 inches in Stockinette stitch, after blocking
Step-by-Step Instructions
Mitt Body (Make 2 Identical Pieces)
Notes: The mitt is worked flat in one piece per side, then seamed. The picot edge is worked after seaming. The stitch pattern is a simple slip-stitch rib that creates a lovely, slightly nubby texture perfect for gentle exfoliation.
Row 1 (Right Side): With Ecru, cast on 30 stitches.
Row 2 (Wrong Side): Knit all stitches.
Row 3 (Right Side): *K1, slip 1 purlwise with yarn in back (wyib); repeat from * to end.
Row 4 (Wrong Side): Purl all stitches.
Rows 5-40: Repeat Rows 3 and 4. You will have a textured, ribbed fabric.
Row 41 (Right Side): Knit all stitches.
Row 42 (Wrong Side): Purl all stitches.
Row 43 (Right Side): Knit all stitches.
Row 44 (Wrong Side): Purl all stitches.
Row 45 (Right Side): Bind off all stitches loosely knitwise. Cut yarn, leaving a long tail (about 18 inches) for seaming.
Finishing & Seaming
- Place the two pieces together with right sides facing out (the textured side is the outside). The cast-on edges will be at the bottom (wrist opening), and the bound-off edges will be at the top (fingertips).
- Using the long tail from the bound-off edge, sew the top and side seams using a mattress stitch or whip stitch. Start at the top bound-off edge and sew down one side, then across the top, and down the other side. Leave the bottom (cast-on edge) open for your hand. Weave in all ends securely.
Picot Edge (Worked Around the Wrist Opening)
- With the right side facing you, using the Sea Foam yarn, pick up and knit 30 stitches evenly around the cast-on edge of the mitt. To do this, insert your needle into each cast-on stitch, wrap the yarn, and pull through a loop, keeping the stitches on your needle.
- Picot Bind Off: *Cast on 2 stitches using the knitted cast-on method (insert right needle between the first two stitches on the left needle, wrap yarn, pull through a loop, and place this new stitch onto the left needle). Bind off 4 stitches (knit the first stitch, then knit the next stitch, pass the first stitch over the second, then knit the next stitch and pass the previous stitch over, then knit the next stitch and pass the previous stitch over—this binds off the 2 new stitches plus the next 2 stitches on the left needle). Slip the remaining stitch on the right needle back to the left needle. Repeat from * until all stitches are bound off. Cut yarn and pull through the last loop.
- Weave in all ends. Block lightly if desired by wetting the mitt and laying it flat to dry, shaping gently.
To Use
Slip your hand into the mitt, wet it, and apply your favorite soap or body wash. The textured slip-stitch pattern gently exfoliates while the cotton yarn lathers beautifully. Rinse the mitt after use and hang to dry.
