Swiffer Stuffs

As most people who know me are well aware, I love to make things.  Cooking is one of my true passions for this very reason: It's quick, most endeavors are relatively inexpensive, and the end result can be used in practical, smart ways that don't end up in a lot of clutter.  You eat it, you poop it out, and Bob's your uncle -- creativity recycled!  

I don't like projects that take forever, or that clutter up the house.  As a serious fan of the Swiffer from when it first came out (and yes, I still have the 1999 Swiffer, which is more sturdy than my 2006 version), I've always considered the replacement covers something of a luxury... if I am dusting, I'm not above twisting them over so that the dust-free side can get its share of use as well. ;)  I've also used things like socks and washcloths for covers when wiping floors that need a bit of wet attention -- and for the most part, these have been successful undertakings.

But I've also wanted to try making a cover that was specifically designed JUST for the Swiffer.  And even though I'm capable of knitting only a simple garter stitch, knitting reusable Swiffer covers out of yarn is just about the easiest thing anyone can do.  Here's how! :)

1.  Choose your medium.  You can see from this picture that I used two different kinds of standard acryllic yarn -- the pretty lavender kind was the last of a soft skein of nicer stuff from JoAnn fabrics, and the burgundy was from a 99-cent store in NYC.  Just use whatever you have; after all, it's not a beauty contest if it's just going to be scrubbing the scum around your toilet.

2.  Knit!  Cast on about 33 rows.  (I used this number because it was my age when these pictures were taken... yeah, these sat around awhile!)  Knit a plain ol' garter stitch until you have a rectangle that pretty much covers your Swiffer.  Your mileage may vary, depending on how tightly you make your stitches and on what size needle you like (I used a size 10), but mine are generally somewhere within the neighborhood of 50 and 70 rows.  It is OK if you knit it to be just a tiny bit too small... keeps the cover on even better, in fact.

3.  Take your rectangle, and fold it into thirds.  The Swiffer will fit into the opening between the thirds.

 4.  Stitch the sides together.  Use anything you want -- more yarn, thread, whatever.  (I used a hideous baby-weight rainbow yarn that I have noooooo idea what other uses I can find for it!)  You could probably even glue or staple them, but that seems like a hell of a lot of trouble, and would likely require many goings-over.

5.  Put the business end of your Swiffer into the horizontal opening.  You can punch the cover down into those annoying little tabs if you want, but honestly I never do, and my Swiffer covers never go anywhere.

6.  If you're dusting, flip it over!  If you're washing something hard-core, flip it over! (Unless the dirty item in question is way too nasty to handle.)

7.  Mine are machine-washable (depends on the yarn you use) and durable.  See the lavender ones in this picture?  They were made about 2 years ago, and are just beginning to get old.

You can also use these without the Swiffer, but it's not quite as much fun.