Eco-Tawashi

Photo by Carrie Guzzino

I’ve had this post in the works for at least a week, but it has intimidated me to the point where I just keep setting it aside for later.  I had it in my head that I would do a roundup of sorts, giving you the lowdown on these nifty little dishwashing pads, providing links, and generally waxing poetic.  But with all of the projects I have had my fingers in lately, typing has taken a back seat.

Really, the whole point was to tell you about these particular Tawashi that Carrie of Wash my Cloth made for me last year, and the other set she whipped up so quickly for me last month.  I wanted to link to wikipedia and the CRAFT: magazine article that got me interested in these in the first place, and give you the idea that these make great holiday gifts, if you give them with an explanatory card and some homemade dish soap.

I was going to do all of that, and technically if you read the last paragraph, then I already have, albeit with less eloquence than I’d planned.

Carrie doesn’t have any Tawashi in her shop right now, but she does take requests.  (Personally, I have my eye on the bath towers as a possibility for gifts this year, if I’m on the ball enough to order soon.)

One last thing about Tawashi: I gave my grandmother one last year that was essentially a crocheted tube.  Turns out, she loved it because it meant she could wash dishes with the Tawashi around her hand and she didn’t have to bend her fingers.  It never even occurred to me before that arthritic hands would have trouble grasping a traditional sponge (the things we young people take for granted!)  That’s something to think about, if you have individuals with joint pain on your gift-giving list this year.