Lion Brand Notebook ®
Planned Color Pooling – Variegated Yarn Magic!
Hey there, Ashleigh here from the blog Sewrella. I’m so excited to be talking to you about planned color pooling!
Planned color pooling is a crochet technique that utilizes variegated yarn and simple stitches to create an argyle or plaid effect. It’s totally magical and super easy!
To achieve this look, you’ll need a few things… (Read on for Sewrella’s guide to Color Pooling Yarn Magic!)
Make the perfect argyle pattern is much simpler than you may think – there are absolutely no yarn changes or fussy ends to deal with. This project simply utilizes the beautiful variegation of the yarn itself – it’s really like magic!
You only need to know how to single crochet and chain stitch – that’s it! It’s called the moss or granite stitch, and it is perhaps the most impressive piece to ever be made by such simple stitches.
The key to planned color pooling is consistent tension. This will keep your color changes within the yarn happening in the right places to create those gentle diagonals that are so mesmerizing.
If you’re like me, though, perfectly consistent tension isn’t always how things go.
You see, I crochet (more often than not) as a therapeutic way to relieve stress. So often my stitches are slightly tighter and tenser at the beginning of a project and I relax as I get going on a project.
Fear not!
I have a color pooling cheat stitch in my video tutorial! This will come in handy when your tension changes ever so slightly – no ripping out rows of stitches to correct it.
I used this cheat stitch a handful of times in my planned color pooling scarf and it was a life saver!
My scarf was the perfect size for a chilly day, with enough bulk to add warmth without being too huge. I used 3 entire skeins of Color Waves in Playground and added some fun pom poms (using scrap yarn from my stash) to the bottom for a little whimsy!
This scarf is sure to be a big crowd pleaser – especially when you give it as a gift it as a gift this season!
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Emily Katehis
I find this almost laughable, a few years ago all the blogs were all like, color pooling is ugly, here’s how to prevent it, but now everyone is doing it on purpose! Quite a number of projects for my son turned out argyle just by chance! One, using Vanna’s Choice had a huge black spot out of no where. I wonder what the trend will be in another few years?
Elizabeth Bell
Well, there’s random pooling, and there’s planned pooling. I find the tartan look beautiful, and the blotchy, spotty appearance that random pooling can sometimes have to be unattractive.
Emily Katehis
I can totally understand that. I’ve lucked out several times in my projects. That black patch on my son’s sweater reminded me of the spot on Jupiter. But I’ve never had it happen again, I guess it also depends on the yarn.
Jennifer
video won’t play for me.
Kimmy
It won’t play for me either, not here nor on YouTube. Please fix video as I would love to see it and learn. Thank you. Beautiful scarf and colors 🙂
Liza
If that’s the case, it may be a problem with your internet connection, browser, or the computer you’re using. Since it’s a longer video, a slower device or connection can take a very long time to buffer.
Liza
Hi, it is working for me, so I’m not sure it’s an issue on our end. Try going directly to YouTube to see it, maybe it will work better (Click the YouTube logo at the bottom right of the video).
Jennifer Smilek McGraw
Hi, thanks for sharing this! Is there an actual pattern for this somewhere? I really need to see the stitches written out. Thank you!
Liza
If you click on the hyperlinked phrase “video tutorial” in the text, it’s a link to the YouTube page.
Tammy J. Moore
Thank you for taking the time to explain and show how to do pooling. I used a different yarn than was shown and my projwct came out beautifully Thank you again.
Margaret Chessher
Are there only two Lion Brand Color Waves yarns that will work for planning pooling?
Pauline Warnes
Could you tell me how many balls of yarn it took to complete the scarf please. Thank you.
Sara Gottlieb
Hi. I’ve been trying this technique with the exact same yarn, the exact same hook size, and all while being very careful with my tension, but it just won’t work. Is there anything else I can try? The yarn I’m using seems so much thinner than the one used in the video, but it’s the exact same brand and color. Any advice? I really want this to work.