Marly Bird, Author at Marly Bird

83 FREE Pet Patterns to Knit and Crochet

January 14, 2021 By Marly Bird Leave a Comment

Today is Dress Up Your Pet Day! Celebrate by making one of these coats or costumes for your pet dog. Or if they don’t like to dress up, make an accessory for your pets or an item to put in your home to show your love.

The costumes are designed for dogs, but if you have a large cat who tolerates clothing you may be able to make an outfit for him! And the patterns that are in Other Pet Items are appropriate for all kinds of pets. Fun Fact: Olympian Tom Daley knits for dogs.

*This post contains affiliate links. By clicking one of these links and making a purchase a portion of your order will go to the blog. The price you pay will not change. Thank you for your support of the blog.*

83 Free Pet Patterns to Knit and Crochet

Dog Coats and Sweaters

These knit and crochet sweaters and coats will keep your dog warm and stylish! With knit cables, crocheted granny squares, stripes, Fair Isle, solids, you’re sure to find the pattern that matches your dog’s personality.

Hooded Coats

Fair Isle and Intarsia Sweaters

Striped Sweaters

Solid Coats

Patterned Coats

Cabled Sweaters

Dog Costumes

Dress up your pet in a costume for Dress Up Your Pet Day! Or make a costume for family pictures or Halloween fun.

Leash Covers and Decorative Collars

Leash covers made in yarn that reflects light are the perfect choice for nighttime walks, while decorative collars and scarves are a picture purr-fect addition for pets who don’t want a full outfit.

Pet Beds and Blankets

Your pet will be cozy as can be with comfortable beds and blankets designed just for them. Plus, making it yourself means you can easily match it to your home decor!

Pet Beds

Pet Blankets

Crochet Kitty Couch Free Crochet Pattern

Other Pet Items

Whether your pet needs a toy, a stocking, or a basket for accessories, you’ll find the pattern here!

Patterns for People

Show your love for your pets by wearing and using these handy patterns for household items!

The Best Planned Pooling Crochet Tutorial Video

January 13, 2021 By Marly Bird 1 Comment

When planned pooling first started really trending (2016/2017), it really interested a lot of people. However, even experienced crocheters found it challenging, It’s tough to figure out the math that allows for the correct yarn placement. I immediately loved the technique, and I wanted others to love it, too. Therefore, I created The Best Planned Pooling Crochet Tutorial. This video tutorial really breaks down how to do this argyle crochet technique.

Note: this post has been updated to reflect the most up to date planned pooling crochet tutorial information. You may have noticed that I’ve been updating all of my planned pooling posts lately. I’ve also put together a Total Beginner’s Guide to Crochet Planned Pooling which links to all related posts. Many people have expressed that they were able to learn this technique thanks to these posts, especially with assistance from my Yarn Pooling Made Easy book and this best planned pooling crochet tutorial video. I hope you find that to be true too.

*This post may include affiliate links. If you click one and make a purchase, I get a small percentage of the purchase. Your price never changes.

How I Learned What’s In This Planned Pooling Crochet Tutorial

I certainly didn’t invent planned pooling crochet. In fact, color pooling has accidentally happened in yarn crafting ever since multicolored yarns were invented. Then some savvy people figured out that you could channel that to plan out the color pools. This means you can create argyle and other similar patterns. I learned this from a few key places:

Knitting Planned Pooling

Yarn pooling used to always be a bad thing in both knitting and crochet. Colors in multicolored yarn would “pool” in strange ways that people didn’t expect or like. However, then designers realized that with some smart tweaks, they could plan out where the pools would occur. Therefore, they could use the pooling as a design advantage instead of a drawback. Thus planned pooling was born.

I had first known about planned pooling in regards to knitting. I learned from the amazingly talented Laura Bryant who wrote a book on it: Artful Color Mindful Knits. The book’s description includes:

“The author shows how to analyze the dye skein and reveal its color repeat, allowing the crafter to employ stitch gauge and stitch count to intentionally pattern the finished work. As a contrast, further strategies and stitch choices are shown that blend the colors to overcome unwanted pooling and create more gentle gradients.”

She shows this for both knitting and crochet with an emphasis on knitted planned pooling.

Crochet Planned Pooling

I first learned how to do the crochet planned pooling argyle through a blog post on the Red Heart website. That post is now over on Yarnspirations. First I learned the basics from this written planned pooling crochet tutorial, Then, I sat down and swatched and swatched and swatched. I did a lot of swatches to figure out the best way to do the technique. Moreover, I learned how it worked for the different colors. With a lot of practice, I learned how to get the look I wanted for each project.

Along with the many blog posts and videos out there I have found great support and fellow planned pooling lovers in the Planned Pooling with Crochet Facebook group. The admins in the group are fantastic. Plus, the members post so many wonderful projects that they have completed. It’s quite inspiring.

The Most Important Thing I Learned

It’s amazing how much I needed to put aside my years of knowledge and just do what I was told to do. Yet, I wasn’t following a pattern as there wasn’t one for me to follow, Instead, I simply did trial and error. I learned many things through swatching that helped me better perfect how I could teach others to do this technique.

The biggest of which is this: getting a yarn to automatically pool argyle for you without any adjustments is unlikely. More often than not, you will compensate the gauge/tension of a stitch to get the correct color placement in the ch-1 space (when using moss stitch, which I have found to be an ideal stitch for a beginner crochet planned pooling tutorial). Meaning, you may have to adjust the size of the stitch or the actual type of stitch you are using depending on the placement of the color needed to establish and maintain the planned pooling argyle pattern.

This is counterintuitive to what we usually do in crochet. But it’s critical.

Let’s Explore Color Placement

If you think of a planned pooling crochet chart showing you exactly where a color has to go to get an argyle look then you can begin to see what I mean by color placement. If you chart out the argyle with each square representing the Single Crochet stitch of the moss stitch (as that is the only stitch that is showing) then you can see EXACTLY where each color has to go.

Let’s think about this in different techniques. For example, if you were doing cross stitch, then you would place whatever color was indicated in the chart for the color in that space. Likewise, if you were doing fair isle knitting, then you would strand the color needed in that space -behind the other colors in place to make that stitch the correct color as indicated in the chart. And if you were doing argyle, then you would have bobbins of color dangling from the work and would use the correct color for that stitch as indicated in the chart. All of these are reasonable and possible options for using a color placement chart like this one.

BUT, we don’t want to do cross stitch, or strand our yarn, or do actual argyle, Instead we want to do PLANNED POOLING ARGYLE crochet where the yarn does the work for us. So, we work along in moss stitch and manipulate the yarn to make sure that when the color is supposed to change from one to another, it happens. Sometimes we do that by changing hook size and other times by changing a single crochet to a half double crochet or ch 1 instead of ch 2 on the turn.

Because the yarn is not made to automatically work into argyle and is sometimes inconsistent in the lengths of color, it is our job to make it work by manipulating it. The yarn does most of the work, but we have to make adjustments to control it.

Clear as mud, huh? Well, I’ve made this Best Planned Pooling Crochet video that will hopefully make it clearer for you.

Here’s Where to Start With Planned Pooling

Here are the things you’ll need to do to start.

The Yarn For Planned Pooling Crochet

The first thing I want you to do is learn about the right yarn for planned pooling. When I first created this planned pooling crochet tutorial video, I shared a list of yarns from Red Heart that are supposed to work for Planned Pooling Argyle. Some of these are more difficult to pool than others but at least you have a starting point. And I suggested RHSS in Earth and Sky or Zebra color ways or With Love in Delightful or Fruit Punch.

However, since that time, I’ve actually worked with Red Heart to develop Super Saver Pooling yarn. This yarn is specifically designed for this technique. Therefore, you might want to start with it.

Watch the Best Planned Pooling Crochet Tutorial Video

Now it’s time to grab a crochet hook, pick up your variegated yarn, and watch the video below, In less than thirty minutes, you’ll be able to join me in the wonders of making planned pooling argyle crochet.

Many people have told me that this video is what helped them overcome the challenge of learning this technique and to be able to do it. Recently on Instagram @majobekhosi said, “I made a hooded cowl from your YouTube video and I love it.” And comments on the video itself include this from Denise Chavez: “I’ve been doing my swatches for 3 days now. And I think its finally turning out. I’ve changed my hook twice and I think I need to do it one one time. But I its coming along. I’m using the lemon drop color yarn from red heart.” Also, Princess Pea wrote:

“I’ve worked on this all night, and I finally have a swatch that resembles something like argyle! So, I’m going to get this down if it kills me! ???? I’m so glad that you showed your own multiple imperfect swatches toward the end, because now I don’t feel so inadequate. If you can’t get it perfect every time, then my newbie mess is more excusable. ???? Thank you for all of these tutorials, Marly. You’ve made planned pooling easy to understand. Of course application is not the same as theory, but I’ve got plenty of time to practice.”

Once you’ve learned the basics in the Best Crochet Tutorial Planned Pooling Argyle video, watch the follow up video, 10 Secrets to Perfect Planned Pooling.

Looking for more PLANNED POOLING ARGYLE PROJECTS?

Of course you are, you are ready to jump into the pool too! The best place to start, after those videos, is right here. You’ll find a series of gradually more challenging patterns and techniques through that post. Have fun with this amazing crochet technique!!

Free Valentine Blankets to Crochet and Knit

January 11, 2021 By Marly Bird Leave a Comment

Valentine’s Day is in about a month, so there’s still time to get started on an afghan or throw! These 30 free Valentine blankets from Yarnspirations are full of hearts, cables, and other little details. Make one for yourself and your spouse, or make one to give as a gift to someone you care about.

30 Free Valentine Blankets to Crochet and Knit

Valentine’s Day Throws

Yarn Pooling Made Easy – Crochet Patterns, Tips, Tricks, Videos, and Book Reviews

January 11, 2021 By Marly Bird 6 Comments

I’ve had the opportunity to work on a lot of knitting and crochet books with Leisure Arts, and here’s one of the most popular: Yarn Pooling Made Easy. Crochet color pooling is a fun technique that lets you make argyle prints and other similar graphic color designs using basic crochet stitches. It looks harder than it is; this book tells you absolutely everything you need to know about how to do yarn pooling in crochet.

When I released Yarn Pooling Made Easy in 2017, I wanted to celebrate this new book with an online party. We did a big blog tour featuring reviews from some of my favorite designer friends. And I also did ten days of videos showcasing the patterns in the book along with tips and hints for planned pooling. While the giveaways are long over, I think all of the reviews and videos can help you learn a lot more about Yarn Pooling Made Easy.

NOTE: This post was originally for the blog tour in 2017. It’s been updated to highlight what you would want to know from the book today, to make crochet planned pooling more accessible to you. Any mentions of giveaways are outdated; all giveaways related to Yarn Pooling Made Easy have already passed.

I’m So Excited About Planned Pooling

Planned pooling crochet became a hot topic around 2016. People realized that you could take advantage of the color changes in multicolored yarn to “pool” the colors in specific, planned out ways. This means that you can create beautiful prints using a single ball of yarn (or multiple balls from the same dye lot.) Although people immediately loved the idea of crochet pooling, they found that there was a tough learning curve to getting started.

I immediately knew that this was an area I wanted to help people with. It’s such a fun aspect of the craft that allows you to make the most use of color in crochet. I got very serious very quick about using my skills to teach others how to do this. Therefore, anyone who needs some guidance of where to start with planned pooling should head to my YouTube channel and watch the videos in my planned pooling playlist. Additionally, check out my Total Beginners Guide to Crochet Planned Pooling, which lays it all out for you and links to all of the blog posts on the topic that you’ll need to go Fromm beginner to advanced. And, of course, Yarn Pooling Made Easy is a resource you should consider, since it shows you start to finish how to crochet this color technique.

Reading through my blog posts you will see that I was lucky to have two wonderful ladies help me get the information out to you on the planned pooling topic. These two ladies are also a part of the Planned Pooling Crochet Facebook group. Head over to the group page for some amazing support from others who love to work with planned pooling crochet.

More About Yarn Pooling Made Easy

With 8 original designs in the book, I hope that you will find something that you love. You’ll have all of the instruction you’ll need to make:

3 different scarfs: a zig zag, a hooded scarf, and another one that especially showcase the planned pooling technique
Matching set of cowl, writers, and hat – especially great for gifting
Baby things: cocoon and car seat cover
Child’s sweater
Crochet planned pooling poncho with raglan yoke

And below you’ll learn even more about all of these patterns. Each was designed in Red Heart yarns, which is why Red Heart joined Leisure Arts (the publisher – check out all my books with them) to offer giveaways for the original blog tour.

The blog tour was years ago and the giveaways are over, but something new has happened since then that I want to make sure you know about: Red Heart created a yarn specifically for Planned Pooling. If you really want to have Yarn Pooling Made Easy for you then using this yarn is a great place to start!

Learn More About Each Project on YouTube!

In addition to the original blog tour, at the time that I released Yarn Pooling Made Easy, I also did a ten day YouTube video tour of the book. While the giveaways mentioned in the videos are no longer relevant, the videos DO have a ton of information you might still enjoy.

Each video shows you a pattern in the book in more detail. If you want to get a chance to see exactly what’s in Yarn Pooling Made Easy – and also just to get a better idea of what things look like when crocheted in this technique, then these videos will help.

In each video, I also talk to you more about the yarn choices for planned pooling. I give you tips and tricks that are exactly the things I used to create Yarn Pooling Made Easy. And I often give you some behind-the-scenes fun information about the pattern

Cover Scarf from Yarn Pooling Made Easy

The first video is all about the scarf that you see on the cover of Yarn Pooling Made Easy. I mention that it’s great to start planned pooling with a crochet scarf like this one because it only requires one color sequence. As you start color pooling, you’ll discover that multiple sequences is a more advanced skill. You’ll also get a tip on where to go if you get stuck with crochet planned pooling.

Wristers, Cowl, and Hat Matching Pattern Set

This pattern set is great for two big reasons: you get the chance to make different types of items using the planned pooling technique so you’ll grow your skills quickly. And you end up with a matching set that you can wear or gift. Learn from the video what my thought process was about why this pattern set makes a perfect choice as the second pattern in the Yarn Pooling Made Easy book.

Planned Pooling Zig-Zag Scarf

In this video, I explain that each pattern in Yarn Pooling Made Easy gets a little bit harder than the last. After all, you want to start easy and build your skills with a new technique right? So, learn what makes this zig zag scarf a little more challenging than the first full scarf in the book. And you’ll also get some inside info on who helped me make this pattern really work out right!

Crochet Planned Pooling Car Seat Cover

Find out in this video why this is one of my personal favorite crochet projects in Yarn Pooling Made Easy. (Here’s a hint.) And you’ll also see what makes this a car seat cover rather than just a baby blanket.

Yarn Pooled Baby Cocoon

With this project you get the chance to combine a solid yarn with planned pooling. Another new skill!

Hooded Crochet Scarf

Here’s the third crochet scarf pattern in the book. As you can see, this one is different because it has a hood. So it’s cozy. But visit the video to find out what else is different about making this crochet scarf. Also – there’s a tiny error in the book (we’ve already got the errata for this) and you can find out from this video what it was!

Child’s Crochet Sweater

Isn’t this the cutest thing you’ve ever seen? I love it. Learn the different parts to it and the stitch used throughout when you watch the short video.

Planned Pooling Poncho with Raglan Yoke

Make yourself a beautiful crochet poncho using the planned pooling technique. From this video, you can learn about a crochet pattern I’ve made that this is similar to – and find out what’s different about the two patterns.

What People Think About Yarn Pooling Made Easy

When I make a purchase I always feel better when a friend has recommended the item. To help you see how great the new projects are, I shared a copy of the book with some of my friends so they could review it and share their honest opinion. Here are some excerpts from – and the links to – the original blog posts that were part of the Yarn Pooling Made Easy blog tour. I hope they give you more insight into why this book remains one of the most popular books on this unique crochet technique.

Calleigh’s Clips and Crochet Creations

This blog review shares how the designer, who ended up making the car seat cover, had tried yarn pooling in the past and failed. She recommends Yarn Pooling Made Easy as the best resource for solving this problem.

Accrochet

Similarly, Julie of Accrochet said, “Planned colour pooling has been around for about a year, but is not necessarily easy to pick up. This book aims to help you with this!” Meet Julie here.

The Stitchin’ Mommy

Here’s another person who tried the technique, didn’t get it at first, and then succeeded thanks to the book. She writes, “Since there are so many variables for achieving successful color pooling, Marly breaks it all down and explains the secret to the technique and how to apply it to the 10 gorgeous patterns in the book.”

Crochet Memories

She calls me a “pioneer in discovering the secrets of planned color pooling for crochet.” And adds: “Marly Bird has taken this concept (of planned pooling) to a whole new level so you too, can enjoy the benefits of working this technique with style, precision, and success!”

Pattern Paradise

This one was a fun review. On the one hand, it echoes some of the others when she says, “As a lover argyle patterns I found myself attempting the technique but with little success and lots of frustration, until NOW!” But then she decided to learn the basics of the technique from the book as a tool to crochet her own unique design. It’s a planned pooling throw pillow and the post links to her pattern (just click the image of it.) Meet Maria here.

5 Little Monsters

One great point made in this review: “One thing that I noticed when people would post about their pooled projects is that they never really knew what to make with it. They would end up with a long skinny crocheted piece that they could turn into a scarf but that was about it. Because it is so vital to keep the number of stitches just right to keep the pattern going it is hard to make anything other than a rectangle. If you didn’t want to make a scarf than what did you do with it?” This book’s 8+ patterns (because it’s ten if you count the items in the matching set separately) give you options.

YARNutopia

Even established crocheters sometimes struggle with first learning planned pooling. In this post, Nadia shares how hard the struggle was for her. Then says, “I began to work my yarn into to the right calculations and GUESS WHAT, it works!!!! It worked out for me!!! I started to see how the pooling effect created the argyle pattern, and boy, I did an epic happy dance all over my house!!!! How thrilling!! This has been the ONLY helpful guide for me to be able to succeed on something that I was about to give up on. I am typically NOT a quitter and thank goodness, because if I was, I would not have found my way to this great book and Marly’s fantastic videos and I would not be Yarn Pooling today!”

Fun fact: I once designed a baby blanket as a gift for YARNutopia.

Same DiNamics Crochet

“Honestly, this book is refreshing and gets right into the good stuff, patterns! You get some information on how to be prepared for planned yarn pooling, some background on Marly, and then straight to the patterns. They really are quite that simple. I have to say, the two things that were evident throughout the book were: all patterns are labeled Easy, and; there is minimal weaving in of ends. Easy and little weaving in ends? I’m in! With yarn pooling, you get a gorgeous and effective design with little work at the end. That’s a win for me!”

Nicki’s Homemade Crafts

Everyone has their favorite projects from the book. Nicki’s Homemade Crafts says, “This red Hooded Scarf is absolutely wonderful. It looks very pretty and will make any woman, or even teen or child looks special and phenomenal.”

Looping With Love

In addition to highlighting the ease of learning this technique using the book, this book review says, “I love that each design in the book provides the pattern’s skill level, a finished item size, shopping list of materials needed, gauge information, stitch guide, the pattern, plenty of notes, and finishing/edging sections.”

Underground Crafter

And here’s a succinct summary: “If you’ve ever wondered how to control those pools of color your variegated yarn makes when you’re crocheting, you may have found your book.” Meet Marie of Underground Crafter here.

*NOTE: Just a reminder that all of these links were originally part of the Yarn Pooling Made Easy blog tour, so they mention giveaways but those are all done now. These posts are to let you know more about the book and how to learn planned pooling

Free Argyle Patterns to Crochet and Knit

January 8, 2021 By Marly Bird Leave a Comment

Today is Argyle Day! Argyle is a traditional pattern made of diamonds with lines through them. Argyle projects can be knit or crochet, and argyle designs can be put on any kind of project.

Argyle comes from a traditional tartan, or plaid, of one of the Scottish clans. It was popular in the 1920s and is often still seen on golf sweater vests and other golf-related clothing and accessories.

18 Free Argyle Crochet and Knit Patterns

Argyle Projects

A great place to get started knitting argyle is with this Chic Highland Argyle Cardigan I designed. It’s designed for advanced beginners, and has tutorial videos to help you learn how to do the techniques to make argyle. You’ll use four colors of yarn: one for the background, two for the diamonds, and one for the lines.

Argyle patterns don’t have to be knit cardigans, however! You can add argyle designs on to all kinds of projects to crochet and knit to wear or for your home.

Planned Pooling Argyle Projects

Planned pooling is a crochet technique where colors in certain multicolored yarns can line up to make an intentional pattern. As long as you stitch carefully, the argyle shows up with just one skein of yarn instead of changing colors!

If you’ve never done planned pooling before, get started with the Total Beginner’s Guide to Crochet Planned Pooling.

Ultimate Guide to Crochet Planned Pooling

Another good place to start is with the My First Series-Planned Pooling Argyle Poncho.

Get your planned pooling argyle on with these free patterns from Yarnspirations!

Also on the Blog

Total Beginner’s Guide to Crochet Planned Pooling

January 7, 2021 By Marly Bird Leave a Comment

Crochet planned pooling is a fun technique that many people think is much harder than it is. That’s because it looks so amazing. You use multicolored / variegated / self-striping yarn to create intentional patterns of color pooling within a project. The result s a beautiful, colorful, geometric design that really makes a statement when you look at it. And yet, because it uses basic crochet stitches, it’s actually a lot easier than you might think. I’ve done a lot of posts, patterns, and even a book about crochet planned pooling, so I wanted to round them all up here for you. Follow the links to all of the resources that you need to learn yarn pooling from start to finished product.

Fun Fact: Planned pooling turns a negative into a positive. Historically, knitters and crocheters would complain about color pooling – the effect of blotchy spots of color in their work caused by multicolored yarn. However, planned pooling harnesses the power of that yarn glitch as a unique design tool in creating original work.

Note: This post may include affiliate links. If you click one and then buy something, you support my work because I get a small portion of the sale. Your price does not increase at all.

Yarn Pooling Made Easy: The Book

Knit and Crochet Book - Yarn Pooling Made Easy Book - Crochet Techniques - Marly Bird

Below you’ll find lots of different posts that will teach you all about crochet planned pooling. But if you’re really serious about wanting to learn, then it might be worth it to you to check out my Yarn Pooling Made Easy book. It’s one of the most popular Marly Bird knit and crochet books at Leisure Arts. The ebook is $7.99; the paperback is $9.99. You can go from not knowing anything about this technique to making a variety of colorful accessories in no time by following this book. If you want to learn more about this book, including behind-the-scenes info about each of the patterns in it, then check out this blog post about the original blog tour.

So, What is Crochet Planned Pooling All About?

You work with a variegated yarn, use some math, and adjust your tension or crochet hook size to create a specific color pattern for your design. It’s often used to create an argyle pattern (or its variations: tartan and harlequin designs). However, you can also create other color patterns, especially if you learn to work this technique in the round.

Start here with this post about planned pooling. It links to a video tutorial that shows you what planned pooling is.
Here’s another post that provides basics of planned pooling crochet.
Finally, here’s a comprehensive Quick Guide to Color Pooling that includes video tutorials and additional helpful links.

Total beginners guide to Crochet Planned Pooling - Crochet Planned Pooling Tutorial - Marly Bird

Getting Started: What You Need to Know

There are a few key things that you need to know as you get started with planned yarn pooling. One thing not to ignore is the “planned” part of “planned pooling.” In other words, take the time at the beginning to put everything in order for the project. Work out the details of the yarn, including where to start in its changing color sequence, in advance. The more prep work you do, the easier this technique will go. If you’re familiar with the term mise-en-place in the kitchen then you can apply that mentality to your crochet.

Yarn for Crochet Planned Pooling

The most important thing that you need to know when it comes to planned pooling is that it’s all about the yarn. You have to choose the right yarn or you simply can’t do planned pooling. After all, the technique is designed to use the color changes in a multi-colored yarn in a strategic way so that you get the color placement that you want.

There are a lot of tips and guides to working with the yarn that you choose. But before you get too far into those, there’s a little secret that you should know: Red Heart Has Yarn Specifically For Planned Pooling!! When I started sharing crochet planned pooling with others, I quickly realized that people often gave up on the projects early because they couldn’t get the yarn to work out right. I worked directly with Red Heart to create a yarn that would limit these frustrations. Thus, Red Heart Super Saving Pooling Yarn was born.

Planned Pooling Yarn - Red Heart Super Saver Pooling Yarn - Marly Bird

Tips for Choosing Your Yarn

Of course, if you want to use a different yarn option, you can, especially as you get more and more comfortable with figuring out planned pooling. Here are some tips:

Consistent color length; look for yarn that has color changes at the same distance each time. Super Saving Pooling Yarn has 12″ color lengths, but the length itself matters less than consistency in length. That said, short color changes (less than 6″ won’t work well.)
Consistent color repeat; the colors in the yarn should repeat in the same order over and over again. They should not repeat in random order.
Make sure that you have enough balls of yarn that are all in the same dye lot. It matters more with planned pooling than in other versions of the craft.

Digital Knit Pattern - Crochet Planned Pooling Projects - Marly Bird — *Find these patterns in my Yarn Pooling Made* Easy crochet book

Crochet Stitches for Planned Pooling

You can use a few different stitches for this technique. The more you practice and understand the math behind the designs, the more you can play around with this. But when you’re getting started, I highly recommend moss stitch. Single crochet and half double crochet also work well for this technique.

Additional Beginner Tips

Most of the time with a new crochet technique, you want to just dive in. But with planned pooling, the more you learn in advance, the better off you’re going to be. So, before you get too far into it, make sure that you read my 10 Secrets to Perfect Planned Pooling for some important tips. Also, although it’s not here on my site, A Pattern to Follow learned crochet planned pooling from me and offers another 10 Tips for Conquering The Technique.

One thing that you’ll learn that might surprise you is that the color of your stitch matters more than the stitch tension or even the hook that you use! In fact, you might switch crochet hooks mid-row. Here’s what you need to know about choosing your crochet hook for planned pooling.

One thing you’ll need to learn as a beginner is how to create an offset stitch. In other words, how to make the colors go where you want them to go. Here’s the info on how to do that. Related to that, here’s a beginner post on Planned Pooling Color Placement.

Oh, and one more thing. Because of the way that you work the color placement, you might have unused starting chains left in your project. Here’s all about what to do with them.

Crochet Planned Pooling Patterns

Here are some patterns to work through as you learn about this technique:

Basic Criss-Cross Argyle Pattern

Free Crochet Digital Pattern - Basic Argyle Crochet Pattern - Marly Bird

This is a good place to start if you just want to make a swatch to see what yarn pooling is all about.

Planned Pooling Crochet Throw Free Pattern

Free Crochet Digital Pattern - Planned Pooling Crochet Throw - Marly Bird

If you’re ready to start your first color pooling project, then this is a good free pattern to begin with.

Argyle Poncho Free Crochet Pattern

Free Digital Crochet Pattern - Argyle Crochet Poncho pPattern - Planned Pooling Crochet - Marly Bird

I made this as part of the My First series. In other words, it’s a great beginner pattern if you’re new to crocheting argyle using the planned pooling techniques.

Granny Stitch Planned Pooling Crochet Blanket Pattern

Free Crochet Blanket Digital Pattern - Granny Stitch Planned Pooling - Marly Bird

You can use different types of stitches in color pooling. However, taller ones like the granny stitch have their own tips. Before you work on this pretty blanket pattern, check out the section on the granny stitch in the “advanced crochet planned pooling techniques” outlined below.

C2C Planned Pooling Chevron Crochet Blanket Pattern

Free Crochet Digital Blanket Pattern - C2C Chevron Planned Pooling Pattern - Marly Bird

This unique crochet pattern incorporates three different techniques: corner-to-corner crochet, chevron striping, and color pooling.

Advanced Crochet Planned Pooling

Once you know the basics of the technique, there are more things you can learn. Here are some of those things:

Multiple Sequence Planned Pooling Crochet

When you first start out, you’ll likely work with crochet projects that begin with a starting chain between 24 and 36 inches long. That will be one color sequence. However, if you want to make wider crochet projects, then you’ll need to know how to work with multiple sequences. Sometimes, it’s straightforward, but this post will provide tips for the times when it’s not working right.

Summary of All Planned Pooling Posts

Here’s an alphabetical list of all of the related posts linked to in this article so that you can easily find everything that you might want to know about this fun, graphic crochet technique.