Description
Jempool is designed to be an in-depth introduction to a type of planned pooling called color stacking. The simple stitch used in this pattern creates a lightweight, reversible and stretchy scarf while allowing all the focus to be on stacking a beautiful yarn’s repeating colors.
If you’re new to color stacking use Jempool as a portal to fascinating experiences with variegated yarns. Once you see how to organize their colors as you crochet, you’ll be able to create many more effects! I’m so pleased to be able to add this pattern to my collection.
Included: Five-step guide to understanding the type of variegated yarn you have. A “Color Appendix” of sample yarns and swatches.
Slip stitch crochet offers several advantages for a special hand painted yarn. It makes the yarn go further, especially the front-loop slip stitch used here. You can get a long-enough scarf from just one skein. (One-skein projects are ideal with these yarns not only because they can be pricy, but also the color patterning on hand painted yarns may differ noticeably from one skein to the next, even within the same dye lot.)
Another advantage of slip stitches is that you can easily see more of each color. Those exciting green, yellow, and purple accents in the photo would have disappeared into speckled blotches with a different kind of crochet.
Skill Level
Intermediate. Use this Jempool pattern to explore planned pooling with crochet. This is an Easy-Intermediate skill. The crocheting of it is a different experience (with even the simplest stitch pattern!).
New to slip stitch crochet? Skip the color stacking steps for now, and use this pattern as a beginner project with any sock yarn.
What is planned pooling and color stacking? “Pooling” often happens accidentally with a variegated (multicolor) yarn. The colors may look evenly mixed until you crochet or knit with it; then the colors seem to randomly pile up or “pool” in undesirable ways. The same yarn can look blotchy in one project yet settle into an argyle pattern in a different project.
You’ll have the opportunity to learn these skills:
- How planned pooling (aka intentional or deliberate pooling) works.
- How to make a yarn’s colors stack up in columns as you crochet in rows.
- How to crochet slip stitches for fashionable stretch and drape.
- How to count rows of front-loop slip stitches.
- How to choose a multicolored yarn for this kind of design.
- How to identify the true color sequence of a variegated yarn.
- How to choose the best stitch gauge for your yarn.
- How to understand which scarf dimensions are fixed or variable.
Finished Dimensions
Flat: 36” long x 8.5” wide {91.4 cm x 21.6 cm}; hung: 40” long x 8” wide {101.6 cm x 20.3 cm}. Due to the nature of color stacking, the dimensions of your scarf will likely vary if you choose a different yarn.
Materials
- Crochet Hook: Size H {5 mm} crochet hook or size needed for gauge.
- Yarn Used: Colinette Jitterbug (3.88oz/110g, 318yds/291m per skein, 100% Merino wool), color 54 Jewel, 1 full skein used. Note: the amount of yarn in a skein of Jitterbug has changed over the years. This is a “sock yarn” hand-dyed with short color repeats.
Substituting Yarn: A hand-dyed “sock yarn” with short color repeats is recommended. Choose a smooth-textured, solid-colored yarn in the #1 Super Fine Weight category. The recommended crochet hook size range is US C/2 {2.75 mm} to US E/4 {3.5 mm}, but use a size H/8 {5 mm} for this project.
- Stitch Markers: At least two (optional).
