Planned pooling crochet calculator

Planned pooling uses a variegated yarn's repeating colours to make argyle diamonds, without changing colour once. It only works at certain row widths. This calculator works out your yarn's colour repeat, lists the row widths that make argyle with their finished widths, and previews how the colours will stack.

How to use the calculator

1. Crochet a few repeats of the yarn in moss (linen) stitch and count the stitches each colour section makes.
2. Enter the colours in order with their stitch counts, one per line, such as "Teal 6".
3. Enter a row width to preview, turned rows or rounds, and optionally your stitch gauge.

How the calculator works

Colour repeat = the stitches of all the colour sections added together

In turned rows, each row starts where the last ended, going the other way. A row one stitch shorter or longer than the repeat, or any whole number of repeats, shifts the colours by one stitch every row. That stacks them into diagonals that cross as argyle:

Argyle row widths = k × colour repeat ± 1, for k = 1, 2, 3 …

A row that is exactly a multiple of the repeat stacks the colours straight up instead. In the round, multiples of the repeat make vertical columns and other widths make diagonal spirals.

The preview places each stitch along the yarn and colours it, reversing direction on every other turned row.

Reading your results

• Stitches in one colour repeat.
• Argyle row widths: the two widths for one repeat, and the rule for more.
• This preview shows: argyle diamonds, stacked columns or a mixed pattern, for the width you entered.
• Row widths that make argyle: for 1 to 4 repeats, with the finished widths if you entered your gauge.
• Preview: row 1 at the bottom.

Worked example

A yarn with white 5, teal 6, navy 4 and teal 6 stitches has a 21-stitch repeat.

• Rows of 20 or 22 stitches make one argyle diamond across; 41 or 43 make two; 62 or 64 make three.
• At 5 stitches per inch, 41 stitches is 8.2 in wide and 43 is 8.6 in.

Accuracy and limits

• The row widths are exact arithmetic, covered by our automated tests. Real yarn drifts: dye lengths vary along a skein, so you will need to tighten or loosen a stitch or two per colour block to keep the pattern lined up.
• It assumes every stitch uses the same yarn, which is why moss stitch is the usual choice.
• A very short colour repeat (4 stitches or fewer) gives a pattern too small to see; the calculator warns you.

Common mistakes

1. Counting colours from the skein. Count stitches from a swatch in your stitch and tension, not the length of each colour on the skein.
2. Changing tension partway. The pattern relies on each colour making the same number of stitches every time.
3. Starting in the wrong place. Start the first row at the beginning of a colour section, so the diamonds line up from the first row.

Tips for more accurate results

• Watch the first few rows: if a colour lands a stitch early or late, adjust your tension in that block.
• Use a hook a little larger than usual: it is easier to tighten than to loosen.
• For other colourwork, plan stripes with the stripe calculator.

Frequently asked questions