Do you have random balls of yarn in your stash that you have no idea what to do with? Or do you have leftovers that you don’t want to throw away, but don’t know what to do with either? This pouf pattern is perfect for all leftovers and odd balls of yarn. No matter what colors you use, it always looks amazing.
I made this pouf using a lot of random yarn, different brands, materials and weights. Doesn’t matter what you use; the stranger the combination the more unique the end result.
Materials
To make a very short summary, you will need lots of yarn to make this pouf, especially because you need to use your yarn double stranded. I used something like 4000 meter to make mine. In my pouf I have mostly acrylic yarn, but there is also a bit of wool and cotton in there. Yarns I used include Stylecraft Special DK left over from the Dutch CAL 2015, DMC Tapestry embroidery wool that was left over from a large project, and Scheepjes Stonewashed XL left over from designing Stephan and Vincent squares.
In addition to the yarn you will need a 3.5mm hook and lots of pillow stuffing. I used two old duvets to stuff my pouf.
Colors
You can use any and as many colors as you like. You can also use your colors in any way you think looks nice. I often used two different colors of yarn in one round. When I ran out of one color I simply joined another in its place; also if it was mid round. This gives a very playful look to the pouf. For the most striking effect, use a different color each round.
Final Measurements
The final size of your pouf depends on how large you decide to make it. Mine is approximately 60cm in diameter and 40cm high. You can however easily make it larger or smaller if you wish.
Abbreviations
Please note that US Crochet Terminology is used for this pattern. If you are more familiar with UK terms, please use this conversion chart as needed.
- ss – slip stitch
- st – stitch
- ch – chain
- sc – single crochet
- sc2tog – two single crochet worked together
- MS – marked stitch, mark the last stitch worked before continuing
Notes
It is important to have a dense fabric for the pouf to keep the filling in and to make it more durable for use around the house. For this reason use a much smaller hook than recommended for the yarn.
If you use worsted weight yarn you can use this as a single strand, but if you use double knit yarn use this double stranded. Sport or baby weight yarn is best used triple stranded. I used mostly double knit yarn double stranded with a 3.5mm hook.
Work away yarn tails by working over them as you go. Otherwise it will be a lot of work to weave them all in. Additionally, as you close your pouf it gets hard to reach them. Don’t leave you ends dangling on the inside of your pouf as they could easily come undone during use.
Instructions
Work the pouf in 3 distinct stages; first make the top circle of the pouf (TC rounds), then the sides (S rounds) and finally the bottom circle (BC rounds).
Top Circle (TC)
In the first part of the pattern increase the diameter of the pouf till the right size is obtained.
Round TC1
With any color ch4, close to first ch with ss, ch1, 6sc in ring, close with ss to first st. Cast off. [6 sc]
Round TC2
Attach new yarn in any st with ss. ch1, 2sc in each st. Close with ss to first st. Cast off. [12 sc]
Round TC3
Attach new yarn in any st with ss. ch1, *1sc in next st, 2sc in next st, MS. *
Repeat from * to * 5 more times. Close with ss to first s. Cast off. [18 s]
Round TC4
Attach new yarn in any st with ss. ch1, * 1sc in next st till marked st, 2sc in MS. MS. *
Repeat from * to * 5 more times. 1sc in next st till completing the round. Close with ss to first st. Cast off. [6 more st than the previous round]
Repeat round TC4
Continue repeating round TC4, increasing each round with 6 stitches, until you have the desired outer diameter of your pouf. I made 60 rounds, but you can easily do more or less rounds. Your pouf will look something like this at a certain point.
Side of pouf (S)
In this part the diameter of the pouf is kept constant and the height of the pouf is made. Leave the stitch markers in position in the last round worked and work over them. When we start decreasing the diameter again we will come back to the stitch markers.
Round S1
Attach new yarn in any st with ss. ch1, 1sc in every st. Close with ss to first s. Cast off. [same number of st as last TC round]
Repeat round S1
Repeat round S1 till the pouf has the desired height. I did 50 rounds.
Bottom of pouf (BC)
In this part of the pattern the diameter of the pouf is decreased back to 6 stitches. Each round 6 stitches are reduced. Bring the stitch markers from the last TC round to the equivalent position in the last S round just worked.
Round BC1
Attach new yarn in any st with ss. ch1, * 1sc in next s till MS, sc2tog over next 2 st. MS in sc2tog. *
Repeat from * to * 5 more times. 1sc in next st till completing the round. Close with ss to first st. Cast off. [6 less st than previous round]
Repeat round BC1
Continue repeating round BC1, decreasing each round with 6 stitches. At a certain point your pouf will start to look like this. Then continue even further till you have an opening of about 10cm.
Stuffing the pouf
When you have an opening of about 10cm stuff your pouf. This is a lot of work and needs to be done with care. Be sure to spread the stuffing evenly and compact it really well. When you think you can’t possibly stuff any more in there, stuff some more. It is the only way to make sure that your pouf is sturdy enough to sit on.
Close by repeating round BC1
Again, continue repeating round BC1, decreasing each round with 6 stitches until there are 6 stitches left. Close this last part with a thread and needle. Take real good care to close it good and tight. With all the stuffing in there it is going to be hard work, trust me. Work away your last yarn tail.
And then you are all done! A tip for later; you will notice that as you use your pouf the filling becomes more compact, which in turn can lead to dents in your pouf. If the dents are too deep, cut open the last 4 or 5 rounds on the bottom of your pouf, stuff more filling in and pay extra attention to filling up the dents. Close your pouf again by working the last few rounds of the pattern with new yarn. This should fix the problem.
This pouf is a serious part of my home decor. My boys use it for everything from sitting on when watching TV to using it as a bat to hit each other with. Boys will be boys…. Nonetheless, it is a great project to use up scrap yarn and I really like how it came out. Feel free to share your hand-made stripey pouf on my Facebook page or tag me into one of your posts on Facebook or Instagram.
With love,
Esther
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