One of the things I’m enjoying most about my scrappy projects is choosing the next colour as I go.

With both my Cruiser Cardigan and Log Cabin Blanket, a new section is another chance to try something. Sometimes it’s a colour I’ve been looking forward to using; sometimes it’s a combination I would never have planned.

But that freedom can bring a few questions too. How long should a stripe be? When is it time for a quieter colour? And what do you do when something doesn’t feel quite right?

I don’t think there’s one formula that answers all of those questions. A little rhythm can help a scrappy project feel connected, without taking away the pleasure of choosing.

You don’t need to decide every colour change

A loose palette can be enough to begin. You don’t have to know how every scrap will fit into the finished piece.

Try looking at the section you’ve just made and choosing what you’d enjoy seeing beside it. You might want a little contrast, a softer transition or a familiar colour returning.

If choosing feels difficult, narrow it down. Place two or three yarns beside the fabric rather than searching through the whole basket.

You’re choosing the next part, not solving the entire project.

Let your sections vary

It’s easy to feel that every colour should have the same amount of space. That can be lovely if you enjoy regular stripes, but it isn’t the only way.

A narrow stripe might give a bright colour just enough room to catch your eye. A broader section of a quieter shade can give the busier yarns around it somewhere to settle.

In crochet, you might explore this through the colours within a motif, or the way you arrange motifs before joining them.

There’s no ideal number of rows per colour. Think about the size of the section, how much yarn you have and how much of that colour you’d like to see.

For garments, follow the pattern’s shaping and construction rather than letting a colour sequence dictate them. In a short-row section, the same number of rows won’t necessarily create an even stripe across the whole piece—and that irregularity can become part of the scrappy look.

Bring familiar colours back

Repeating a few colours is a simple way to connect different parts of a project.

You don’t need a formal sequence. A green that appeared near the beginning might return later beside completely different neighbours.

The colours around it will change how it looks, but its return gives the eye something familiar.

If you have a larger stash skein, it can be useful for this. You might repeat it between other colours, or save some for an edging, joining or finishing.

If it’s needed for bands, cuffs or a border, set that amount aside first.

When a combination doesn’t feel right

Before pulling anything out, put the project down and look at it from a little farther away.

A colour that feels very strong close up might make more sense in the whole piece. It can also help to look again in daylight or take a photograph.

Ask what is bothering you. Is the colour too bright for the amount of space it has? Are several neighbouring shades so similar in depth that they merge? Or is this simply an unfamiliar combination?

You could try a smaller amount of that colour next time, repeat it elsewhere, or place a lighter, darker or quieter shade beside it in a small sample.

Another colour won’t always fix a section you dislike, though. If it still bothers you, changing it is perfectly reasonable. Scrappy making doesn’t mean you have to keep every decision.

Step back and look at the whole

It’s easy to concentrate on the last few rows and forget everything that came before them.

Every so often, spread your project out. With a garment, look at as much of the shape as you can; with a blanket, let your eye travel across the whole piece.

Notice where colours repeat, where the brighter moments sit and where the fabric feels quieter.

You’re not checking whether every section matches. You’re looking for what you enjoy—and perhaps getting an idea of what you’d like to add next.

Find a rhythm you enjoy making

For my cardigan, I initially imagined I’d want a carefully structured colour plan. Once I started, choosing colours in the same way as my blanket felt much more enjoyable.

That doesn’t mean everyone needs to work that way.

You might prefer a repeating stripe width, a limited group of colours or one main shade between the scraps. You might enjoy choosing freely for a blanket but want more structure in something you’ll wear.

The useful amount of planning is the amount that helps you enjoy the making.

A scrappy project can be playful without being completely random, and planned without becoming predictable.

Here’s a little cheat sheet to keep nearby when you’re choosing what comes next.