Kaleidoscope Sweater

Make a statement with wearable art

This interlocking crochet pattern can be found exclusively in my book, Reversible Crochet Sweaters (US publication date: November 4th, 2025). Grab your copy of the book today through my webshop or anywhere else books are sold!

Check out the pattern on Ravelry to see what others have made and to add your own project page! Don’t forget to tag me @crochethighway and use hashtag #ReversibleCrochetSweaters when posting your work on social media 💕

This post may contain affiliate links that support the content on CrochetHighway.com. All opinions are my own.

The Pattern

The Kaleidoscope Sweater is all about balance, movement, and symmetry. Worked seamlessly in the round, it showcases columns of interlocking tiles that radiate outward from the yoke, creating a mesmerizing effect reminiscent of a real kaleidoscope.

The reversible fabric means both sides are equally striking: one features bold raised shapes, while the other reveals a softer, geometric grid. Subtle short rows shape the neckline so the sweater sits comfortably at the back, while tapered sleeves and faux icord edges add a modern finish. It’s one of those makes that has you pledging to crochet “just one more row” as the day turns into night!

Pair it with jeans for a casual day out or layer it over a flowy dress for a more polished look. And if you can’t get enough of the stitch pattern, the matching Kaleidoscope Beanie and Kaleidoscope Cowl are the perfect next projects to complete the set.

DIFFICULTY

Advanced

MEASUREMENTS

Finished bust circumference: 32 (36, 40, 44, 48) (52, 56, 60, 64) inches or 81 (91, 102, 112, 122) (132, 142, 152, 163) cm

The sizing for this pattern is based on the standard Craft Yarn Council (CYC) measurements.

This top is designed to be worn with 0 to 4 inches (0 to 10 cm) of positive ease around the bust.

All my garment patterns are size-inclusive and are graded for actual bust circumferences of up to at least a 60 inches or 152 cm.

MATERIALS

Yarn
Sport weight

Shown in
Main color (dotted, horizontal lines on the WS): Hobbii Friends Extra Fine Merino (100% Superwash Merino Wool; 180 yds/165 m per 1.75 oz/50 g skein) in color 94 Turquoise
Contrast color (thin, vertical lines on the RS): Hobbii Friends Extra Fine Merino (100% Superwash Merino Wool; 180 yds/165 m per 1.75 oz/50 g skein) in color 02 Off White

Hooks
US G/4.0 mm (main gauge), US F/3.75 mm (secondary gauge), or hook sizes needed to obtain gauge. I’m a tight crocheter, so you may have to go down in hook sizes.

Notions
Yarn needle, scissors, 18 locking stitch markers.

YARDAGE

Main color: 6 (6, 7, 7, 8) (8, 9, 10, 10) skeins of the suggested yarn or 940 (1035, 1160, 1255, 1325) (1430, 1530, 1655, 1790) yds/860 (945, 1060, 1150, 1210) (1310, 1400, 1515, 1635) m

Contrast color: 5 (6, 6, 7, 7) (8, 8, 9, 10) skeins of the suggested yarn or 870 (955, 1070, 1155, 1225) (1320, 1410, 1525, 1650) yds/795 (875, 980, 1055, 1120) (1205, 1290, 1395, 1510) m

These yardages are estimated. Scroll down for the tester lookbook with exact yardages from my testers!

I’d LOVE to see your work, so be sure to tag me @CrochetHighway on Instagram and use the #CrochetHighway hashtag for a chance to be featured on my stories!

Yarn Substitution Ideas

Wondering what other yarns work well for this pattern? Check out this collection of favorites from me and my testers! Each one has already been crocheted and approved by makers who’ve stitched this design before you.

Join my Facebook support Group

I proud myself with writing ultra-detailed patterns for you, so that your crocheting experience is as smooth and seamless as possible. But whenever you have a pattern related question, my Facebook support group is the place to ask. There you can also share your WIPs and brag about your FOs with the community!

Tester lookbook

My patterns would not be so smooth without the input of my team of talented testers. Swipe left & right for more photos of your favorite versions. Want to test my future patterns? Check out how you can become a pattern tester for CrochetHighway!

Note: Most of my patterns receive minor tweaks and updates at various stages during the testing phase to improve flow, readability, and fit of the finished garment. These small changes and updates made to a pattern after the testing phase has ended are generally not reflected in the “tester mods” section of the tester lookbooks, because testers have already submitted their feedback by the time the pattern is updated. Since enough testers reported a tight fit in the upper arm area for the Kaleidoscope Sweater, the pattern was subsequently modified to produce a looser upper arm than what was observed during testing. In other words, you’re working from a pattern that was already updated for a looser fit at the upper arm than what my testers had to work with!

Adinda (Javabel on Ravelry)

Size 2, using 1325 yds of Drops Baby Merino as MC, and 797 yds of Drops Baby Merino as CC
Hook size(s): 3.75 mm
Mods: I added 2 more rnds on the yoke. On the sleeves I omitted the first set of decrease rnds.

Heather (heathershemmings on Ravelry)

Size 3, using 1261 yds of Cotonnio in Aegean Blue as MC, and 1206 yds of Cotonnio in Pistachio Green as CC
Hook size(s): 3.75 mm
Mods: None.

Grec (Grecwoolly on Ravelry)

Size 3, using 1144 yds of Bart & Francis Soft Knit 4Ply as MC, and 1096 yds of Bart & Francis Soft Knit 4Ply as CC
Hook size(s): 4 mm
Mods: I skipped some of the decrease rounds on the sleeves.

Asha (ashapai on Ravelry)

Size 4, using 990 yds of Magic Needles 4Ply Kotton Yarn as MC, and 800 yds of Magic Needles 4Ply Kotton Yarn as CC
Hook size(s): 3.5 mm
Mods: I made shorter sleeves.

Alexandra (LivingSkiesBelle on Ravelry)

Size 7, using 1210 yds of Hobbii Friends Extra Fine Merino as MC, and 1152 yds of Hobbii Friends Extra Fine Merino as CC
Hook size(s): 3 mm
Mods: I added an extra inch of length to the body. I also accidentally added 4 chains bilaterally on the body. Made the body larger by 8 dcs and the sleeve 4 dcs bigger.

Faye (fae1695 on Ravelry)

Size 2, using 930 yds of Ashley’s Crochet Combed Cotton Yarn as MC, and 850 yds of Ashley’s Crochet Combed Cotton Yarn as CC
Hook size(s): 3 mm; 2.75 mm
Mods: None.

Sandrine (Sellen7 on Ravelry)

Size 6, using 1260 yds of Hobbii Friends Extra Fine Merino as MC, and 1080 yds of Hobbii Friends Extra Fine Merino as CC
Hook size(s): 4 mm
Mods: I have shorts arms so I had to stop at row 68 otherwise the sleeves would have been way too long

Alexis (AlexisFabros on Ravelry)

Size 3, using 752 yds of Crocheted by Carisse 12-Ply Fine Cotton as MC, and 730 yds of Crocheted by Carisse 12-Ply Fine Cotton as CC
Hook size(s): 4 mm; 3.75mm
Mods: I added 4 rows in the yoke to make it deeper for armholes. I made a short sleeve version (4 inches from underarm).

Bee (BeesBusyFingers on Ravelry)

Size 6, using 1494 yds of Fibre Fox Luxe Merino DK in Summer Incarnate as MC, and 1371 yds of Fibre Fox Luxe Merino DK in How Far I’ll Go as CC
Hook size(s): 3.5 mm; 3.75 mm
Mods: I added 8 rows to the body section (total 70 rows body). I skipped the first set of decreases (rows 3-4).

Rosxy (NoRuffleByZ on Ravelry)

Size 4, using 1644 yds of Ashley’s Premium Gradient Organic Cotton Retro Vibe as MC, and 1525 yds of Crocheted by Carrise Simply White as CC
Hook size(s): 3.5 mm; 3.75 mm
Mods: None.

Keli (FlourishandYarns on Ravelry)

Size 6, using 1240 yds of Big Twist Panoramic in Smoke as MC, and 1140 yds of Big Twist Panoramic in Pink as CC
Hook size(s): 3 mm; 3.25 mm
Mods: I added 12 rounds of length to the body (+2 inches), which added 84 yds of MC and 84 yds of CC to both total yardages.

Melina (Mimici on Ravelry)

Size 2, using 914 yds of Hobbii Twister Solid as MC, and 940 yds of Hobbii Azalea as CC
Hook size(s): 4 mm; 3.75 mm
Mods: I skipped the four first decreases on the arms as the arm circumference was already tight before the decreases started, although the arm hole was fine when I did the body. Otherwise, I did the exact stitch and row counts as the pattern for my given size to test.

Prachi (autodidactic.crocheter on Instagram)

Size 2, using 763 yds of Lion Brand Truboo Yarn as MC, and 1003 yds of Lion Brand Truboo Yarn and Diy Polyester Thread Yarn as CC
Hook size(s): 3.5 mm; 3.75 mm
Mods: I shortened the sleeve and body length to accommodate my small body frame.

Swathi (Tvishasfashion on Ravelry)

Size 4, using 1260 yds of Ganga Acrowools Warm N Soft as MC, and 960 yds of Ganga Acrowools Warm N Soft as CC
Hook size(s): 3 mm; 3.5 mm
Mods: None.

Nicole (Handmdebyyarnmama on Ravelry)

Size 3, using 1050 yds of Go Homemade Soft Bamboo in Off White as MC, and 946 yds of Lion Brand Mandala String in Country Campagnard as CC
Hook size(s): 4 mm
Mods: None.

Sara (sara.mazzu on Instagram)

Size 5, using 1260 yds of Hobbii Friends Extra Fine Merino as MC, and 1080 yds of Hobbii Friends Extra Fine Merino as CC
Hook size(s): 4 mm; 3.75 mm
Mods: I made 3/4 sleeves instead of full length, and I also had to skip a round of decreases to make them fit nicer around my arms.

Vindhya (VindhyaHegde on Ravelry)

Size 1, using 930 yds of Ganga Acrowools Warm N Soft as MC, and 820 yds of Ganga Acrowools Warm N Soft as CC
Hook size(s): 3 mm; 3.5 mm
Mods: For the sleeves, I’ve done 89-90 dec at the 83-84th row mark, then stopped at the 88th row.

Swarna (Swarnads on Ravelry)

Size 1, using 890 yds of Ganga Acrowools Warm N Soft as MC, and 730 yds of Ganga Acrowools Warm N Soft as CC
Hook size(s): 3.5 mm
Mods: I made only 10.5 inches for the body length instead of 13.5. For the sleeve length I made only 16 inches.

Johanna (HookYarnTinker on Ravelry)

Size 3, using 1100 yds of Crocheted By Carisse 12-Ply Fine Cotton Gradient as MC, and 900 yds of Crocheted By Carisse 12-Ply Fine Cotton Yarn Mix as CC
Hook size(s): 3.5 mm; 4 mm
Mods: I added 4 more rows on the yoke to ensure ease of movement. I made body shorter (50 rows). I made my sleeves 3/4 length.

Shuang (tunasoup88 on Ravelry)

Size 2, using 1100 yds of Gudang Benanghits Cotton Bamboo Blend as MC, and 900 yds of Gudang Benanghits Loose Ply Cotton as CC
Hook size(s): 3.5 mm
Mods: For the sleeves, I skipped the first 2 decreases but I added 2 more decreases towards the cuff.

Thirsty for more? Why not check out some of my recently published crochet patterns and tutorials:

Mattress Stitch Tutorial

Equilibrium Cowl

Equilibrium Beret