Tag Archives: faux fade wrap

CAL Check-In: Faux Fade Wrap – Progress Report
Janine Myska and her crochet Faux Fade Wrap

Hi Crochet-Alongers! How are you progressing on your Faux Fade Wrap, our current WeCrochet CAL? If you’d like to join (or just get caught up on all the CAL details), go here to find the Faux Fade Wrap Crochet Along information.

By now, you should have already chosen your fade colors, made a swatch, and have made some progress on your shawl. Let’s check in on a few people to see how they are doing.

Zoey’s Faux Fade Shawl Progress

Freddy kreuger inspired yarn color palette
Zoey’s color palette is Freddy Kreuger-inspired

If you don’t remember from our last check-in post, Zoey is our digital graphic designer (responsible for all our pretty downloadable calendar wallpapers, WeCrochet emails, and other goodies), and she’s a beginner crocheter who decided to jump in and join the Faux Fade Shawl CAL, with a Freddy Kreuger-inspired yarn color palette.

So how is Zoey doing on her shawl now? She’s making great progress. “I literally never thought I was going to make it past row 1’s turn,” she said. But guess what, she’s made it to her second color already!

Zoey's Faux fade shawl progress

Notice that Zoey is using a locking stitch marker to keep track of which side of the shawl needs the increase stitches. She is also counting her rows with a Kacha Kacha Crochet Counter, which helps her keep track without stress.

Producer Sarah’s Progress

Producer Sarah holds up her finished Faux Fade Shawl, which is a gradient that goes from dark brown to tan to blue to green to yellow to pink to purple.

And BAM! Producer Sarah finished her wrap last weekend, and WOW does it look amazing! All those random single balls of Palette she had really came together to create a beautiful final product. “I’m kinda proud,” she admitted.

Join the Next CAL!

A top-down view of a hand holding the edge of a crocheted temperature blanket in warm colors.

In case you missed it, we have announced our next Crochet Along, and it’s a big one! We’re taking all of 2021 to make a Temperature Blanket. Feel free to join in on the fun.

Now it’s your turn. Share your Crochet Along progress photos on social media and tag us (@wecrochetofficial on Instagram), and use the hashtag #WeCrochetCAL and #FauxFadeCAL.


CAL Check-In: Faux Fade Wrap Crochet Along: Progress Photos, Non-Wool Yarn Ideas, and Color Palettes
Janine models her Faux Fade Crochet wrap available from crochet.com

Hi Crochet-Alongers! How are you progressing on your Faux Fade Wrap, our current WeCrochet CAL? If you’d like to join (or just get caught up on all the CAL details), go here to find the Faux Fade Wrap Crochet Along information.

By now, you should have already chosen your fade colors and made a swatch, and possibly already started your shawl! Let’s check in on a few people to see how they are doing.

Zoey’s Faux Fade Shawl

Zoey is our digital graphic designer (responsible for all our pretty downloadable calendar wallpapers, WeCrochet emails, and other goodies), and she’s a beginner crocheter who decided to jump in and join the Faux Fade Shawl CAL.

First, she had to choose her color palette! She was thinking a dark red & black palette, (inspired by Freddy Kreuger’s sweater!), so I helped her figure out what colors to use.

A Red and Olive-striped Freddy Kreuger sweater paired with five balls of Palette yarn in dark gray, gray twist, dark red, tomato red, and olive.

She settled on these Palette Fingering yarn colors: Black, Asphalt Heather, Asphalt Twist, Garnet Heather, Tomato, and Larch Heather.

CAL TIP: We also decided that even though this pattern is simple, it is really helpful to have a stitch marker to mark which side you need to do the increases on, since you only increase on one side of the shawl.

That’s all the progress we have to report so far on Zoey’s shawl, but check back in later for more.

Producer Sarah’s Faux Fade Wrap

Six balls of Palette yarn in mustard, rouge, tan, brown, sage green, and navy, along with a small triangular crochet swatch and a hook.

Producer Sarah is also working on the Faux Fade Wrap. Her project page on Ravelry says: “I don’t have the exact yarns that the pattern calls for so I’m not sure I’ll do the fade effect. I just have single cakes of Palette. Might just do stripes.”

So far, it’s looking pretty cool, Producer Sarah!

WeCrochet Ravelry Group CAL WIPs:

A pink fade crochet swatch atop a box of bright orange, red, and pink mini skeins of Palette yarn.

Skeeleyma on Ravelry has a Palette Minis Sampler Box to play with! She started with this pink fade, but decided to frog and go with a more Autumnal palette, and it’s looking NICE (check out more pics on her Ravelry project page):

A Faux Fade shawl crochet swatch that fades from brown to orange to brighter orangey-pink.

Then SheThatKnits on Ravelry has a really pretty color palette started, in a steely blue-gray array:

Five balls of Palette yarn in blue-grays.

Non-Wool Yarn Alternatives?

A blog comment box that says: "Would be really nice if you could provide at least one wool-free yarn in the kit builder. Some of us are truly allergic, and others are vegan, so having an option would provide more opportunities for people to join the CAL. Also, because I don't have the pattern or issue 4 of WeCrochet (yet), I can't look for my own yarn because I don't know how much to buy."

Heather replies: "Thanks for this feedback. Great points! I will pass this along to the team. As for yardage, you need 1848 total yards. You can also buy the pattern by itself here (link)."

We got a comment from SusieKrochets, who made a great point — what about those who don’t want to use wool yarn?

“Would be really nice if you could provide at least one wool-free yarn in the kit builder. Some of us are truly allergic, and others are vegan, so having an option would provide more opportunities for people to join the CAL. Also, because I don’t have the pattern or issue 4 of WeCrochet (yet), I can’t look for my own yarn because I don’t know how much to buy.”

I did pass this feedback along to the team, as something for us to think about in future CALs and kits! So what about people who want to use a non-wool yarn for this project?

Because this is made of single crochet stitches, I bet the drape won’t be adversely affected by switching fibers, so you can definitely use a non-wool fingering weight yarn of your choice for this. (Results will vary when you switch up a fiber, but that’s all part of the joy of crochet, dontcha think?). You might want to play around with hook sizes and swatching to make sure the shawl results in a drape that you like.

First though, let’s figure out the yarn QUANTITIES you need for this shawl. The Faux Fade Shawl pattern calls for 1848 total yards of fingering weight yarn

Using Palette, you need:
1 ball lightest color (231 yards)
1 ball light color (231 yards)
2 balls medium color (462 yards)
2 balls darker color (462 yards)
2 ball darkest color (462yards)
= 8 balls total

So you can use those numbers to work out what you will need when you substitute yarn for this pattern.

Here are some non-wool yarn ideas for this CAL:

Comfy Fingering

Twenty different colors of Comfy Fingering yarn.

With a large selection of colors, this yarn is a perfect cotton option for the Faux Fade Shawl. The blend of Pima cotton and acrylic fibers in Comfy Fingering make it easy to crochet, and it’s completely washable and easy-care.

Because this yarn comes in at slightly less yardage per ball of Palette (218 versus Palette’s 231 yards), you might want to buy extra balls of yarn, or just throw a single extra in for one of the colors (which should cover the difference, although it might affect where the color fades take place on the shawl.)

Here are a couple Comfy Fingering palettes you could try:

A color palette consisting of five balls of yarn in the following colors: Black, Blackberry, Lilac, Hollyberry, Whisker (gray)

A dark and deep Comfy Fingering palette.

A color palette consisting of five balls of yarn in the following colors: White, Whisker (gray), Black, Sea Foam (aqua), Peapod (bright green)

A light and bright Comfy Fingering palette.

Lindy Chain

Eight balls of Lindy Chain yarn in various colors.

Superbly lightweight and endlessly versatile, Lindy Chain is a chainette yarn that is just the thing for a warm weather version of the Faux Fade Wrap. It’s a linen-cotton blend. Available in 20 stunning shades that range from rich hues to soft pastels, this is a good plant-based fiber to try for this project.

This yarn has 180 yards per ball so you will definitely need to pick up an extra ball or two to make the full 1848 yards.

Here’s a color palette to try in Lindy Chain:

A color palette consisting of five balls of yarn in the following colors: Rouge (dark pink), Blush (light pink), Gosling (light gray), Ash (dark gray), and Black.

Deep pink fading to gray and then black is a romantic choice for the Faux Fade Wrap.

Alpaca Cloud Fingering

Four hanks of Alpaca Cloud Fingering Yarn

Finally, Alpaca Cloud Fingering IS an animal-based yarn (100% Superfine Alpaca), but it’s non-wool, so if a wool allergy is an issue, this yarn should do the trick. It is super-soft, has a lovely drape, and a nice array of colors to choose from.

Each hank has 200 yards, so pick up an extra hank to make sure you get the full 1848 yards.

This yarn line has a very lovely array of neutrals, so you can go with an understated neutral color palette:

A color palette consisting of five balls of yarn in the following colors: White, Cream, Tan, Light Gray, Dark Gray.

But this yarn line also has a lot of vibrant colors, so you can create a rainbow fade:

A color palette consisting of five balls of yarn in the following colors: Red, Gold-Orange, Yellow, Green, Blue.

I’m a color geek, so I could sit here all day generating potential color palettes for your Faux Fade Wraps!

A picture of Heather's face with a rainbow halo. Text that says: Absolutely Nobody: ....
Heather: HERE are some PALETTES for your CROCHET PROJECTS!

Absolutely Nobody: ….
Heather: HERE are some PALETTES for your CROCHET PROJECTS!

How is YOUR Faux Fade Wrap project going?

Now it’s your turn! How is your Faux Fade Wrap project going? What colors did you pick for your project? Are you finding the pattern simple, difficult, relaxing, or stressful? Let me know in the comments, or on social media with the hashtag #WeCrochetCAL.

If you haven’t joined yet but you would like to, there’s still time. Find out all the details for the CAL in our Faux Fade Wrap CAL Announcement post.


JOIN OUR CROCHET ALONG: Faux Fade Wrap (September-November 2020)
A woman holds a multicolored crocheted shawl that fades from dark brown to yellow to tan.

You are cordially invited to join us in our new Crochet Along Challenge, featuring the Faux Fade Wrap pattern by Janine Myska of Knits ‘n Knots.

Buy the pattern here: Faux Fade Wrap Pattern OR get it in WeCrochet Magazine Issue 4!

About the Faux Fade Wrap

A woman wears a multicolored brown-toned crocheted shawl wrapped around her neck.

This multi-colored faded wrap is made from a simple 2-row repeat, and uses just single crochet! The only technique you need to know is is how to work the color changes, but we promise – once you see how easy it is to do one row, it’s a breeze.

Get the Faux Fade Wrap Pattern.

Choose your Yarn:

We put together some Faux Fade Wrap Kits for you that include the pattern as well as the yarn you need to make it (along with a nice discount!). Here are the colors Janine pre-selected for us, inspired by the seasons of the year:

A woman holds a crocheted shawl that fades from dark brown to yellow to light brown. Along the right side are color suggestions for a spring color palette: pale pink, dusty rose, hot pink, light yellow, and gold.
The Spring Fade Pattern Kit features pinks and yellows.
A woman holds a crocheted shawl that fades from dark brown to yellow to light brown. Along the right side are color suggestions for a Summer color palette: peach, gold, coral, red-orange, and burgundy.
The Summer Fade Pattern Kit features oranges, coral, and reds.
A woman holds a crocheted shawl that fades from dark brown to yellow to light brown. Along the right side are color suggestions for an autumn color palette: tan, gold, brass, copper, and warm espresso brown.
The Autumn Fade Pattern Kit features yellows, copper, and browns.
A woman holds a crocheted shawl that fades from dark brown to yellow to light brown. Along the right side are color suggestions for a winter color palette: silver, gunmetal, cornflower, medium blue, and navy.
The Winter Fade Pattern Kit features grays and blues.

If none of these pattern kits are your thing, you can easily select your own colors (or other yarns) by using our Faux Fade Wrap Kit Builder (located at the bottom of the pattern page):

A screen shot of the Faux Fade Wrap Kit Builder

Just choose your yarn, and drag and drop the yarn colors you want into the kit builder and hit the purple “Add to Cart” button to instantly place the perfect amount of yarn into your cart.

How to Join the Crochet Along:

To participate in the Faux Fade Wrap Crochet Along, join and post here:

CAL Timeline:

A photo of the WeCrochet CAL Timeline - same as text below

September 1: Pick your Palette (or yarn), and order from crochet.com!

September 8: Join the WeCrochet Ravelry group and follow along in the Faux Fade Wrap CAL discussion.

September 15: Read through the pattern (in WeCrochet Magazine Issue 4) or buy it here: Faux Fade Wrap Pattern.

September 22: Make a swatch (and block it… righhhht??)

September 29: Work sections 1-4.

October 12: Work Sections 5-7.

October 26: Work Section 8.

November 10: Work Section 9.

November 24: Block the wrap and post pictures on social with #FauxFadeCAL.

We hope you’ll join us!