Ask the Knitters

Dear Knitters,

I think I want to jump on the Find your Fade Shawl bandwagon. I have seen quite a lot of inspiration on Ravelry and Instagram and I've just about given into the craze. This pattern calls for several skeins of yarn and would be one of the more expensive accessory projects I have tackled, so I want to make sure I choose right.

Do "the knitters" think this pattern would be just as nice if choosing 7 skeins of yarn I like that don't necessarily graduate in color from one to the next? I have many skeins I really like together and can definitely find a few to fill the gaps at SSYC, but they don't go from one color story to another. They more-or-less jump from one variegated color to another. Do you get what I am explaining? If so, please put my mind at ease or tell me that I shouldn't do what I'm considering. I don't know a thing about color theory, but I just know what I like and don't want to start down a path that might, in the end, make me grimace at the wildness of it all.

Thanks for any assistance you knitters can provide!

- Fadeless in Charlotte

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Comments

[Beth L]

If I've learned anything from my Noro obsession, it is that an unexpected color change takes something from "meh" to "amazing" pretty quickly.

Pull out the possibilities from your stash and play around with the groupings until something catches your eye. Once you've decided what stash yarns you're using, find a few new ones that fill in the story.

So maybe you ended up with a couple of blues that work well together, and a yellow that just brings something out in them. Stick a neutral white or grey in the middle and you have a spring sky over daffodils.

[Karla Hartzell]

The find your fade pattern on Ravelry has over 1500 projects currently underway that yo can go to to view what other peoples yarn choices look like as they knit them up. Look at the projects Tab and see who else might have done something similar to what you are planning!! I myself have been having trouble visualizing my self chosen yarns and juggling the [placements of them on the schematic chart included with the pattern. But it's all part of the experience! Seize the day!!

[Linsey]

I think the best way to tell if skeins of yarn are going to flow well is to untwist them (scary thought for me since I'm horrible at re-twisting). If you can brave untwisting, line your fav handful of skeins next to each other. If YOU like the look and color combo, then round it out for your total of 7 colors. I've seen examples of Fades that are more color-blocking and some that fade so seamlessly you don't realize there was a color transition. I like both.

[Dorothy]

Having just finished a color block shawl and now having assembled all the colors for my Find Your Fade that will actually fade, I suggest that first, you think about what look you prefer. If you like a color block/contrast look better, go for that. If you want the more "melted" appearance, keep,that in mind as you check yarn colors. By all means try mixing what you have to see if it does unexpected or awesome things that appeal to you. If not, by then you should have a better idea of anything you want to acquire to fill in or achieve another effect. Now that I can see how my colors progress, I realize that I'd have found it easier to choose them by thinking of starting at one end and subtracting color/s to get to the next choice, rather than adding them. I don't know if that's helpful to you, but I would have saved a lot of time and $$ by doing it that way. Good luck!

[Holly Beam]

I'm doing the fade. I really love the colors I choose and I did go from dark,lighter,light, very light, light, darker dark. I used browns, blues and purples. I'm excited to graduate to each new color. I pulled out the colors I loved then just changed until I found the colors I liked. I did make sure each skein was the same weight and fiber content. I didn't use speckled but used variegated skeins. I'm so pleased. Just do what looks good to you. It is well worth the knit! Good luck! I agree with the comments above. I really had fun with it, go for it!

[Donna]

I agree with Beth L. If I ever finish knitting Wonderful Wallabies, I'm going to try one. They look interesting.

[Katie @ Yarn Love]

Knit what you want! Sometimes the colors I think ought not go together at all and that break all the color rules are the best.

I have been trying out 7 fade skeins for the past 2 weeks. The color combo I like best contains black, purple, orange and golden yellow. That's just crazy - so you're definitely not alone!!!

[Thea]

This will probably garner a big "Ugghh!" from many but how about making a small swatch of each yarn you're considering? That way, you'll have a better idea of how the variegated colors will look knitted up. You can also arrange and rearrange the different swatches to see how that changes the look.Finally, take a picture of the various combinations as a reminder and to get a different, more distant, viewpoint.
Good Luck!

[Patty McDonald]

Go with what you like! If you hate it, it will rip out and you can change it. Have fun with it!

[Karen]

You could select all variegated or any amount.... if you lay your yarns next to each other, you can arrange them so that each successive yarn has one/some color(s) in common. Solids/semisolids could be interspersed. You would want to use all warm colors or all cool colors and graduate the color values as you change yarns.... neighboring yarns should be very similar, with more variation from start to finish. I would use non-striping yarns.

[Tricia]

I love sock knitting, and some of my most favorite socks to look at are the scrap socks because they tell a story, the same way scrap quilts tell a story, and all the popular yarn scrap blankets that are knit or crocheted on Ravelry. So I say pick your favorite colors that you love and knit your story.

[Katie]

I think the best things happen when you completely ignore color theory and just go with what you like. I also agree with the knitting swatches suggestion. This project is a big investment of time and money, so you want to make sure you're going to love it.

[Michelle]

Trust your color sense! Put together what you like and go for it. This shawl looks great with the blending of colors but what if it were all solids? What an exciting idea! I think what makes this particular pattern so interesting is all of the possibilities one can create.