Ombre yarns create a sophisticated tone by gradually changing the shading of one main color from light to dark or dark to light. While the fiber artist can create his or her own designs by laying out the hues of a single main color, several manufacturers have created yarns with this gradual shading that allow you to get the effect without the cutting and joining. This is an attractive feature of the self-striping yarns, but the ombre yarns stick with one main color. Without realizing I have been creating pieces with the ombre effect for years. My favorites are the whites to greys to dark grey or black. Sweet Rolls by Premier yarns offers several color combinations. I love to use this yarn for my mismatched fingerless gloves pictured below. The rolls are 100% acrylic and contain about 245 yarnds. Scarfie by Lion Brand is a large loose skein that mixes color with shades of grey and black. The resulting project is dramatic and cozy. There is enough yarn to complete an entire scarf. The fiber content is 80% acrylic and 20% wool. For my last post for 2017, I have been working on projects using the Red Heart Super Ombre. This is a worsted weight yarn (4) that I crochet with size H or I hook. While this yarn is not as soft as the other yarns, it is quite economical. For this article I have tried a denim blue combo, a skein that went from whites to dark greys, a coral shaded skein, and another with peach to rust.. So far my favorite is the denim blue like tones.To soften the yarn I will be hand-washing the garments in shampoo and soaking them in hair conditioner before gently washing and drying in the washing machine and dryer. I am always challenged to finish a skein without leaving small bits and pieces. I am proud to say that I used every bit of the grey ombre yarn, down to the last inch. I started with the Andie scarf that is crocheted the long way. The basic design is two rows of double crochet followed by a row with open spaces. My finished scarf measured 56 inches x 8 inches. (https://megmadewithlove.com/blog-2/2017/12/7/free-crochet-pattern-for-the-andie-scarf) I had enough to make a pair of mismatched crocheted gloves. Usually I use an H hook to make these gloves. This time I experimented with a J hook. I adjusted the numbers,and the gloves worked up well. However, I still like the H hook best. With the last bit, I crocheted the face of a owl animal hat. The rust to light coral poncho evolved from two panels. I ended up using the same row sequence as I had on the scarf. I crocheted two panels and stitched them together. Then I crocheted a border and finished with a crocheted ribbing at the collar bone.The matching hat will make a cozy appealing outfit for a 3-4 year old. The generous skein is so large that I still had enough left to make a pair of child's fingerless gloves.The pattern includes directions for toddler, child, and men. Please note that I altered the directions for the toddler as I felt that the shape was too large for most toddlers that I know. The designer made a wider glove for a toddler than the child. Instead, I took the narrower child number of stitches and the directions for the length of the toddler. The pattern is easy to execute and makes attractive gloves for the littlest hands. (http://two-cs.blogspot.com/2013/03/simple-fingerless-gloves-for-whole.html) I dedicated the pink to coral shaded skein to making a cap sleeved cardigan sized to fit an infant. I followed the pattern on You Tube, from WoolyWondersCrochet, but was unable to find a set of written directions. The piece pictured below would fit a 3 month old infant. Two rows of a star stitch band add interest. Another You Tube video (also by WoolyWonderCrochet) explains "How to crochet a chunky star stitch cardigan." This pattern is made entirely of star stitches. After completing the infant cardigan, there was enough yarn left to make a puppet and decorative accents for a stuffed animals. Now that I have practiced the star stitch, I am eager to make a piece large enough to fit my granddaughter for spring. My favorite project with this Super Saver Ombre yarn is a 5 button denim crocheted cardigan with flower buttons. The 2T size will fit my granddaughter for next winter. I have been searching for this type of cardigan pattern for a while, but most of the free patterns for crocheted cardigans come in small infant sizes. The piece made up easily, and I like the proportions. Since the yarn was in an ombre denim, I made the buttonholes gender neutral rather than just girls. If the piece is handed down, the buttons can easily be replaced for a boy. I know that I will crochet another sweater with this pattern, though not necessarily in ombre tones. (https://allfreecrochet.com/Sweaters-and-Ponchos/Fun-Time-Cardigan-Red-Heart-Yarns) Have you tried any new yarns recently? Which is your favorite? What were you inspired to make?
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