40 Indigo Invitational Faders Who Have Earned Special Recognition (and a Little Something)
After nearly a month of voting and judging, the winners of Year Five of the Indigo Invitational have been awarded their prizes. Tens of thousands of dollars worth of rugged gear is now working its way to the twenty-five showcase winners.
After the dust had settled, there were 40 prizes from the competition’s sponsoring brands and retailers left over. Each year, the competition uses these prizes to recognise faders who distinguished themselves with either their fades or their conduct during the year.
This is the competition’s opportunity to take a second look at the field and to make sure that faders and pairs that might have been passed over by the community and the judges receive their just deserts. We hope you’ll join us in celebrating not just the Top 10 faders this year but also the spot prize winners below.
Ry T. Spear Memorial Prize
Ane Kvinge – @androfades
We lost a valued member of our community in 2024. Ry T. Spear was riding his motorcycle late at night when he was struck and killed by a careless driver. We established a special prize in his honour, using this prize to recognise exemplary personal style.
This year’s winner of the Ry T. Spear Memorial Prize is Sweden’s Ane Kvinge, whose hard-nosed style and Ghost Black SOSOs caught our eyes very early in the competition. We discussed this with Ry T. Spear’s partner, April Hanley, and she was thrilled with the choice.
Ane’s getting a Cloth & Cut Portland Fatigue Shirt, which we know will fit right into her killer wardrobe.
Indigo Spirit Award – ROW Conference
Maria Saha – @pistachiopony
We use this prize to recognise faders who bring a spirit of warmth and camaraderie into the community, and Maria has done this in spades all year.
From her home base in New York, she’s encouraged and cheered on her fellow faders while fading her Gustins, exemplifying the kind of care and kindness that makes the community such a warm and inviting place for newcomers and veterans alike.
We’re giving her two prizes: a chain-stitch embroidered Y5 anchor patch from Thread Tripper and a $100 gift card from hometown favourites Self Edge.
Indigo Spirit Award – SEA Conference
Leo Anthony Franco – @leoanthonyf
A recommendation from Mifflin Mabalot, who led our SEA Conference Top 50 selection team: Leo has been an absolute bedrock member of this community for a few years now, and he’s helping spread the good word in the Philippines, where the community is small but intensely passionate.
Leo did great work in his Flat Head jeans this year, so we’re sending Leo a pair of Nudies, which we hope we’ll see him wearing in next year’s competition.
Made to Fade / Founder’s Favourite
Hugo Crawford – @hugocrawf
Hugo made his own pair for the competition, and he didn’t go easy on it. Crossing the line with frayed cuffs and hard-earned, top-to-bottom fades, the pair cruised into the Top 50, but the softer contrasts didn’t catch many eyes during the community vote.
We’re doing everything we can to put things right with this exceptional pair with two great prizes: a hand-forged iron bottle opener in the shape of a pair of jeans from the champion of our Re(Pair) category, Alex Scheibner, and a pair of heavy selvedge jeans from WarpWeft.
Tied for 11th / 6th Place
We hoped we would have enough prizes to recognise all of the Top 20 faders, but, as you’ll see below, there were just too many exceptional faders who cried out for a moment in the spotlight.
Still, we’ve managed to pull aside some great prizes for the faders who very nearly cracked the Top 10 in our ROW and SEA conferences and the Top 5 in our Re(Pair) category.
Look through the gallery to see all the fades that we’ve recognised with the following prizes:
Double O Seven
Travis Napoleon – @indigo_trap
Travis’s competitor number, ROW007, seemed an exceptionally good fit. Travis looks as much at home in his hard-worn Strike Golds as James Bond does in a tuxedo. Top 20 fades, but podium-level style and swagger.
He’s getting one of the most jaw-dropping prizes we’ve got: a full chain-stitch embroidered back piece from our friend at Thread Tripper. He can use this however he likes, but we’d sure love to see this one added to a Redline Rally piece (either this year or next year’s).
Home On the Range
Cade Schmutz – @selvage_cowboys
We can’t let the year close without recognising our resident true-blue cowboys, Cade and Valerie Schmutz. Cade finished just shy of the Top 10 this year in his Piger Works 21BSU, and, with his hard-riding lifestyle, we know he’ll be a contender every year that he joins us.
We’ve pulled out something rather special for him: a piece of his choice from A New Medium, the brand-new in-house brand brought to you by the people at Iron Shop Provisions. What can one of these brilliant pieces look like after a full year in the saddle? We hope we’ll find out next year.
Wunderkid
Travis Gagnon – @brandun_the_barber
The last cut we made when selecting this year’s Top 50, Travis (just 12 years old) deserves extra-special recognition for his hard work this year fading his pair of Naked & Famous Denim, overseen by his fade-loving father.
We’ve given him a $100 gift certificate from Withered Fig, and we hope he’ll use it as a down payment on a perfect pair for Y6. On this trajectory, he’ll be cracking the Top 10 before his sixteenth birthday.
Naked Titans
Brenton Henry and John Iaculli – @40ozdenim and @johnidugan
Two faders threw themselves at a nearly impossible task this year. They took on Naked & Famous Denim’s landmark 40 oz. selvedge. We hoped that at least one of these pairs would cross the line at the end of the year, so we were very excited to see them both make it across the line.
Brenton’s pair was the more faded of the two, so we’re going to give him his choice of pieces from Naked & Famous Denim. For his titanic effort, John will be getting a custom pair from Baird Jeans (which will likely feel like sweatpants after a year in unforgiving 40 oz. selvedge).
The Gnarly One
Chanaphat Mouumphan – @chanaphatb
Chanaphat’s extreme fades (some of the wildest we’ve ever seen in the competition) tend to split judges and panellists down the middle. This meant that they finished the year tied for 51st place, but we just can’t let this Thai farmer go home empty-handed.
We’re sending him home with a pair of heavyweights from our friends at Sage. We hope we’ll see this pair on the starting line when we kick off Year Six in April.
Big Adventures
Michael Caputo – @aloha_bigmike
Mike from Hawaii impressed us early on with his Brave Star Mojaves, but even more with his lifestyle, which seemed to embody everything the selvedge scene is about. Wildly stylish and adventurous, Mike has all the makings of a serious lifestyle fader. We hope we’ll see him back next year.
We’re connecting with him oneculture, who’ll be making a special pair for him. The San Francisco/Hawaii connection might produce winning results in Year Six.
Couples that Fade Together…
Clement and Emmanuelle – @clemmach and @emanwell_santos
If you’ve been following these two at all this year, you know that this prize is well deserved. Always in their jeans (Onis for him, Naked & Famous Denim for her), they captured a slice of their shared lives, showcasing not just jeans well worn but also a life well lived.
We’re hooking them up with a nice little package from Hen’s Teeth Italy, including two tees and two bandanas of their choice. It seems a fitting prize for a couple that has a shared passion for well-made heritage goods.
Female Fader of the Year
Allison Owczarczak – @skullymcnature
This was the one fader we wanted to break the rules for this year. We kept things anonymous during the public voting round, but we wanted to highlight the fact that Allison was the only female fader to crack the Top 50. With her exceptional Brave Star Frankenstein fades, she very nearly cracked the Top 20.
We’re going to connect Allison with the only female fader to ever stand on our podium, Ella. She’ll craft a silver belt loop cuff for Allison to attach to her Y5 pair, turning the pair into a trophy of sorts.
Allison is also an early favourite to end the year on the podium of Brave Star’s own fade competition, the Dye Hard Championship, running alongside the Indigo Invitational.
Family Values
The Twoeys and the Lindbergs – @raw_2e_faded and @darkbluecrew
There were three or four families of faders this year, and we’re always excited to see folks bringing their kids into the selvedge scene. They’re giving the young ones a taste of the fading life, which is sure to leave an indelible mark.
We’re giving the Twoeys and the Lindbergs (who even got the dog in on the action!) a pair of $100 Self Edge gift certificates that they can use to get their kids something special for a job well done.
Shutterbug
Wilsson Kohnert – @photoduell
Wilsson kept his shutter finger extremely active this year, taking exceptionally good photographs that documented the journey he shared with his good friend Stefan Gutsche. Their fades (Wilsson in Naked & Famous Denim, Stefan in The Unbranded Brand) were great, and the pictures showed Wilsson’s and Stefan’s every crease and comb in breathtaking detail.
We’re connecting Wilsson with our good friends at Cultizm, who’ll be giving him a pair of his choosing for the next Invitational. We’re looking forward to seeing more of his photos next year.
Super Subs
Savoeun Loeung – @voeun.loeung
Savoeun’s final submissions for his Iron Heart 777s were far and away the best-looking photographs we saw at the end of the competition. The fades were just shy of that Top 50 quality we’re looking for, but the photos very nearly pulled him into the finals.
We’re giving Savoeun a pair of Nudies, and we hope we’ll see much more of his new pair (and his excellent photographs) next year.
Equatorial Vintage
Bin Abdul – @peakfr3ak
Vintage fades are like a breath of fresh air in the Southeast Asian scene, where contrast fades are pursued with an almost religious ferocity. Bin Abdul turned in these absolutely brilliant Levi’s this year, and we’re happy to recognise him for going against the grain.
He’s won a pair of lightweight selvedge from our friends at Sage.
Rising Sun
Satoru Honda – @ketudekawheel195
Each year, Samurai picks their favourite pair out of the field (limiting their selection to the pairs that haven’t already won a showcase). This year’s Samurai pick is Satoru Honda, whose brilliantly balanced faded Samurai S5100VX earned him a spot in the Top 50 and a very special prize from Samurai.
They’ll be sending him a Samurai Cotton Project tee and a grab bag full of Samurai goodies and keepsakes.
King in the North
Derek Lamarche – @canuckfades
Faders north of the 49th parallel (like this year’s ROW winner here in Norway) need to take advantage of every ray of sunshine and every opportunity to fling themselves into the great wide open to get the indigo really moving.
Derek did this in spades this year with his Copper Weft SOSOs, and, though he didn’t crack the Top 10, we’re making sure he’s not going home empty-handed. We’re connecting him with our friends at Canada’s Lost & Found, who’ll be sending Derek a pair of his choice from their world-class selection.
Repairs of the Year
Every year, we see faders go to great lengths to keep their pairs from disintegrating underneath them. Repairs and embellishments add character to the pairs, and we always try to recognise a few of these at the end of the year.
Scroll through the gallery below to see some of our favourite repairs and embellishments from Year Five.
Crafter Extraordinaire
Kat Cotten – @teraseraph
Kat is already a legend in the scene, and she brings her painstakingly crafted masterpieces into the competition to put them to the test. Her pairs are immediately recognisable, and we’re incredibly privileged to have her with us every year.
We’ve pulled something aside for Kat: an Orginale bag from our friends at Obbi Good Label. We hope it serves her well.
The Miner’s Special
Dec Martin – @denimforestry
Sometimes the best route to success is the one that walks the familiar road. Dec took a pair of Levi’s 501s and gave them the rough treatment this year. They look like something you’d pull out of a pile of rubble at the bottom of a mine shaft.
For this classic treatment, we’re giving Dec a classic combo: a pair of jeans of his choice and a tee from our good friends at KATO.
Worked to Death
Sigmund Horrig – @workin_denim
Sigmund, who builds log cabins the old-fashioned way here in Norway, had his pair of Naked & Famous Denim Dirty Fade Selvedge in the sweet spot when we were about halfway through the competition. Since then, he’s battered them down to the white.
It’s an impressive achievement, and he’s definitely due for a new pair. He’ll get his choice of pairs from our very good friends at Raw Denim Norway.
The Deadstock Duo
Chase Ivany and Patrick Lanini – @chase.in.denim and @caffiend_dkc
We’re closing the year with two pairs that got new life in the competition. Chase wore a pair of GWG Rider Kings that rolled off the assembly line in Edmonton in the 1970s. Patrick brought a pair of Iron Hearts produced in 2005, before the brand changed their arcuates to the ones we’re all familiar with.
We’re giving each of them a pair of Nudies and a vigorous salute for bringing these priceless denim artefacts into the competition.
That’s a Wrap on Y5
That’s all, folks. It’s been a wild year from start to finish. We’re already hard at work on Year Six, and we hope you can join us. All you need is a brand new pair of selvedge jeans and a willingness to put them to the ultimate test by wearing them as much as you can in one year.
The best place to start looking for a new pair is our Selvedge Masterlist. We hope we’ll see you all on the starting line on April 1st.
Understand the Details That Matter
Hi, it’s Thomas, founder of Denimhunters. Every Friday, I send out my newsletter that goes deeper into denim—how jeans are made, why details matter, and how to make better choices without the noise.
