Prismatic Spray by Mandy Bee

Prismatic Spray

Knitting
May 2018
DK (11 wpi) ?
25 stitches and 38 rows = 4 inches
in 3x3 Ribbing
US 6 - 4.0 mm
US 4 - 3.5 mm
185 - 260 yards (169 - 238 m)
Adult S, Adult M, Adult L
English
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Imagine yourself in a strange land, an elf to your left and your best halfling buddy to your right. You come across an owlbear — it’s kinda cute but you can tell it means to do some major damage based on the aggressive growl coming from its direction. Before you can even think about turning around to walk the other way, it lunges for your party. As an awesome knitting wizard, you cast the first thing that comes to mind — Prismatic Spray! Eight strands of yarn blast from your hand, each a different color! You love this spell for the sheer surprise of it all. You never know which strand is going to hit! The indigo strand wraps around the owlbear, restraining it and allowing your party to run the other way!

Some of the coolest spells in Dungeons & Dragons are the those of the ‘prismatic’ type. They’re all rainbows and randomness. You know what else is all rainbows and randomness? Awesome, hand-dyed variegated or speckled yarn!

Inspired by Prismatic Spray, I paired this amazing, hand-dyed wool with a pattern of lacy rainbows, knit up into a sweet, slouchy hat that can be worn any time of the year.

Prismatic Spray starts with 3x3 ribbing, followed by one round of increases. The bulk of the hat is a 6-stitch lace repeat going around. The crown is decreased, then sewn up.

SIZE
Sample shown in Adult M on a 20.25” / 51.5cm head. To find the appropriate size for you, take the measurement of your head and multiply it by .75 for a tighter fit or .85 for a looser fit. Pick the size below nearest that number.
Adult S (Adult M, Adult L)
Ribbing Circ.: 15.5 (17.25, 19.25)“ / 39.4 (43.8, 48.9)cm
Length: 9.75 (11.25, 11.25)” / 24.8 (28.6, 28.6)cm

GAUGE
In Lace Chart (Pg 3), in the round, lightly blocked
24 sts x 27 rounds = 4” / 10cm
In Lace Chart (Pg 3), in the round, unblocked
27 sts x 33 rounds = 4” / 10cm
In 3x3 ribbing, in the round, unblocked
25 sts x 38 rounds = 4” / 10cm

MATERIALS
Needles and notions

  • US 6 / 4mm 16” / 40cm circular needles or size to obtain gauge
  • US 4 / 3.5mm 16” / 40cm circular needles or two sizes down from the needle size used to get gauge (to be used for ribbing)
  • Tapestry needle
  • 1 unique stitch marker
  • 17 (19, 21) optional stitch markers to mark off repeats

Yarn
Lake Knit Yarns ‘Beach DK’ (100% Superwash New Zealand Polwarth Wool, 246yds / 225m per 100g skein); 1 skein; sample uses color “Fairy Garden.”

For substitutions, I recommend a DK-weight wool in speckled, solid, or semi-solid colors. I used 185yds / 169m of the skein on my project (in Adult M Size).

Techniques

  • Knit, Purl in the Round

  • Long Tail Cast On

  • Knit Increases (yo, m1)

  • Knit Decreases (k2tog)

  • Knit through back loop (ktbl)