Wonderland Yarns Colorburst Blanket Knitting Pattern

Wonderland Yarns Colorburst Blanket

Project Overview

The Colorburst Blanket is a vibrant knitted throw designed by Stephanie Shiman and published by frabjous fibers. This downloadable knitting pattern creates a 46-inch circular blanket using a striking striped colorwork technique. The design celebrates color through strategic yarn changes, allowing crafters to arrange hues in rainbow order or create custom mixed-stripe effects based on personal preference.

What Is Being Made

This pattern produces a finished blanket measuring 46 inches across, making it an ideal size for a cozy throw or lap blanket. The circular construction creates a balanced, symmetrical design that radiates from the center outward, with color changes creating distinct horizontal stripes throughout the piece.

Yarn and Materials

Yarn: Wonderland Yarns "So Fond of Rainbows" in the "March Hare" colorway, a worsted weight yarn made from 100% superwash merino. The pattern requires 20 one-ounce skeins totaling 920 yards. Alternatively, crafters may substitute four Mini Skein Packs of their choice to achieve similar yardage and color variety.

Needles and Notions: US size 10 double-point needles and circular needles (or appropriate size to achieve desired gauge and fabric hand). The pattern notes that a long set of circular needles or multiple needle sets will be necessary as the blanket expands during construction. Stitch markers are optional but recommended for tracking segments.

Gauge and Finished Measurements

The pattern specifies a gauge of 13.5 stitches and 20 rows over 4 inches in stockinette stitch. The designer notes that while gauge can be approximate, variations may affect the overall finished size of the blanket. The completed blanket measures 46 inches across.

Knitting Techniques

The Colorburst Blanket employs several key knitting techniques to achieve its finished design:

• Worked in the Round: The blanket begins with a small center cast-on and expands outward using circular knitting methods, creating a seamless, symmetrical construction from center to edge.
• Striping: Color changes are integrated throughout the pattern, with crafters switching yarns strategically to create horizontal stripes. The pattern allows flexibility in color arrangement—stripes can follow a rainbow progression or be mixed randomly based on crafter preference. The first colors chosen will be most prominent, while the final three colors are used for single rows only.
• Jogless Jogs: The pattern recommends using the jogless jog technique to hide and minimize the visibility of color changes where rounds meet, creating cleaner transitions between stripe colors.
• Increasing Stitches: The blanket grows through strategic increases worked across rounds, expanding from the initial 10 cast-on stitches to accommodate the 46-inch finished width.

Stitches and Abbreviations

The pattern uses fundamental knitting stitches and abbreviations including:

• K: Knit stitch
• P: Purl stitch
• K2tog: Knit two stitches together (a right-leaning decrease)
• CDD: Central double decrease (slip 2 stitches together as if to knit, knit one, pass slipped stitches over)
• CO: Cast on
• BO: Bind off
• yo: Yarn over (an eyelet increase that creates decorative holes)

Construction Method

The blanket begins on double-point needles with a small center cast-on of 10 stitches, which are divided across the needles and joined to begin working in the round. The pattern includes an alternate starting method using a crochet hook to chain stitches and pick them up with knitting needles. As the blanket expands with each round, crafters transition from double-point needles to progressively larger circular needles to accommodate the increasing stitch count. The setup rounds establish the foundation with knit rounds and strategic yarn-over increases that begin the blanket's growth pattern.

Color and Design Flexibility

A distinctive feature of the Colorburst Blanket is its flexibility in color usage. Crafters are encouraged to use the 20 skeins in any arrangement—whether following the rainbow progression suggested by the "So Fond