Dorret Conway

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I often get queries like this one - “how do I increase 3 stitches at the end of a row”?

Increasing and decreasing seems to create such a stumbling block for knitters - and yet if you can’t do your increases and decreases your knitting career will be limited to endless scarves. You can find lots of resources on the internet telling you how to do these techniques. What isn’t very well covered is when and why to use one over the other.

Knitting is very unique in that you are creating the fabric, the texture and pattern and the shape of the item all in one. There is quite a lot going on but it isn’t as complicated as you might think providing you take the time to understand the basic concepts and not so much what you are doing at a particular point in the pattern, but why you are doing it. So let’s break it down as it really is quite simple.

Increasing and decreasing describes what happens to the number of stitches you have on the needle – adding to or reducing them. But in terms of your project, you can be either creating the shape or the fit of whatever it is you are making, or producing the stitch pattern.

Increasing & Decreasing as a Shaping Technique

There is just 1 commonly used decreasing technique and 2 increasing techniques for shaping:

simple decrease: knit 2 stitches together, commonly abbreviated as k2tog

2 becomes 1

simple increase: knit twice into the stitch – first into the front and then into the back of the stitch. This can be used part way along a row or at the end of a row. You will see this abbreviated or described in various ways: increase in next stitch, knit twice in next stitch, knit into front and back of next stitch, but it is all the same technique

1 becomes 2.

“Make 1” Increase: you make a new stitch from the strand of yarn between the stitches on the left and right needle. You create a loop and either then knit into the fron or the back of the loop yu have made. Knitting into the front of the loop will leave a space/hole in the finished fabric. This may be what want you want to achieve if that is part of the pattern. If not, you need to knit into the back of the stitch. ie choose the appropriate method for what you are doing. For shaping, this technique is suitable if you are increasing part-way along the row.

There are of course variations on the basic techniques e.g. doing the increase or decrease in a purl direction; knitting more than 2 stitches together; knit into the front, the back and then the front again.

Dorret’s Top Tips for Increasng:

If you are struggling at this point working out the back from the front of a stitch, all you have to remember is that the needle always goes into the front of the stitch whenever you do a basic knit stitch or a basic purl stitch. Therefore, the first part of the simple increase is nothing new. For the second part, it is nearly impossible to do anything but knit into the back of the stitch to complete the increase. Try it!

Increasing & Decreasing as a Patterning Technique

Increasing and decreasing techniques are also used to create fabric design - particularly in lace patterns. You are constantly changing the number of stitches that you are working with through the sequence of increasing and decreasing, but the overall objective and the final effect is to produce the stitch pattern design.

There are really only 2 patterning techniques – one decrease and one increase technique - everything else is a variation on the basic technique and the stitch pattern will be made up of the sequence and combination of methods (plus the variations on the simple increase and decrease described above:

patterning decrease: decreasing by lifting a stitch that hasn’t been worked over one that has, abbreviated as sl1, k1, psso or super-abbreviated as skpso, 2 becomes 1

patterning increase: increasing by creating an extra loop on the needle (known as an “over”) that is treated as a stitch on the next row – a “Make 1” technique, abbreviated as “yon” or “yo”.

The sequence of increasing and decreasing will be a fundamental part of the stitch pattern so it is unlikely that the pattern will actually refer to each individual increase or decrease. It will just be contained in the string of instructions for the pattern.

If the pattern actually mentions increasing or decreasing as a general rule it probably means you are shaping (see above) not patterning. So my answer to Yvonne who wanted to know how to increase 3 stitches at the end of the row, it’s simple - use the simple increase described above:

increase 3 stitches at the end of the row: Increase by knitting into the front, then the back then the front of the last stitch .

increase 3 stitches at the start of the row:  Increase by knitting into the front and then the back of the first stitch on the needle 3 times. The last stitch will be the newly created stitch each time.

These basic increase and decrease techniques and variations are clearly demonstrated on Knit Knack learn to knit CD ROM with video tutorials for these and many other techniques for you to learn or improve your knitting. If you need help with your knitting, please feel free to write to me at “Ask Dorret” or visit my Knit Clinic for questions and answers to common problems.

Happy Knitting!