Every rounded figure has to get smaller somewhere. On a ball it happens in the second half: the stitch count falls round by round until only six remain and the piece can be closed. The way you make each decrease decides whether the last rounds look like smooth fabric or like a ring of small holes.
The standard decrease
The standard single crochet two together, written sc2tog, is worked like this:
- Insert the hook in the next stitch and pull up a loop. Two loops are on the hook.
- Insert the hook in the following stitch and pull up a loop. Three loops are on the hook.
- Yarn over and pull through all three loops.
It works, and it is fine for flat pieces, hats, blankets and anything that will not be stuffed. In amigurumi it has a known weakness. The decrease gathers two stitches into one by pulling on the back loops as well as the front, and it leaves a small gap at the base of the new stitch. With stuffing behind it, the gap shows, and a row of decreases in every second or third stitch leaves a line of dots you can see from across the room.
The invisible decrease
The invisible decrease, abbreviated inv dec, only works through the front loops of the next two stitches:
- Insert the hook through the front loop only of the next stitch, from the outside of the piece toward the inside. Leave the back loop alone.
- Without yarning over, insert the hook through the front loop only of the stitch after it, in the same direction. Three loops are now on the hook: the working loop and one from each stitch.
- Yarn over and pull through the two front loops only. Two loops remain on the hook.
- Yarn over and pull through both to finish the stitch.
The result is one stitch where two were, and the back loops are left lying flat inside the piece. Because nothing pulls the stitches apart, the fabric stays closed and the decrease sits almost where a regular stitch would be.
Gaps at the start of a decrease round
Most figures have a spot where several decreases come together, such as the top of the head. Decreases that line up in a column make a visible seam. To spread them out, offset the start of each decrease round by one or two stitches from the round below. A pattern written as (sc 4, dec) x6 has decreases that land five stitches apart; the next round, (sc 3, dec) x6, moves the decreases slightly. The figure ends up with six very small, evenly spaced creases that blend in, rather than a ridge.
When the standard decrease is fine
- Pieces that will not be stuffed or that hide their wrong side, such as a flat hat.
- Thick, fuzzy or dark yarn, where the texture hides any gap.
- Cases where the pattern counts the decrease as two stitches and you are following a chart that shows a specific angle.
- Shaping in garments and blankets, where a diagonal lean can be intentional.
In a blanket, the standard decrease can be preferable, because the slight pull forms a neat slope that follows the edge.
Tips for working the front loops
The front loop is the strand of the V that faces you on the outside of the piece when you work in a spiral with the right side out. Pull each loop up firmly so the new stitch stays the same height as its neighbours. A common problem is a decrease that sits low, because the loops were not pulled up far enough; lift each loop to the usual height.
If you are having trouble finding the front loops, use a smaller hook for the decrease rounds only. Finer hooks slip into the loops more easily, and since the rounds are short the change of size does not show.
Counting decreases
Each decrease takes two stitches and makes one, so a round that ends with a count in brackets, for example 24, is reached by subtracting the decreases from the round before. A round of 30 with six decreases becomes 24. If your count is off by one at the end of a decrease round, look for a decrease worked into a single stitch, or a stitch that was skipped. A marker at the start of the round, and a count at the end of each round, catches the error before it is buried.
Finding it in the databases
The stitch database lists both the standard and the invisible decrease so you can compare them, and the ball calculator shows exactly where decreases fall in each round for a sphere at your gauge.