Ask the Yarn Doctors: What are the best increases and decreases?

When you are deciding on which increases and decreases to use, it often depends where and on what sort of project you are using them.

The simplest increase is to make a stitch by putting the yarn over your needle before working your next stitch – we’ve all done it by mistake when learning. The problem is that this leaves a hole in you work so it is really only suitable when you want to make a decorative set of holes, ie when working a lace pattern.

A common increase is the kfb – knitting into the front and back of a stitch. This doesn’t leave any holes but it will leave a small horizontal bar of yarn on the front of your work which is that pleasing when you are working in stocking stitch.

The neatest method is the make 1 where you work into the bar of yarn before your next stitch. There are two ways to do this. 1)Insert the left needle tip under the bar of yarn from front to back and then knit into the back of the loop created. 2) Insert the needle tip from back to front and knit it normally. If you try these, you’ll see that the base of the increase leans differently. So if you are doing a project with increases at both sides do version 1 on one side and version 2 on the other.

The neatest decreases are k2tog which slopes to the right and ssk which slopes left. To work the ssk, slip one stitch knitwise, slip a second stitch knitwise, slip them back onto the left needle together and knit together through the back of the loop.

Watch our video about increases and decreases here.

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