How to Decrease in Crochet: Mastering the Art of Shaping Your Projects

Yarn slips through fingers, loops form and disappear, and suddenly that rectangular piece of fabric you've been working on needs to become something more—a sleeve that tapers, a hat that crowns perfectly, or perhaps the gentle curve of an amigurumi creature's head. This is where decreasing enters the picture, transforming flat crochet into three-dimensional art.

I remember the first time I attempted to decrease stitches. My grandmother's pattern called for something cryptic like "sc2tog" and I sat there, hook in hand, utterly bewildered. The resulting lopsided mess taught me that decreasing isn't just about making fewer stitches—it's about understanding the architecture of crochet itself.

The Philosophy Behind Shrinking Your Work

When you decrease in crochet, you're essentially merging stitches together, creating a controlled collapse that shapes your fabric. Unlike knitting, where decreases can lean left or right with mathematical precision, crochet decreases have their own personality. They're bolder, more structural, and honestly, a bit less forgiving if you mess them up.

The beauty lies in how decreasing transforms the very nature of your project. Each decrease is a small decision that accumulates into something larger—much like how a sculptor removes clay rather than adding it. You're not just following a pattern; you're engineering fabric behavior.

Single Crochet Decrease: Your Gateway Drug

Let's start with the single crochet decrease, or as pattern writers love to abbreviate it, sc2tog (single crochet two together). This is your bread and butter, the decrease you'll use more than any other.

Here's how it actually works: Insert your hook into the first stitch, yarn over, pull through (you now have two loops on your hook). Instead of completing this stitch like normal, you dive into the next stitch, yarn over again, pull through. Now you've got three loops dancing on your hook. Yarn over once more and pull through all three loops in one satisfying motion.

What you've done is merged two stitches into one without creating that ugly gap that haunts beginners' projects. The key is maintaining consistent tension—too tight and your fabric puckers, too loose and you get holes.

I've noticed that right-handed crocheters tend to pull tighter on decreases, while lefties often go looser. No idea why, but after teaching dozens of people, the pattern holds true.

Double Crochet Decreases and Their Temperamental Nature

Double crochet decreases (dc2tog) follow a similar principle but with more drama. You're working with taller stitches, which means more opportunities for things to go sideways—literally.

Start your first double crochet as normal: yarn over, insert hook, yarn over, pull through, yarn over, pull through two loops. Stop right there. You should have two loops on your hook. Now repeat the process in the next stitch until you have three loops on your hook. One final yarn over and pull through all three loops.

The trick with double crochet decreases is that they create a more noticeable lean. This can work to your advantage when shaping garments, but it can also make your decreases look drunk if you're not paying attention to placement.

The Invisible Decrease: Amigurumi's Secret Weapon

Now, if you're making stuffed animals or any rounded object, you need to know about the invisible decrease. This technique is like the ninja of the decrease world—it leaves almost no trace.

Instead of going under both loops of your stitches, you only go under the front loops. Insert your hook under the front loop of the first stitch, then under the front loop of the next stitch. Yarn over and pull through both front loops, then complete your single crochet as normal.

Why does this work so well? By using only the front loops, you're creating less bulk at the decrease point. The back loops kind of fold behind, creating a smoother surface. It's particularly brilliant for amigurumi because it prevents those dimples that make your cute octopus look like it has cellulite.

Strategic Decrease Placement

Here's where things get interesting—and where most patterns fail to explain the why behind their instructions. Decrease placement isn't arbitrary; it's strategic fabric engineering.

For flat pieces that need to narrow evenly (think triangular shawls), you typically decrease at the beginning and end of rows. This creates symmetrical shaping. But here's the thing nobody tells you: decreasing one stitch in from the edge creates a much cleaner line than decreasing right at the edge. That single edge stitch acts as a selvedge, maintaining structure while the decrease does its work.

When working in the round, decrease placement becomes even more critical. Random decreases create a lumpy, uneven surface. But place them in regular intervals—say, every sixth stitch when you need to decrease by six stitches in a round—and you get smooth, predictable shaping.

The Mathematics Nobody Wants to Talk About

I know, I know. You came here to crochet, not do algebra. But understanding the math behind decreasing will revolutionize your crochet game.

If you're decreasing evenly across a round, divide your total stitches by the number of decreases needed. Working with 48 stitches and need to decrease by 8? That's 48 ÷ 8 = 6. So you'll work 4 regular stitches, then decrease, and repeat around. Why 4 regular stitches and not 5? Because the decrease itself counts as working 2 of your 6 stitches together.

This formula breaks down when you're not dealing with numbers that divide evenly, and that's when you need to get creative with spacing. Sometimes you'll work one section with 5 stitches between decreases and another with 4. The key is distributing them as evenly as possible.

Common Decrease Disasters and How to Avoid Them

Let me share some hard-won wisdom from years of frogging (that's ripping out work, for the uninitiated) due to decrease disasters.

The Puckering Problem happens when your decreases are too tight. The fabric bunches up like a bad facelift. Solution? Consciously loosen your tension when decreasing. Your decreased stitch should be the same height as your regular stitches.

The Hole Situation occurs when decreases are too loose or placed poorly. Those gaps are especially noticeable in solid-colored projects. The fix involves maintaining consistent tension and ensuring you're pulling through all loops completely.

The Wonky Edge Effect shows up when you decrease at the very edge of your work. The edge becomes unstable and wavy. Always leave at least one stitch as a buffer between your decrease and the edge of your work.

Advanced Decrease Techniques

Once you've mastered the basics, you can start playing with more complex decrease methods. The centered double decrease (working three stitches together) creates a strong vertical line perfect for the center of V-necks or the crown of hats.

There's also the slip stitch decrease, which is nearly invisible but only works in specific situations. You slip stitch across the stitches you want to eliminate, then continue with your regular pattern. It's brilliant for shoulder shaping but useless for amigurumi.

Some designers have started using what I call "architectural decreases"—strategically placed decreases that create decorative elements rather than just shaping. Think of a decrease line that spirals around a hat or creates a star pattern at the crown. These require planning and usually some charting, but the results can be stunning.

Reading Decrease Instructions in Patterns

Pattern language around decreases can be downright cryptic. Beyond the standard "sc2tog," you might encounter instructions like "decrease evenly across" (the bane of every crocheter's existence) or "maintain pattern while decreasing" (sure, easy for you to say, pattern writer).

When a pattern says "decrease evenly across," use that division formula I mentioned earlier. If it says "maintain pattern while decreasing," you need to figure out how to incorporate the decrease without disrupting the stitch pattern—sometimes this means decreasing in the plain stitches between pattern repeats, other times it means modifying the pattern itself.

The Mindset Shift

Here's something that took me years to understand: decreasing isn't about taking away; it's about transformation. Each decrease changes the trajectory of your fabric, creating possibilities that didn't exist in straight rows.

Once you internalize this, decreasing becomes less of a necessary evil and more of a creative tool. You start seeing opportunities to use decreases decoratively, to create texture, to solve construction problems in elegant ways.

I've seen crocheters use decreases to create faux cables, to add structural integrity to bags, even to create color patterns by decreasing different colored stitches together. The possibilities expand once you stop seeing decreases as merely functional.

Final Thoughts on the Decreasing Journey

Mastering decreases in crochet is like learning to speak a new dialect of a language you already know. The basic vocabulary is there, but the nuances, the subtle inflections—those come with practice and observation.

Don't be discouraged if your first attempts look wonky. Every experienced crocheter has a pile of misshapen hats and lopsided amigurumi hidden somewhere. The difference between a beginner and an expert isn't talent; it's the willingness to frog and try again, to observe what went wrong and adjust.

Pay attention to how different yarns behave when decreased. Cotton shows every flaw but creates crisp decreases. Wool is forgiving but can felt if you overwork it. Acrylic... well, acrylic does whatever acrylic wants to do, which is why we have such a love-hate relationship with it.

Remember that patterns are suggestions, not commandments. If a decrease placement isn't working for your gauge or yarn, adjust it. The crochet police won't come for you. Trust your hands, trust your eyes, and most importantly, trust the process of learning through doing.

The next time you pick up your hook and face a decrease instruction, remember: you're not just following directions. You're participating in an ancient tradition of fabric manipulation, one stitch at a time.

Authoritative Sources:

Basford, Emma. The Crochet Stitch Bible: The Essential Illustrated Reference. David & Charles, 2021.

Eckman, Edie. The Crochet Answer Book: Solutions to Every Problem You'll Ever Face. Storey Publishing, 2015.

Omdahl, Kristin. Crochet So Fine: Exquisite Designs with Fine Yarns. Interweave Press, 2010.

Righetti, Maggie. Crocheting in Plain English: The Only Book Any Crocheter Will Ever Need. St. Martin's Griffin, 2008.

Silverman, Sharon Hernes. Crochet Pillows with Tunisian and Traditional Techniques. Stackpole Books, 2011.