How to knit stacked decreases

A step-by-step tutorial on knitting stacked decreases, plus tips and tricks

Decreasing more than just two or three stitches at the same time seems like a daunting task. However, once you realize that you simply have to knit a double decrease multiple times in a row, the job becomes a lot more manageable. It may involve a lot of slipping back and forth, but the underlying technique of knitting a stacked decrease is barely more difficult than an SSK.

Stacked decreases were popularized, Elizabeth Zimmerman would say “unvented”, around 10 years ago by Xandy Peters and have, albeit slowly, found their way into mainstream knitting ever since. If you combine them with colorwork and stacked increases, you can create some pretty spectacular designs.

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Instructions: How to knit a stacked decrease

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The basic idea behind stacked increases is knitting multiple centered double decreases in a row. This involves a lot of slipping back and forth. It's vital to realize that this is done to rearrange the stitches on your needle so the central stitch always gets passed over your stack as the last stitch.

You can stack however many decreases you like. This sample tutorial decreases 8 stitches, which I typically abbreviate with sDec8

Active Time 5 minutes

Total Time 5 minutes

Materials

• Any yarn works. I am using the Schachenmayr Catania Grande in this tutorial

Tools

• It's easier with relatively sharp needles. I am using the Knitter's Pride Dreamz here because they work well on camera.

Instructions

1. (optional): Place a stitch marker before the first stitch you want to decrease. This makes it easier to remember where you need to stop decreasing.
   
2. Knit two stitches as normal.
   Note: If you want to decrease more or fewer stitches than 8, you'd have to adjust this. The formula is the number of your decreases minus 4, divided by 2. E.g. 10 stitches = (10-4) ÷ 2 = 3 st; or 6 stitches = = (6-4) ÷ 2 = 1 st
   
3. Slip three stitches knitwise with yarn in back. This will rearrange their order to ensure that the center stitch of your decrease stack ends up laying on top.
   
   
4. Knit two stitches together (k2tog).
   
5. Pass the three slipped stitches on your right needle over the stitch remaining from your k2tog. If that's too difficult, you can also pass them over one at a time. Essentially, this concludes a quadruple decrease that will serve as a base of your stack.
   
   
6. Slip back two stitches from the right needle over to the left needle point-to-point/purlwise with yarn in back.
   
7. Slip the same two stitches back to the right needle knitwise with yarn in back. Again, this is to change their order.
   
   
8. Knit one stitch.
   
9. Pass the two slipped stitches over the stitch you've just knitted.
   
10. Slip two stitches from the right needle back to the left needle point-to-point with yarn in back.
    
11. Slip the same stitches back to the right needle knitwise with yarn in back.
    
12. Knit one stitch.
    
13. Pass the last two stitches before the stitch marker from step one over the stitch you've just knitted. You can remove the stitch marker.
    
14. This finishes the stacked decrease. If you need to decrease more stitches, repeat steps 10-13 until there are no more stitches before your stitch marker besides the decrease stack
    
    

Basically, a stacked decrease is nothing but repeatedly knitting a centered double decrease (CDD). Once you realize this, you can actually adjust the pattern according to your preferences and the needs of your pattern. So, you don’t have to start with a quadruple decrease. Instead, you can also achieve the same sDec8 in the following way:

• Step 1: k3
• Step 2: knit a CDD
• Step 3: SL2p wyib (slip 2 purlwise with yarn in back)
• Step 5: knit a CDD
• Step 6: SL2p wyib
• Step 7: knit a CDD
• Step 8: SL2p wyib
• Step 9: knit a CDD

(or shorter: k3, CDD, [sl2p, CDD] 3 times)

This will create a more gradual decrease line that doesn’t start with a prounounced “knob”. However, it will also make the fabric bulge out a bit more. Essentially, you are adding one more stack, and this will show. For some patterns, this could be exactly what you need, while for any pattern that needs to lay flat (when combined with stacked increases), it might not always be the best choice.

Once you’ve understood the general principle, nothing will prevent you from creating left- or right-leaning variations. You could start with a normal k3tog on the far left, and then slip back three to stack another k3tog, etc. The same would work for a left-leaning double decrease. This really is a fun technique to toy around with. And since it can create sharp turns/bulges in a fabric, there are actually a lot of interesting applications for softies and little toys.

Anyway, that’s how to knit stacked decreases. Comment below if you still have any questions