Decreasing, Increasing, and Cluster Stitches

To make a more rounded top to the kitchen towel hanger, we'll do some decreasing at the beginning and end of a row.

The previous decreases in the kitchen towel hanger pattern were spaced out across the row. They were the easiest type of decrease -- skip a stitch or two before working the next st -- perfect for a mesh. The effect was more like "gathering" in sewing. The decreases for the next part of the pattern are more solid.

Rather than discuss button holes and decreasing in the same post, I decided to create a separate post on decreasing -- and, while I'm at it, on increasing and also the cluster stitch.

Increasing is easy to do in crocheting. One doesn't have to worry about which way the increase will lean (as one does in knitting). All one needs to do is crochet (single crochet or double crochet or ...) two or more times into the same stitch.

Increasing at the beginning of a row is a little more tricky. When working a dc row, one often starts out the row by doing a ch 3 to substitute for the first dc of the row. (The first 2 chains of the ch 3 serve as the body or post of the st. The last chain serves as the top.) To increase at the beginning of a dc row: ch 3 then dc in the last st of the previous row (instead of the next to last st). This produces a single increase. For a double increase, ch 3 then dc twice (instead of once) in the last st of the previous row.

Decreasing is a little harder to do. But, again one doesn't have to worry about which way the decrease will lean (as one does in knitting). But, I'm going to talk about cluster sts first.

To make a cluster stitch of 3 triple crochet sts (as in the diagram at the right from a booklet from the American Thread Company), start a triple crochet st but do not do the last step. Two loops remain on the hook. Then start another triple crochet st in the same st but do not do the last step. Three loops remain on the hook. Then start a third triple crochet st in the same st but do not do the last step. Four loops remain on the hook. To complete the st, yo (as in the picture) and pull the yarn through all loops. The stitch is complete, and just one loop remains on the hook. The pattern at the right could be written as:

*cs (3 tr), ch 2, skip 2*, repeat * to *

with cs standing for cluster stitch and 3 tr showing that 3 triple crochet sts are combined to form the cs. (But, there are very few standard abbreviations in crocheting or, for that matter, very little in the way of standard terminology.)

NexStitch calls a st like this a popcorn, bobble, or puff and reserves the term cluster st to one that creates a decrease. (The link is to a video of a cluster st.)

Decreases are made as follows: (This time, I'll use an example of decreasing in double crochet. But, "triple" or "single" could be substituted wherever the word "double" appears in the directions.)
-- To double crochet 2 sts together, start a double crochet st but do not do the last step. Two loops remain on the hook. Then start another double crochet st in the next st but do not do the last step. Three loops remain on the hook (as in the picture). To complete the st, yo and pull the yarn through all loops. The stitch is complete, and just one loop remains on the hook.

Here is a video from NexStitch on decreasing.

Some abbreviations:
sc2tog -- single crochet next 2 sts together
tr2tog -- triple crochet next 2 sts together
dc3tog -- double crochet next 3 sts together.
Directions for dc3tog: Start a double crochet st but do not do the last step. Two loops remain on the hook. Start a double crochet st in the next st but do not do the last step. Three loops remain on the hook. Start a double crochet st in the next st but do not do the last step. Four loops remain on the hook . To complete the st, yo and pull the yarn through all loops. The stitch is complete, and just one loop remains on the hook.

To decrease at the beginning of a dc row, ch 2 (instead of 3), then dc in the next to last st of the previous row. The ch 2 is a substitute for the post of the first dc -- in this substitute for a dc2tog.