Decreasing in filet crochet is incredibly simple. You either simply make the row shorter or start the row with slip stitches, and this works whether you’re decreasing on top of solid blocks or spaces.

To decrease at the beginning of the row, simply slip stitch in the number of stitches necessary. In a 4-dc mesh, you would be making a multiple of 3 + 1 sl sts. The last stitch you sl st in should be a dc (one of the outer stitches of a block). It will also be the st you make your turning chain in (counts as 1 dc)

To decrease at the end of the row, make the last block and simply turn and start the next row. It’s really that easy.

If you’re working freehand or writing your own pattern, increasing and decreasing is a great way to make interesting shapes in the overall fabric–not just the pictures you’re making with your open and solid meshes.

If you need any further clarification, be sure to leave a comment.

This entry was posted on Saturday, May 19th, 2012 at 12:00 AM by Candace and is filed under Tutorials and Help. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can skip to the end and leave a response. Pinging is currently not allowed.