BLOG Nº 15The Invisible Decrease

If your amigurumi has little holes and lumps exactly where the head starts to close, the culprit is almost always the decrease. The standard single-crochet-two-together (sc2tog) works, but it pulls the fabric and leaves a small bump on every stitch. The invisible decrease does the same job while staying flat and closed. It is the single technique that makes a plushie look finished instead of homemade-in-a-hurry, and it takes about ten minutes to learn.

This is the Journal’s full tutorial: what the stitch actually does, the five steps, the three mistakes we see in almost every beginner project, and the exact moments where a normal decrease is the better choice.

What the invisible decrease actually does

A normal decrease pulls two full stitches together — both loops of both stitches. That is four loops of yarn squeezed into one, which is why it bulges. The invisible decrease only picks up the front loops of the two stitches. Two loops instead of four, so the top of the fabric stays the same thickness as everywhere else. From the outside you cannot tell where the decrease happened — hence the name.

Because it only uses the front loops, the back loops stay in place and keep the fabric closed. That is why the invisible decrease also helps with stuffing showing through: fewer gaps, less fiberfill peeking out.

The five steps

1. Insert your hook into the front loop only of the next stitch. Do not go under both loops. You should have two loops on the hook (your working loop and the front loop).
2. Insert the hook into the front loop only of the following stitch. Three loops on the hook now.
3. Yarn over and pull through the first two loops (the two front loops). Two loops on the hook.
4. Yarn over and pull through both remaining loops. One loop on the hook. Done — that is one invisible decrease.
5. Keep your tension identical to your normal single crochet. If you tighten on the decrease, it will pucker; if you loosen, you get a small hole.

In pattern shorthand you will see it written as inv dec, invdec, or sometimes just dec with a note at the top of the pattern. Every SageandSilky pattern uses the invisible version unless the instructions say otherwise.

Why we teach it before the magic ring

Most beginner guides start with the magic ring, then work outward. We think the decrease deserves to come first. You can hide an ugly magic ring under a nose or a hat. You cannot hide a lumpy head. The decrease rounds are the rounds people actually see — the crown of a head, the bottom of a body, the tip of an ear. Make those clean and the whole piece reads as professional.

The three mistakes almost everyone makes

1. Grabbing the back loop by accident

When you are working in the round the front loop is the one closest to you, the back loop is the one further away. Beginners often hook under both because that is the motion their hand already knows. Slow down for the first row of decreases and check: two loops picked up, not four.

2. Pulling the yarn tight on the decrease

It feels logical to tighten a decrease — you are closing something, after all. Don’t. Keep the same tension as a regular stitch. The stitch is already smaller by design; extra tightening creates a visible dimple and stiff spots that distort the shape.

3. Decreasing in the same spot every round

If you always put your decreases directly above the previous round’s decreases, you create a visible seam line. Patterns stagger decreases for this reason — (sc 4, inv dec) x6 one round, (sc 2, inv dec, sc 2) x6 the next. Follow the offsets; they are there on purpose.

When NOT to use the invisible decrease

• Flat pieces worked in rows. The invisible decrease is built for working in the round. In flat rows a normal sc2tog is cleaner at the edges.
• Very fluffy or textured yarn. With chenille or eyelash yarn you cannot see the loops well enough to reliably pick the front ones — a standard decrease is safer.
• Tiny pieces with 6 stitches or fewer. At that size any decrease looks the same; use whatever keeps your tension even.

Fixing a piece you already made

You do not have to frog a finished head. If bumps are the problem, run a tapestry needle through the decrease row with a strand of the same yarn and gently pull the loops flat from the inside. If holes are the problem, stuff a little less and close the last round with a drawstring: thread the tail through the front loop of every remaining stitch, pull tight, and weave the end through the middle of the piece. It closes cleaner than trying to crochet a 6-stitch round shut.

Practice project

Make a plain sphere: magic ring of 6, increase to 36 over six rounds, work four rounds even, then decrease back to 6 using only invisible decreases. Compare it to a sphere made with sc2tog. The difference is obvious by round two of the decreases. Once it feels automatic, the decreases in a Charmander head or a Ditto body will not slow you down at all.

Every pattern in the SageandSilky universe is written with the invisible decrease and photographed step by step, so you can check your loops against ours.

START WITH A PATTERN THAT USES IT

Reading the decrease in a pattern

Patterns write decreases in a few different ways and it helps to recognise them at a glance. (sc 4, inv dec) x 6 means: repeat the bracket six times around the round — four single crochets, then one invisible decrease — and you will end the round with six fewer stitches than you started. inv dec around means every stitch pair is decreased, which halves the count and is usually the last round before the drawstring close. A stitch count in brackets at the end of the line, like (30), is your checkpoint: if you finish the round with a different number, the mistake is in that round and nowhere else.

Count stitches at the end of every decrease round for your first three or four projects. It feels slow, but it is far faster than discovering a missed decrease four rounds later. A row counter or a simple tally on paper works; a stitch marker moved up at the start of each round is the most reliable way to know where a round begins in a spiral.

Left-handed makers

Everything above applies unchanged. You still pick up the front loops only — the front loop is the one nearest you regardless of which hand holds the hook. Video tutorials filmed for right-handed crocheters can be mirrored in most players; the SageandSilky step photos show the loops clearly enough that mirroring is rarely necessary.