Beautiful Mirrored Decreases for Raglan Lines and Other Types of Tapered Shaping

There is a lovely left-slanting decrease that forms a line of purls, each nestled in a knit stitch. They look (at least, to me 🙂 ) like a set of tulip flowers framed by two leaves. 

The official name for this decrease is SPPO (Slip, Purl, Pass the slipped stitch Over), but Tulip Decrease sounds so much more pleasant. A lovely decrease should have a lovely name, so let’s leave SPPO for the abbreviation glossaries.

I mentioned this decrease in the tutorial about Five Ways to Knit an SSK-like Decrease. Then I’ve got a question about a right-slanting decrease that would mirror this “tulip” decrease. After a bit of fiddling with yarn and needles, I did find a way to make a right-slanting decrease that looks like a set of tulips. 

When used together, these decreases will work great for making beautiful raglan lines, shaping of a sleeve cap, sides of a sweater or pretty much any kind of tapered shaping.

Let’s see how we can make these decreases in just a few simple steps. 

Click here to watch every step described below in a video tutorial.

LEFT-SLANTING DECREASE

1. Work to the spot where you need to make a decrease. Then bring the yarn to the back of the work and slip one stitch knitwise (insert the tip of the right needle into the first stitch on the left needle from left to right).

2. Purl the next stitch.

3. Insert the left needle into the slipped stitch from left to right, and pass this stitch over the knit stitch and off the right needle.

In the wrong side row, purl the stitch that resulted from this decrease. If you are working in the round, knit it in the next round.

When these decreases are stacked on top of each other, they form a lovely line like this one:

RIGHT-SLANTING DECREASE

1. Work to one stitch before the spot where you need to make a decrease. Then purl 1 stitch.

2. Bring the working yarn to the back of the work and slip the purled stitch to the left needle. To do that, insert the tip of the left needle from left to right into the stitch, then slide the right needle out of the stitch.

3. Insert the tip of the right needle from right to left into the second stitch from the tip of the left needle (the stitch that is next to the purled stitch). Pass this stitch over the purled stitch and off the left needle. Watch how to do it in this part of the video tutorial.

4. Slip the purled stitch to the right needle. To do that, insert the tip of the right needle from right to left into the purled stitch and slide the left needle out of the stitch.

Just as we did when we made a left-slanting decrease, purl the stitch that resulted from this decrease in the next wrong side row, or knit it in the next round.

The line created by this decrease is identical to the line created by the left-slanting decrease.

Here they are – two mirrored decreases that will turn any decreasing line into a delicate finishing detail. Happy knitting 🙂

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If you enjoyed this tutorial,
here’s something else you might find helpful:

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