Brioche Stitch: Basic Decreases (bsk2p + bk3tog)
Working decreases in Brioche Stitch can be daunting, but it’s actually quite simple once you know how! We use a method that creates a clean right or left leaning decrease, while maintaining the stitch pattern of brioche. Here’s a video tutorial for a clear breakdown of each decrease…
Below is a step-by-step photo tutorial of each decrease, along with some helpful notes to keep in mind!
For assistance with more Brioche Stitch techniques, visit our Brioche Stitch: One-Color Brioche + Fixing Mistakes Tutorial and our Brioche Stitch: Two-Color Brioche + Fixing Mistakes Tutorial!
Notes
Decreasing Two Stitches At A Time
When working basic decreases in Brioche Stitch, you will always decrease two stitches at a time in order to preserve the rib pattern.
Counting Stitches
When counting stitches in Brioche Stitch, yarnovers are not included in the stitch count; they are paired with a knit stitch (or purl stitch when working in the round), and the knit/yarnover or purl/yarnover pair is counted as a single stitch.
The stitch pattern will produce a very pronounced rib; count only the purl and knit columns when counting stitches.
Abbreviations
Left Leaning Brioche Decrease
bsk2p [brioche slip knit 2 pass]: Slip 1 brioche stitch with its paired yarn over knitwise, k2tog (the next purl stitch with the following knit stitch and its paired yarn over), pass the slip stitch and its paired yarn over together over and off the right needle. [2 stitches decreased]
Right Leaning Brioche Decrease
bk3tog [brioche knit 3 together]: K2tog (the next knit stitch with its paired yarn over and the following purl stitch), slip the resulting stitch back to the left needle, pass the following stitch (a knit stitch and its paired yarn over) over the first stitch on the left needle and off the left needle, move the resulting stitch back to the right needle. [2 stitches decreased]
Left Leaning Brioche Decrease: bsk2p
To make a left leaning decrease in brioche stitch, work up to the marked knit column that you’d like to slant; it will have a yarn over paired with it. Slip this stitch and its yarn over together knitwise, k2tog (a purl stitch followed by a knit stitch and its paired yarn over), pass the slipped stitch and its yarn over together over and off the right needle. (2 stitches decreased)
And now, for the above instructions, broken down step-by-step…
Work up to the marked knit column that you’d like to slant; it will have a yarn over paired with it.
Slip this stitch and its yarn over together knitwise…
bring the yarn over the right needle to the back of your work…
k2tog (a purl stitch followed by a knit stitch and its paired yarn over)…
insert the tip of your left needle into the slipped stitch and its yarn over from back to front…
pass the slipped stitch and its yarn over together over and off the right needle.
You have decreased 2 stitches.
Right Leaning Decrease: bk3tog
To make a right leaning decrease in brioche stitch, work up to the knit column before the marked knit column you’d like to slant; it will have a yarn over paired with it. K2tog (the next knit stitch with its paired yarn over, and the following purl stitch), slip the resulting stitch back to the left needle, pass the following stitch (a knit stitch and its paired yarn over) over the first stitch on the left needle and off the left needle, move the resulting stitch back to the right needle. (2 stitches decreased)
And now, for the above instructions, broken down step-by-step…
Work up to the knit column before the marked column you’d like to slant; it will have a yarn over paired with it.
K2tog (the next knit stitch with its paired yarn over, and the following purl stitch)…
slip the resulting stitch back to the left needle…
insert the right needle purlwise into the following stitch (a knit stitch and its paired yarn over)…
pass the following stitch (a knit stitch and its paired yarn over) over the first stitch on the left needle and off the left needle…
move the resulting stitch back to the right needle. You have decreased 2 stitches.
Give It A Try
Our Brioche Vest is pictured above (and below), featuring basic left-leaning and right-leaning brioche decreases.
Hello Laura,
Thank you for this tutorial and the Brioche Vest pattern.
Somewhere along the line a long while ago, someone said it was either difficult or confusing, so I never tried it. That stops right here, right now! So, thank you again.
I searched for a Brioche increase but did not find one.
I knit for an especially large busted young lady, which means making lots of increases. I KNOW she will love your Brioche Vest, so I’d like to be prepared for the challenge.
Any information you may share will be greatly appreciated.
Thank you for your time and attention to my query.
MJ
Hi MJ.
You are very welcome! I am so glad you’re been converted to a lover of Brioche.
Sadly, right now we do not have a brioche increase tutorial.
If you are loving brioche though… you should check out this site (link below), it’s a wealth of information.
http://www.briochestitch.com/
http://www.briochestitch.com/archives/onecolorbrioche/basic-increases
Let me know if you have any questions!
Thanks for writing in (and apologies on the delayed response to your comment!!!).
Laura
muy bien solo que necesito las cosas en español y tutoriales, gracias
Hello, Oliguzman!
Thank you for writing in! Unfortunately, none of us is competent enough in Spanish to make translated videos, sorry!
Best wishes,
Kumeko
There are a few videos that have NO voice – one learns by watching the way the person is knitting.
Makes the videos more international.
But how I wish more languages were my expertise. English is tough enough for me. 😉
Hello and Thank you.
I have sons and grandsons and the brioche stitch is one I have always wanted to do but found too frightening to attempt.
Like one of your other pupils, I had been told it was a stitch for the professionals only. I can knit aran, fair isle, pictures (Thomas the tank engine etc) but Lace and Brioche scared the life out of me.
Thanks to you I have given Brioche a try, it’s fantastic, if you don’t drop a stitch, then life gets even more interesting! You learn a whole new language, a knitters frustration language, ‘Oh dear and why did I start doing this’ and words similar to that.
Once again thank you for your tuition. When I have finished the garment I will only have lace to master. ummm summer is coming – eventually.
B 🙂
Hi Barbara,
Thank you so much for your kind words! You message has made our day!
Best,
Cassy
Thank you for this beautiful pattern. I’m not sure what to do at the shoulders. My back shoulders have about twice as many bound off stitches as my front shoulders. Did I goof? Do I sew them part way down the outside of the armhole of the front? I’m thinking I goofed.
Hi Sharon,
Thanks for writing in! If you are working on the Brioche Vest, you should have seven stitches bound off at each shoulder for both the front and back, so it does sound like something went awry! It is hard to diagnose without seeing your work, but you should have worked each shoulder by binding off two stitches at the beginning of a row twice, then binding off three stitches, so there will be a total of seven stitches bound off for each shoulder which will then be whip stitched together. If you are still having trouble, please feel free to email us a picture at customerservice@purlsoho.com so we can help you!
Best,
Julianna
Can someone plse show me how to increase one stitch at both ends of a brioche row. I have to add another two after 20 rows etc etc on a sleeve.
Thank you
Barbara
Hi Barbara,
Thanks for reaching out! Usually in brioche patterns stitches are added in multiples of two using an increase called a brkyobrk – by adding two stitches at a time, the brioche pattern can continue to be knit without modifications or interruptions. If you are knitting a Purl pattern I would be happy to take a look at the particular pattern to see what kind of increase is used!
Best,
Julianna
So I’m making the Big brioche turtleneck and am at the armhole decreases. The pattern reads slips 1, *bk2tog, repeat from * to last 2 stitches , bk2tog, k1. Is this a mistake or are you decreases all the way across?? That would be a strange bodice. Your tutorial does not show the bk2tog. I am trying to understand where I’m missing out?
Esther Bartels
Hi Esther,
Thanks for reaching out, and I’m happy to look into this for you! Unfortunately, I can’t find this line in the pattern. Can you tell me which page and section you are looking at?
All the best,
Julianna
Hi, Julianna,
Thank you so much for this detailed tutorial! I really appreciate your clear demonstration. I want to ask if bsk2p and BRSSSP yield the same result. I thought they both decrease 2 stitches, so I went with the bsk2p you showed in this video.
*This is what I pasted from another written tutorial. I bought a pattern from that website and I really want to make sure that I didn’t make too big a mistake. Thank you so much!!* https://brooklyntweed.com/pages/brioche-201
[BRSSSP]= Brioche Slip Slip Slip Knit: Slip 1 knitwise (this is a knit stitch + its corresponding YO) from L to R needle, slip another stitch from L to R needle (this is a purl), BRK 1 from L needle, pass the slipped stitches over the stitch just worked. (2 stitches decreased)]
Best,
Kathy
Hi Kathy,
Thanks for reaching out! I am not super familiar with BRSSSP myself, but from the looks of it BRSSSP and bsk2p both decrease 2 stitches at a time so you should be ok in terms of number of stitches decreased per section! The only thing that I would keep in mind is that they may have a bit of a different look from each other overall, but that may be ok depending on the project!
I hope this helps and please let me know if you have any more questions!
Warmly,
Gianna
I am on page 15 starting front right section
Slip 1 Whig, p1, yon , k2tog, *YOS, bk2tog, repeat from *to end
K2tog…. knit together (yarn over+knit and Purl). I don’t know how to do YOS because I am making a Purl stitch
Help
Hi Vandandaigue,
Thanks for reaching out! Which pattern are you working on? You can still work a YOS coming from a purl stitch and it will actually work about the same way! I would recommend checking out our Brioche Stitch: One-Color Brioche + Fixing Mistakes for more information.
I hope this helps, happy knitting!
Gianna
This is my first time knitting brioche, and every time I try to do the right leaning decrease, it ends up decreasing the column before (closest to the edge) instead of the actual column I need to decrease! I work my way up to 2 stitches (counting in brioche), watch the videos, follow the tutorials, and no matter how many times I try (and it’s been over a dozen now), the column to the outside decreases instead. Please, PLEASE help! I’d be happy to include a picture along as well for clarification. It’s so frustrating!
Hi Jessie,
Thanks for writing in! Please send a photo of your work to our customer service team at customerservice@purlsoho.com and they can help figure out what may be happening with the decreases!
Warmly,
Gianna
I’m making a brioche stitch hat in the round and using your decrease tutorial as a guide. How do you get rid of the large gap that results from the left leaning decrease? It’s above the decrease point.
Hi Heather,
Thanks for reaching out, although I’m sorry to hear that you’re experiencing a large gap when working the left-leaning brioche decrease! It’s definitely unexpected to be seeing such a large gap, so if you’d like us to take a look at your work, I’d recommend sending a photo to customerservice@purlsoho.com so we can visualize what’s going on. But in the meantime, you should be able to minimize this gap by distributing the tension across the nearby stitches. To do this, just tug gently on the legs of the neighboring stitches until the excess yarn (from the gap) is distributed more evenly. Hope this helps!
All the best,
Lili