stitch in each row by knitting a doubled stitch up from the lower row. The resulting piece has one more stitch in each row and each row is in the shape of an inverted V. The column of increases is used to make square sweater yokes. Double Increases - Knit into the back of a stitch without transferring the stitch to the right needle, knit into the back loop of the same stitch, again without transferring the stitch, and then one more time into the front loop. This general concept can also be applied to raised increases or yarn over increases. Unlike all other increases, double decreases typically are centered and have no slant. Finally, a large number of increases in a row is best done by casting on; examples include buttonholes, etc. Increases are typically placed on the right side of a project but there are also purl increases for the wrong side. Role in fabric shaping The typical use for increases and decreases is to taper a flat piece of knitted fabric, e.g., in widening the sleeve of a sweater from the wrist to the biceps. However, increases and decreases can also be used to produce curvature, i.e., to make the knitted fabric cup (positive curvature) or gather (negative curvature); in woven fabrics, this curvature is produced with darts, flares and gussets. A great advantage of knitted fabrics is that they can be shaped nearly invisibly without seams or cutting (as woven fabrics must) with increases, decreases, and/or short rows. Lace patterns also make use of increases by immediately combining them with increases. As a result, the stitch count doesn't change but the knitter can create stunning patterns through the eyelets, bars, and slanting lines these stitches create. See also Sweater design References (2002) Vogue Knitting: The Ultimate Knitting Book, updated ed., Sixth and Spring Books. (1979) Reader's Digest Complete Guide to Needlework, Reader's Digest Association. June Hemmons Hiatt (2012) The Principles of Knitting, Simon and Schuster, pp. 94–97 and 206-216. Shaping