ssk — Slip, slip, knit (Abbreviation)

ssk stands for "slip, slip, knit" — a left-leaning single decrease, the mirror image of k2tog. Worked by slipping two stitches knitwise, one at a time, from the left needle to the right, then inserting the left needle into the front of both slipped stitches and knitting them together as one.

How to work it

Slip the next stitch knitwise (insert the right needle as if to knit, but don't work it — just move it to the right needle). Slip the following stitch the same way. Insert the left needle tip through the front of both slipped stitches at once, from left to right, and knit them together.

The mistake that makes it lean the wrong way

Slipping either stitch purlwise instead of knitwise is the single most common ssk error — it twists the stitches, and the resulting decrease leans right instead of the intended left, defeating the whole point of pairing it with k2tog for symmetrical shaping. Always slip both stitches knitwise for a standard ssk, even though "slip knitwise" feels counterintuitive when you're not actually working the stitch.

Why the left lean matters

Used alone, ssk works fine regardless of direction. Paired with k2tog on the opposite side of a symmetrical shaping line — a raglan sleeve, a V-neck — ssk's left lean and k2tog's right lean make both sides mirror each other visually, which is the entire reason patterns specify one on each side rather than using the same decrease throughout.

Related abbreviations

• k2tog — leans the opposite direction, the usual pairing for symmetrical shaping
• sk2p — reduces three stitches to one instead of two, closing with the same pass-over motion
• CDD — a three-to-one decrease that stays centered rather than picking a side

FAQ

Is ssk interchangeable with a knit-2-together-through-back-loop (k2tog tbl)? They're closely related and some knitters use k2tog tbl as a substitute, but ssk is generally considered to lie flatter and look cleaner, since twisting through the back loop (tbl) can distort the stitch slightly more than ssk's slip-and-knit approach.

Is ssk worked any differently in circular knitting than in flat rows? Yes — the slip-slip-knit mechanic doesn't change based on flat versus circular construction; only the overall shaping context (where the decrease falls relative to markers) differs.