How Do You Hold YOUR Hook?

[Rhane]

Overhanded. My grandma taught me to crochet and she always held hers underhanded. I remember getting mad because she looked so graceful doing it and my hands were too clumsy to do it that way (I was 6). She used to get frustrated at me, though, because I would 'grip' the hook and thread too tightly, causing all sorts of problems.

 

I'm better now, I learned how to relax my grip, but sometimes I get distracted and start strangling my hook again.

[MsSuzKelly]

overhand. I am a lefty.

 

here's a thread you might be interested in reading...

 

http://www.crochetville.org/forum/showthread.php?t=19098

[Selune]

I've never understood how overhand hookers can stand not being able to hold their work level with both hands. I wouldn't be able to crochet with one side hanging off to the right. I need the work in tension to be able to crochet into the stitches.

[Addey]

I've never understood how overhand hookers can stand not being able to hold their work level with both hands. I wouldn't be able to crochet with one side hanging off to the right. I need the work in tension to be able to crochet into the stitches.

 

My work hangs loose on both sides, the only part 'under tension' is about 3 or 4 stitches worth between my hook and the work. I can't understand how underhanders pick up loops and keep them... it's a very far reach and at the wrong angle! (At least in my oh-so-coordinated opinion )

[jenhen]

Mostly overhand, except I hold the hook with my pinky and that finger next to the pinky and my other two fingers--well, sometimes they are on the hook and sometimes they are holding yarn and not on the hook at all.

I can't wrap the yarn around the fingers on my left hand to keep the tension so I just pass the yarn back and forth.

It's probably because I learned to knit English when I was 9 or so. So I'm used to throwing yarn.

That's what I get for teaching myself to crochet.

I hold my pencil "wrong" too but I'm sure that's my mother's fault.

[Mermaiden]

An interesting thing - after seeing this poll, I was crocheting at the doc's office yesterday. One lady who crochets thought it was interesting that I held it overhand, because she holds hers underhand, and most crocheters she knows does too. I told her about our poll and how that was backwards to our results, where most here seem to hold it overhand.

[vonnie]

I hold mind underhand, taught my DGD to hold hers that way too. I will hold overhand if I am doing something extremely thick such as when I make porch doilies and use a Q hook and macramé thread. I to am surprised at the outcome of this poll.....I would have thought it the other way around....

[Addey]

I hold mind underhand, taught my DGD to hold hers that way too. I will hold overhand if I am doing something extremely thick such as when I make porch doilies and use a Q hook and macramé thread. I to am surprised at the outcome of this poll.....I would have thought it the other way around....

 

I too am surprised by the results, I thought I was the only one who held my hook the way I do (overhand). I mean, all the tutorials I see on the web and in books show underhand, although one did say both were equally workable...

[betherann]

I suppose overhanded. I couldn't imagine holding it like a pencil!

[joyfulyarn]

I hold it underhand. I feel goofy if I hold it overhand. Actually, I never knew there was another way to hold the hook until I saw Crochetville.

[misteph]

I do both! I hold it overhand for thread work and underhand for yarn.

 

I didn't realize I held it differently until my DDs learned to crochet. They both use the overhand method. My oldest DD pointed it out to me one day that I hold the hook differently when I use larger hooks or yarn.

 

A lady commented on the way my girls hold their hooks. She said it wasn't the right way! I told her I can hold the hook both ways and I've yet to meet anyone that can crochet faster than my 12 yr old! The girl doesn't even have to look at the stitches. Talk about a natural!

 

I taught myself to crochet from a book, so that would explain the pencil grip with yarn. I suppose I couldn't get a good enough grip with the pencil method when I started using thread. I hold the tiny metal hooks just like I hold my knitting needles.

 

Funny what we learn to do.

Michelle in Southern AZ

[tezen]

I hold mine like a pencil. I have tried the other way. Felt like I was all elbows lol. Looked like a spazz.

[crafty lady]

I hold it underhand. It was the way I was taught. When I see people crocheting with there left hand it looks like they're doing it backwards. Cause I'm right handed anyway.

Wanda

[Trinket]

I tend to hold mine like it's a pencil. I feel like I have more control if I do it that way. I wonder if it makes a lot of difference in how stitches look...

[cgd]

I'm a pencil-holder. I've tried the knife hold, but it just doesn't work for me.

[hooked2]

I hold it like a pencil (I don't even like the term "underhanded"!). It feels so unnatural to me if I hold it overhand. Actually, I never knew there was another way to hold the hook until I came to Crochetville.

[Rachel]

I hold mine like a pencil. I started out with the knife hold, but pretty soon my knuckes started hurting so bad that I couldn't crochet, and I knew I had to change my grip style. The pain went away, and I've been a happy hooker ever since.

[judianne]

I hold the hook both ways. It depends on how tight the stitches are that I'm working into, if it's thread or yarn, the size of the piece in my lap ...LOL... I've been crocheting since at least the early '70s and I can't even remember how I held the hook when I started, but knowing my contrary nature it was probably overhanded, since in the books I've looked at it seems like the pencil style is more accepted:D

[copchic905]

I do hold my hook underhanded... but my mil & friends say I hold my yarn & pattern unlike anyone they know....lol... I guess it is so strange I cant even try to explain it....lol

[OnyxArtWorks]

Overhand. Sometimes I use underhand for stubborn/tight stitches to wiggle my hook in, but over hand is just so much more comfortable for me. My yarn hand tends to get sore before my hook hand , so I tend to change up my yarn holding techniques. Luckily I tend to chose gauge friendly/forgiving designs.

 

Create, Live, Laugh, but most importantly Love.

-Tiia-

[WeTurnItToEleven]

I do overhand but I hold my hook tight in my fist for some reason. It's bad because I get serious carpal tunnel after good progress on a WIP.

[mountainangel]

I hold it like a pencil for all the hooks smaller than the J. I only recently figured out how to do the overhand way and just can't do it on the small hooks for very long - slows me down way too much. But also just did my first few projects with Q hook and definately had to do those overhand to manipulate the hook properly.

Angie

[tempestuous_kitten]

I do underhand though I've been working with overhand to see if I can loosen up my stitches. I've been having problem getting gauge right because my stitches are too tight. (Going up 3 hook sizes and still having problems)

[Vicktoriannah]

I hold my hook like a knife, and wield it like a weapon of mass creation!!

I have an odd style though, I hold the hook veery loose, and it sits gently in between my little finger and my palm. My ring finger hangs out in the air unless it (very rarely) decides to help poor pinky with its burden. The middle finger never touches the hook unless I get really frustrated with the yarn not doing as I want it to.

 

I also hold the yarn odd, too. I have it grasped in my little and ring fingers and have it run between the other two (kidding, I have seven fingers!!!!) but I use the index finger to hold the project so it dosen't run over any fingers like it is supposed to (according to SnB:HH). Never any gauge problems though...

[slicer]

I hold mine overhanded....the very first crochet how to book I owned explained that there are two ways of holding the hook....overhanded is like holding a butterknife.....so that is how I do mine. Or sometimes I hold on to a hook as if my life depended on holding on for dear life...does that make any sense? If not, sorry:think

 

I know exactly what you mean...sometimes I have to tell myself to relax!

 

I hold mine overhanded, but not that dainty, my fingers are wrapped all the way around.