Pencil vs knife grip

[Ellie 13]

Knife/pencil ? I just grab my hook and "my way" . I pretended to write and then cut to see what I was. Looks like I'm a knife (turned sideways). The more I thnk about how I do it the slower I go. I say go with what's comfortable. Speed comes with practice.

Ellie 13

[Crafti2750]

I just pick up the hook, guess I am a knife grip, that is the way I am comfortable, I can go fast if it is the same stitch over and over, but every body does it different as long as you are comfortable with, right? and yu get it done.

[adagio]

I'm a 'pencil hold' crocheter. But its more like 'chopstick' hold. I took a dozen year crochet hiatus, and learned to use chopsticks in that time. When I came back to crocheting last year, I found the experience with the 'sticks, helped me manipulate the hook better!

[CrochetbyClarissa]

I use the knife hold method. It just seems more natural to me. I've tried using the pencil hold and I just wasn't as coordinated. My fingers didn't want to make the movements smooth, I was really jerky, much like trying to write with my left hand (I'm right handed). However when I use the knife hold my wrist does more of the work and the movements are smooth and graceful.

 

My speed is darn good but I think that come with practice and with confidence. The more you practice the more confidence you gain and the quicker you can go. It helps too to be able to read patterns in their abbreviated forms.

 

I say do what is most comfortable for you. There is no right and wrong way to hold the hook and yarn.

 

Most people do some form of wrapping the yarn around their fingers for tension. I don't do this. I just hold it between my first and middle finger (imagine a smoker holding a cigarette). When making my beginning chain doing this for me frees up my thumb and ring finger to hold the chain. Depending on what I'm using I can get 5-10 chains made before I have to move my fingers (5 for ww yarn, 10 for thread).

 

Everyone has their own method and I say as long as it gets the job done it's all perfectly "legal". LOL

[rashidah]

I use the knife hold.

[JUNO]

Pencil grip for me, can't do it any other way. I think it stems from all the knitting that I have done and I held the needle in the right hand in a pencil grip.

[Ladycrochat]

I use the TOOTHBRUSH grip....it is a variation of the knife grip, but my index finger isn't extended along the hook, it is curled under with my other fingers as though I were holding my toothbrush. I just found the most comfortable way to hold my hook and that's that!:hook

[Ellie 13]

Toothbrush and chopstick holds , Now we have more ways to confuse newbies . I give up! I'm going to grab my and .

Ellie 13

[Debbi-a1]

I do the knife grip. I use my index and thumb to help control the yarn and keep it away from the hook until it's needed. I think that and crocheting loose helps me crochet fast. It seems the tighter you crochet, the slower, at least it looks like it to me. Of course I don't get my gauge too close, but it's getting closer now. I usually go down a hook or size in a pattern if I'm concerned about that.

 

I use the knife grip for every type of yarn, thread, hook, etc. I tried the pencil hold once but it slowed me down.

 

I did get slow when I had to relearn to crochet (I had been doing the yarn over the wrong way, never knew, my mom taught me and she was left handed and I'm right handed). But then I got faster within a short period of time.

Debbi

[Aggie May]

:cheerHere is a very bad video of how I crochet.

My husband tried to be a bit creative at the start and did not notice the weeds in the pots.

Never mind, crocheting is cleaner then gardening.

 

 

I am a pencil and only use the other grip if my hand gets tired, which is not very often.

If you can elarn to crochet this way, you will be able to work for hours on end without getting tired.

You just need to stretch your fingers and flex your wrist occasionally.

 

Have fun.

Colleen:hug

[canter]

I'm a knife grip. When I was little and my grandmother tried to teach me to crochet she said to hold it like a pencil. I couldn't get the hang of it and it wasn't until 9th grade that I did my first granny square, pencil grip. After years of the pencil grip I tried the knife grip and it was much easier for me.