Chapter 1: Get a Grip

Louie's Loops

Beginner difficulty

Beginner

PDF

Video

Holding your yarn and hook correctly is one of the most important aspects of crocheting. Bad habits can make even the most simple stitch look sloppy. So, before we get started, let’s cover some basic tips on handling your tools.

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What you'll learn

What you'll need

Cotton Yarn

Weight

Colors

Any color

Crochet Hook

G6 / 4.00 mm

Abbreviations

- Season 6 -

The Pattern

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(1:23) The time codes match to the pattern video

01Holding the Hook

There are two basic ways most people hold crochet hooks, we’ll be calling them the “Spoon Grip” and the “Pencil Grip” because you hold them like a spoon and a pencil!

The Spoon Grip


My personal preference, the spoon grip, is great for things like amigurumi, aka small stuffed crocheted creatures. In this position you get the best range of movement with your wrist and also get more strength so pulling yarn through tiny stitches is easier as well. I would suggest beginners start with this grip.

The Pencil Grip


The pencil grip is a favorite for people making larger items like blankets. This is because you can get the same basic movement rapidly without changing positions. For me, it’s a bit more complicated of a position and makes getting the hook into smaller holes more difficult. Definitely not what I would use for things with a lot of different stitches or with small stitches like amigurumi or hats.

With that in mind, I’ll be using the Spoon Grip for Crocheting 101.

02Holding the Yarn

I’ll be honest, learning to hold the yarn is a bit more difficult than holding the hook. The most important part is controlling the tension of the yarn, which in turn controls how tight you make the stitches. A classic mistake most beginners make is that they crochet too tight, so try holding it loose if you can. Learning to control yarn is something that only comes with practice and time, so be patient.

A lot of people have different ways they hold their yarn, here’s how I do it:

With your non-dominant hand, hold the yarn with your bottom three fingers (1), and wrap the yarn around your index (2). This gives your index and thumb access to being able to pinch and hold your work (3), and allows your bottom three fingers (middle, ring, and pinky) to grip the yarn, letting you more easily control the tension of the yarn.

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- Season 6 -

10 thoughts on “Chapter 1: Get a Grip”

  1. Hi. Just joined and I’m finding it hard to navigate the crocheting101. I’m having a hard time finding the video. I finally found the video and it says to download the ebook but there is no working link for if that i can find.
    What am I missing? Please help. Thank you

    • Hi Grace, thanks for letting us know and sorry for the difficulty you’ve experienced! At the top of this page there is a “Download PDF” button, could you tell me if that button is not working for you? If it’s not working, in the meantime you can also download the ebook pdf from this page: http://crocheting101.com/start

  2. Hello,

    It doesn’t actually say how to do the pencil grip?

    “The Pencil Grip
    My personal preference, the spoon grip, is great for things like amigurumi, aka small stuffed crocheted creatures. In this position you get the best range of movement with your wrist and also get more strength so pulling yarn through tiny stitches is easier as well. I would suggest beginners start with this grip.”

    It just repeats the instructions for spoon grip.

    • Hello there! I believe the pencil grip is the same way we hold a pencil, but even so, everyone holds a pencil their own way. Sorry for the late reply, and have a great day!!

  3. I couldn’t control tension with three fingers (middle, ring and pinky).
    What is working for now, is holding the yarn between the middle and the pointer.
    As I’m left-handed, I’m testing which hand is less unconfortable haha
    The hook has not been a problem, but how to hold the yarn… is still complicated….

  4. I found the spoon grip more comfortable . I been searching on utube for someway of learning but could not get it at first but by joining this club I now have made my first chain,

  5. I hold my yarn the following way: over pinky, under ring and middle fingers, and over index finger! I use my the middle two fingers to control tension. So cool how everyone does things a little differently!

    • I know right?! I started to teach my girlfriend to crochet and she’s a knitter so she held the yarn and hook both in the right hand! It was super weird but it totally worked!! Gonna have to figure that one out..

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