How to Hold a Crochet Hook and Yarn

Crochet Beginner's Guide 2

For first-time crocheters, holding a crochet hook and yarn might take some getting used to, but once you get the hang of it, crochet can be a very relaxing craft.

Usually, the hook will be held in the dominant hand and the yarn in the other. The images below show a right-handed crocheter holding the hook and yarn -- hook in the right hand and yarn in the left. A left-handed person holds the hook and yarn the same way in the opposite hands.

How to hold a crochet hook:

In general, any method of holding the hook that is comfortable for you should be fine. There are two common ways, as shown in the image below: like a knife or like a pencil.

How to hold yarn: 

The step numbers (1, 2, 3) correspond to the numbers in the image above.

1. With the palm of your non-dominant hand facing you, take the loose end of the yarn and drape it over your pinky finger from your palm side to the back, as shown.

2. Bring that hanging loose end of the yarn up on the palm side of your hand, toward your index finger.

3. Wrap the loose end, from back to front, over your index finger. We now call that loose end the starting end.

Notes:

1. While crocheting, use your thumb, middle finger, and ring finger to hold the starting end in place.

2. Working yarn is the part of the yarn that comes from the yarn ball and that will feed into the project you are crocheting.

3. While crocheting, keep relatively tight tension in the work zone (marked in the image above), which is the yarn between your index finger and where your other fingers are holding the starting end. If this part of the yarn gets slack, pull the working yarn (below your pinky) down to tighten. If you find it hard to maintain the tension, hold the starting end between only your thumb and middle finger, while curling your ring and pinky fingers in toward your palm. Your ring finger will pinch the yarn that is on its way toward your index finger, giving you greater control of the tension in the work zone.

Below is a video tutorial about holding a crochet hook and yarn.