Finally! Someone who holds their hook like I do! I can't hold my hook, "like a pencil" and you wouldn't believe how many people have told me that I'm "doing it wrong." My Great Aunt, who lived to be in her 80's and was a master crocheter told me that "as long as your tension isn't too tight or loose, there IS no wrong! Just keep doin' what your doin' and it'll be okay." I'm glad I listened to her and not the critics. Your work is beautiful!

I've been crocheting for 10 years now and I still love watching tips & tricks videos. This one was really special because we have pretty much identical crocheting methods! By 5:00 in, I couldn't stop laughing to myself because this just felt like validation. :)

I came to this video just out of curiosity, and was pleasantly surprised that I already use these exact methods. The only thing I do differently is this: instead of wrapping around my pinky finger, I wrap around my middle finger (just feels more natural for me, and I can still pinch because it's wrapped closer to the base of my finger). For very small crochet thread, I sometimes wrap twice for added tension and better control :)

“yarn barf”….. 😁…… About 10 years ago I was working on MiddleGranddaughter’s pink afghan during lunch break at work, pulling from the center of the skein of (I can’t remember) brand baby sport yarn. A big clump of yarn came out(not the first one that day). My coworkers like to watch me work, and they all laughed when I told them what the term for the clump of yarn was.

I just realized that I've been using the same crochet hold (knife) as you, though most people I've seen prefer the pencil hold. My yarn hold is slightly different as I also use my ring finger with my pinky to control the yarn tension instead of just the pinky (I dont loop the yarn around my pinky, I just rest the yarn between slightly curled ring and pinky fingers.) The new thing I learned from your video is rolling the hook. It's such a novel, mindblowing trick I never would have thought of on my own. Now, I'm super excited to practice the hook roll. Thank you for showing your technique. It's very helpful.

When I learned how to crochet, I tried a bunch of different methods I'd seen on YT, but I always came back to this method as it was the most comfortable. Great video!

good advice -- we all have our own style -- i taught myself to crochet 55 yrs ago and use all your tips -- taught knit and crochet in a shop for 10 yrs -- when people came in for a brush up i didnt try to change their style but gave them all your good tips -- it just works -- love your manicure!

This is exactly how I crochet, even the hook rolling. Works great and no wrist pain!

One thing I try to do is to make sure I read the pattern through first, especially if it is the first time making it. That way if there is a stitch that is either new to me or that I'm not quite comfortable with, I can either look up the tutorial for the stitch.

So pleased to see the double yarn technique I have a lot of thin yarn I can use in lockdown thank you so much.

I love the pinching tip. I'm stealing that one. I already hold my yarn similar to yours and I pull from the center.

That’s exactly the way I’ve always held my hook and yarn! It feels comfortable to me because I knit continental and hold my yarn the same for knitting!

I’ve found pulling the yarn from the middle of the skein leaves a real mess of tangles and knots as it gets to the end, with cake yarns it might work better but not with the usual shape skein so just starting from the yarn that goes around the skein means I don’t get that mess at the end. Holding the yarn is a preference for each individual crocheter as what works for you. I’ve tried continental and several other ways but I go back to the one that’s comfortable for me and whatever that is for everyone, it’s the one they crochet the fastest.

Hey Rachelle! Awesome tips! I think I crochet similar to you. I haven't actually looked at the way I crochet🤔. That said, I hold my yarn the way you do minus the pinky wrap and I roll my hook.😍🤗

yes, I do this too. The only thing is over time I've discovered that sometimes I get an ache in my hand from holding my pointer like that for long times. I find a thick handled hook does help too and if it's smooth eg no thumb notch it's easier to roll. Make the hook do all the work 😄 Great video!

Good tips!! Thanks for sharing. I use the knife hold and run my yarn through my fingers much like you do. I’m going to focus on turning my hook instead of my wrist and see if I can that a habit. Charmed Granny Crochet shared awhile back about running the yarn through a bead when working with two strands and I found it really helped me. 🧶💕💕🧶

Loved "yarn barf" 😆😆😆.

Thank you for sharing those tips with us!🧶😊

Happy Monday! I am going to have to try some of these tips. Thanks for the tips.

Roll the hook?! My gum fell out of my mouth…thank you, dear lady!

Quite a new crocheter here and the tip that lightbulbs the most was to pull up enough of a loop on the single crochet so the tension is not too tight! Thank you 😊

Very HELPFUL tips!! Thank you!!

Very helpful tips Rachelle! Thanks!

Good points. I hold my work and yarn the same way. Not that I am 70 the depression in my index finger is quite noticeable. The doctor said my rheumatoid arthritis is bad in that finger and I had to tell him the depression is from about 63 years of crocheting. They make little coverings for the finger that are essentially tubes that cover from one knuckle to the other. I have started using one. I think my skin has become so thin the yarn actually feels like it burns as it slides. Works pretty good.

In one moment I changed the way I hold my yarn. Thank you so much for your tutorial.

Hello Rachelle. I'm skipping around watching different videos and thought I really needed to leave a comment. I hold my hook like you and I also roll it in my fingers then I have very little movement in my wrist. Thanks for this video I enjoyed watching. Sending you lots of love and hugs ❣️🤗

Looks like I've been doing the rolling without knowing. I have carpal tunnel issues for years so when I took up crochet I simply moved my continental style of knitting to crochet. Then my teacher said "you're doing it wrong". I tried the pencil grip and boy, did my hand hurt. She said knife grip was slow. But what she calls knife hold is not what I do. I do what you do. Rolling. I'm going to start calling it the "rolling knife hold" from now on 😉

I enjoyed watching this video; really good demonstration.

Wow!!! Fabulous tips. Had helped me so much. Thanks ❤️❤️

That is exactly how I hold my hook and, surprisingly, I twist the hook, too. A co-worker told me that I was holding my hook wrong, that I should be holding it like a pencil. That is very uncomfortable to me. Glad to see that I'm not "wrong".

I never have my index finger up like that. I have the yarn over the index finger and through the hand. I have my index finger directly at the work, so I can hold the work at the same time as the yarn sits snugly over my finger. As I take a loop through the work, I let the hook glide forward on my index finger and the yarn appear in position. When I take a loop from above the work my index finger just does a small movement, like stretching and bending just a bit. The hook hand is like a pen grip with my middle finger quite near the hook like a support, and the thumb and index finger bends and flexes to make the crochet needled move backwards and forwards. I just push it forward as is, and draw it backward with those two fingers. At the end of pulling through the loops I tilt the hook hand just a bit. It is quick and the movements are minimal. It also gives me very good control over everything.

My advice is for beginners to watch and try several different methods for how to hold the yarn because what feels natural to each person is going to be different. I hold mine similarly to your method, but I loop the yarn around my pinkie because I don’t crochet on a hard surface, and that gives me a bit more tension when I need it. I’ve seen others do it in what seem to be some pretty funny ways, but it works for them. As I said before, watch a bunch until you find what feels best to you. Thankfully, we have all these video resources now, making it much easier, to learn. The days of learning with books are over. YAY! Thank you for your video!

Useful tips! 😊 I’ve got to know now what ur making 😜 I love the color!

Thank you for the tips to make my past-time easier.

I agree wholeheartedly on the tip for pulling from the center! Since I started winding my skeins into cakes my crocheting is not only faster but much less irritating! No more chasing a ball that fell off my lap and went rolling away from me! I don't have to stop and pull more yarn constantly as it glides freely from the center!

You can tighten up your your tension easier by wrapping your yarn over and around toward you near the base of your little finger and then just bring it up over your index finger. I find myself sometimes moving my little finger slightly to help keep that tension good.

I am a begginer crocheter and i crochet like this! 🤣 it's just intuition! If you don't follow the "rules" you can actually find the best way by just practicing!

Thanks for sharing these tips. 😊

I already do all these. Started right from the start lol but great video for someone starting out

great video! Thanks for the tips!

Great tips , I hold my hook the same way .

Thanks for the tips!

I use the same technique but when I started using Furls Odyssey Crochet Hook it really picked up my speed. The hooks make a huge difference in smoothness and speed.

Use something on your left finger. I learned that the hard way. The skin on my finger hurts because I’ve been crocheting so fast lol. Simple solution a bandaid protects my finger.

This lady is good at what she does because I sure when working with 2yarn at same time.i try that once I got all tangled up it was mess.

You and I crochet the exact same way!!! YAY!!!

No music thank you 🇨🇦❤️

Same here! This is how I do it too!

Thanks for the tips.! 🧶🤗

thank you sooo much for this video🌹🌹🌹

I will need to practice this. Been stitching 30 yrs and need to learn to let the hook do the work, not the hand like I was taught.

I hold my hook the same way, and lately I found that I do roll my hook automatically and that it helps.

Great tips! The thing that slows me down the most is having really tight tension, I have to make myself loosen everything up.

Great tips

I'm self-taught and you do everything I figured out to do - I mean everything, it's eerie - so I guess I'm good! Oh! P.S. I do hold my yarn over my first finger, but I thread my yarn through every finger, holding loosely, and "throw thread" with my left hand/finger with a twitch of the wrist; tension is kept mostly between the fabric I'm making and the loop that is on and how far up in the air I'm holding my left finger, "The Thread Thrower", and how far I bend my left wrist. I don't know what kind of a math Brainiac I would have to ask to tell me what type of triangle that is called...I dubbed it "The Tension Triangle". I have watched thousands of videos and I see some people wrap yarn a little differently over the top finger: the thread is anchored around the pinky or the ring finger, or through the fingers, runs in front of the index finger and up then back around behind and through, coming from between the index finger the middle finger. It puts the thread a little lower and seems to be ergonomically better for more direct snatching of the yarn with the hook without twitching the left wrist or finger to get the yarn where it needs to go. I'm trying that out, but my right hand keeps throwing that hook like the shuttlecock in an industrial weaving machine....

Great tips. I do most of the same but I struggle with holding my pointer finger out.

MMom always rolled each of her skeins into a ball before starting her project.

I wish there were more videos ❤

I am a pencil holder of my hook and l don’t have to roll my hook and it gives me good tension

I will say I've only been crocheting for a few weeks now and in project 6 with multiple swatches, but I could NOT comfortably crochet with "proper" finger placement (how your holding). I had to use my pointer to pinch my project and it felt so natural doing it this way. Although I've seen a few women on tutorials doing it this way, I felt like the "proper" way is taught for a reason. When I decided to start making random stitch swatches to learn I found myself not minding if I moved a bit slower through the rows verses when I was doing a blanket, I couldn't be bothered to be slow for the sake of finger placement haha. The swatches have really helped me to form proper finger placement and the passed couple projects I've done feels strange using my pointer to pinch. But I am noticing I still "wrap" my thread around the hook as you showed which I'm trying to break that habit as well now. I noticed my tension has loosened up so much since the changes, which I don't mind actually because before I felt like my tension was too tight 😅 anyways, just sharing in case a newbie like me comes across this and is struggling like I was.

HI Rachelle, Yes indeed so much in common. All of what you do I do as well. I roll my hook to save on wrist motion. And as you saw on my Annie's and other reviews I tend to go down a a hook size or stitch count as my stuff will come out big as well. Kudos. Sheila

I just started to learn how to crochet and I ended up doing something a little different than I've seen on YT. I think all I do is use the slip knot thingy that's on the hook after the previous row, loop a new strand of yarn, insert the hook into the next stitch, and then loop another strand of yarn on the hook and then pull through all three after the last loop

Nice nail color

tip #2 is especially useful because that way the tip of the crochet hook doesn't hit your finger every time you pull through, which can avoid pain and blisters.

I do the same as urs also. I crochet so fast which most of the time, i made myself dizzy!

Thanks for the information

Thank you!

This helps me a lot! I'm a new crocheter and this technique is very easy for me. I just have to perfect it, but practice makes perfect, right?

I use pencil hold, my om taught me and her mom taught her, I've crocheted for 50 years

I have carpet tunnel and I crochet like you do.....my SECRET is using Tunisian wooden crochet they grad the yarn really well so it.doesnt Frey! And I go.much faster.

*What is that gorgeous yarn with such gorgeous color???*

This is pretty much how I've crocheted since I started learning 4 years ago.

So great to have you back and I really appreciate you taking time to give us some tips and tricks. Always grateful for this type of information. Thank you and Happy New Year to you. 😊

This is a lot of the stuff that I have evolved to do! But my issue is, in the case of half double/treble crochet, I cant pull through all three loops in one swift pull. Do you have any tips for that? Is it easier for you because you do it looser?

I hold my yarn and roll as you do however I usually have to go up a hook size because my crochet is tight.

I crochet the same way you do I have been I crocheting for 34 yrs I hold the hook the same way too

I love your coffee mug ..how do I go about buying one...I'm not having any luck finding it ! Thanks !!...👍☕

What kind of crochet hooks do you use?

I have crochet forever! This is exactly how I do it. I've had to quit because of arthritis in both my thumbs! I'm trying steroids shots in both, had the first one but seems not help. Dr says usually one is not enough! If you start feeling pain in the base your thumbs she your Doctor, address it sooner than I did!

This is how I was taught to crochet except I hold my work with the "yarn pointer" instead of straight out like that. And I hold my hook like a pencil.

I’m not seeing the difference between using my left and to wrap and keeping my hook straight. It seems either way one of the wrists are going to be twisting. For myself I try to take breaks and even stretch! That’s from the peanut gallery!!🤭😜

Tip 2a. Hold the hook as you would a pencil. ✍ That way you don't actually use your wrist, you move the hook as if writing. Works best for smaller needles/yarn/work.

I can't pull from the middle of the skein it is always knotted up in there. So I take a little time grab from the outside and wind it up around fingers then wind it up into a balll I put the ball into a bowl close to me and then the yarn ball dances in there as I crochet with no hangups and no knots and I can really truck along while the yarn stays in that bowl as I go.

I actually crochet the same way and it’s very efficient. But I’m always fighting to keep feeding more yarn from the skein. No matter what I do, I have to stop and pull more yarn. 🤷🏻‍♀️

I can't hold the hook knife grip but the pencil. What to do?

Tip 6. When using multiple yarns, to prevent them from entangling, place each ball into a bowl. 🍚🧶🍚🧶 (Any cereal bowl, or metal flower pot, or container). That way, each ball will rotate freely. You can even place each bowl far from each other.

My pointer finger starts to hurt from being straight out & up the whole time. Any other methods for that finger?

Why does my yarn ALWAYS knot when I pull out of the center????

Not to sound stupid, but what is cake up your yarn?

I work with a technique that is roughly the same. I just move my right hand a lot more in a motion that I think is more similar to knitting and Tunisian crochet. That way I can grab the yarn better and faster with my hook and I also slightly angle my project and stitch that I am working on so I can push the hook through easier.

What stitch is that ?

May sound stupid but why are you using two strands?

The only thing I can't do is hold my pointer finger up, it's too unnatural for me and looks like it would cause pain or stiffness.

I crochet the way that's comfortable for me. We are all different and we're not going to crochet the same.

My fastest stitch is double crochet, but I am slower at single crochet

I just filmed my self for the first time crocheting to see what I do... I've learned that I crochet fast and I now understand why my wrist hurts... either way thank you for the tips no joke helped me with my work

Omg I've just started to roll my hook and I thought I was doing it wrong but it looks sooooo much tidier imo

Not really a tip, that’s the way to properly crochet. I was taught this way, never understood why people have to crochet like they’re knitting.

Well i bet your thumb will be in bad shape in a few months. Hope not mine is swollen.

Sorry to say your slow as I am