For most novice crocheters, holding the hook and yarn correctly makes all the difference between success and frustration. I believe that crocheting should be a stress-relieving activity and not a stress-inducing activity. So, I want to help you get started right!

There are many different ways to hold your hook and yarn. I teach a crochet elective to the middle schoolers at the school where I work and the 7th grade boys told me that this is the easiest way to hold the hook and yarn. So, I have it on good authority that this is the best grip for you to use when you first get started hooking.

Yes, left-handed hookers, this is for the righties! But I promise your version is coming soon!

First, let's look at a picture of the positioning of both hands, then I'll break it down into steps.

When you're ready to start crocheting, your hands should look like this

Ok, we're going to start with the left hand because I think that it's the hardest part to master. Basically, with the left hand you're going to be controlling the tension of the yarn that you're feeding to your hook. If you don't hold the yarn at a consistent tension, then your stitches are going to be all wonky.

When you look at the picture above, you'll noticed that I'm using ALL the fingers on my left hand to hold onto the yarn and my work (the piece I've already crocheted). This is key to keeping things stable and the tension reliable. So, let's break the left hand down into steps.

Step 1: Pinch the long end of the yarn between your middle and index fingers.

Step 2: Turn your left hand counter clockwise, keeping the yarn between your first 2 fingers

Step 3: Hold onto your work with the left thumb in front and your ring and pinkie fingers behind

Step 3 (different angle): Hold your work firmly with your thumb, ring and pinkie fingers.

So, now that you have your fingers in the right place, let's talk about the working end of the yarn. You pinch it between your index and middle fingers, but not too tight. It has to be able to move between your fingers as your crochet. Hold your fingers steady and at the same distance from your work at all times to keep your stitches consistent.

Also, notice that the working end of the yarn goes from between my pinched fingers to the little circle created by my thumb, ring and pinkie fingers. Keeping the yarn running up through this circle will help you to keep control too.

Now, let's talk about how to hold the hook with your right hand.

Hold your hook with your thumb, index finger and middle finger. The ring and pinkie fingers touch the hook very lightly or not at all.

You can move your right hand up toward the hooked end or down toward the plain end of your hook. Play with it a bit to find out what feels natural and comfortable for you.

What about you? Do you hold your yarn and hook in a different way? Please share in the comments.