Learn to crochet · lesson 2 of 12 · about 20 minutes

How to hold a crochet hook and make a slip knot

Hold a crochet hook like a pencil or like a knife, about 3 to 5cm from the tip, whichever feels easier. Neither grip is more correct, so try both. Then tie a slip knot to put the yarn on the hook.

Step by step

1. 1Try the pencil grip

   Hold the hook in your right hand (your left if you’re left-handed) the way you’d hold a pencil, between thumb and forefinger. Hold it about 3 to 5cm from the hooked end. If your hook has a flat thumb rest, that’s the comfortable place to grip.

2. 2Try the knife grip

   Now hold it overhand, as you’d hold a dinner knife to cut. Grip it between thumb and forefinger, about the same distance from the tip, with the end of the hook resting against your palm. Use whichever grip lets your hand stay relaxed.

3. 3Hold the yarn in your other hand

   The other hand feeds the yarn and holds your work. One way: pass the yarn from the ball between your little and ring fingers, behind your ring and middle fingers, and over your forefinger. Another: loop it loosely round your little finger, then over your ring finger, behind your middle finger and over your forefinger. You want a slight, steady drag on the yarn, not a pinch.

4. 4Make a loop for the slip knot

   Leave a tail of at least 10cm. Lay the yarn in a circle so the yarn from the ball crosses over the tail, and pinch the crossing point between your thumb and forefinger.

5. 5Pull a loop through

   Put the hook through the circle from front to back. Catch the yarn coming from the ball and pull it back through the circle, so you have a new loop on the hook.

6. 6Snug it up

   Pull both ends to close the knot, then pull the ball end to bring the loop in close to the hook. It should be snug but still slide along the hook. Keep the loop on the wide, even part of the hook, not on the narrow neck near the tip or up on the thumb rest.

7. 7Check which end adjusts it

   Tug each end in turn. With the method above, the ball end is the one that tightens the loop. Some other slip-knot methods, including some in videos, make the tail the adjusting end instead. Both are fine. If the knot won’t slide at all, undo it and tie it again a little looser.

Check your work

• The loop slides along the hook but doesn’t fall off when you tip the hook down.
• Your hook hand feels relaxed after a minute of holding it.
• The yarn runs over your forefinger with a light, even drag.

Common mistakes

Pulling the slip knot tight against the hook.

Undo it and retie it looser. The loop needs to move freely, or your first chains will be very hard to make.

Gripping the yarn so hard it won’t feed through your fingers.

Unwrap it from one finger. Less wrapping means less tension.

The loop creeping onto the narrow neck of the hook.

Slide it back onto the wider shaft. Loops made on the neck come out too small.

Crochet hooks for beginners, including ergonomic ones →

Sources: simply-yarn.com, simply-yarn.com, simply-yarn.com, simply-yarn.com, yarnspirations.com, yarnspirations.com, blog.bellacococrochet.com, lovecrafts.com, blog.clover-usa.com, craftyarncouncil.com. Written in UK terms; the US name is in brackets the first time a stitch appears.