Hook sizes and materials

Sizes

The size of a hook is the diameter of its shaft in millimeters, and that is the number this shop lists first in every pattern. US hooks also carry a letter and number, which vary slightly between manufacturers; the letter is a convenience, the millimeter is the truth.

Steel hooks for thread run the other way: a higher number is a smaller hook, from size 00 at 2.7 mm down to size 14 at 0.75 mm. You will only meet them in lace and thread work.

The parts of a hook

• Head: the hooked tip. A pointed head goes into tight stitches easily; a rounded head is less likely to split the yarn.
• Throat: the notch that catches the yarn. A deep throat holds the loop securely; a shallow one lets loops slip off if you tilt the hook up.
• Shaft: the straight section the loop sits on. Its diameter is the hook size, so the loop should be made here, not on the throat.
• Thumb rest: the flat area where your thumb sits. Not every hook has one; ergonomic hooks replace it with a shaped handle.
• Handle: the rest of the hook.

Materials

Aluminum is the standard: smooth, light, cheap, and the yarn glides over it. Nearly everyone starts here. Steel is only for thread sizes. Bamboo and wood have a slight grip that slows slippery yarns like silk and bamboo and is warm in the hand; they can snag on splitty yarn and the small sizes break. Plastic and acrylic are light and cheap in large sizes, where aluminum gets heavy, and are common for bulky and jumbo. Ergonomic hooks are an aluminum or steel head set into a soft, fat handle; they reduce the pinch grip and are worth it for anyone with hand pain or who crochets for hours.

Choosing a first set

Buy sizes 3.5, 4.0, 5.0 and 5.5 mm in aluminum first; that covers sport through worsted, which is most patterns. Add 2.5 or 3.0 mm when you try amigurumi, and 6.5 and 8.0 mm for bulky yarn and baskets. A cheap set of every size is fine for finding out which sizes you use; then buy one good hook, ergonomic if you like, in each of the sizes you reach for constantly. Interchangeable sets and tunisian hooks can wait until a pattern asks for them.

Matching hook to yarn

The yarn label suggests a hook size and the pattern gives one, but neither is a rule. A hook a size or two smaller than the label makes a tight fabric for toys and baskets; a size or two larger makes a drapey fabric for shawls. Your own hands decide the final size through the gauge swatch. Where a pattern in this shop lists two hook sizes, the smaller one is for a ribbed band or edging and the larger for the main fabric, and the pattern says which is which.

Keep hooks in a roll or a pencil case so the heads do not get nicked; a rough spot on a head snags every stitch. A worn aluminum hook gets sticky over years and can be replaced for very little.