Set up a small experiment
Sit where you can see the hook tip clearly and support the yarn ball so it cannot roll away. Leave a little loose yarn between the ball and your hand. The aim is to guide the strand, not to clamp it still. For these first experiments, use a smooth yarn and make only a few chains at a time.
Compare two hook holds
- Try a pencil-style hold, with the handle resting near the base of your index finger. Let your thumb help turn the hook tip.
- Try an overhand hold, with the handle resting in your palm. Your fingers can steer the hook without squeezing the whole handle.
- Make five chains with each hold. Ask which makes it easier to rotate the tip down and draw the yarn through. You do not have to copy another maker’s favourite hold.
Give the other hand one job at a time
Guide the working yarn over or between your fingers in a way that lets it slide. Use your thumb and another finger to hold the fabric just below the live loop. As the chain grows, move that supporting pinch towards the hook. If the ball catches, stop and free some yarn rather than pulling harder against your fingers.
A useful check
Put the hook down after ten chains. Are you holding your shoulders up or wrapping yarn so tightly that it cannot move? Adjust before continuing. Stop if the movement is uncomfortable. Different yarns may need a slightly different hold, so keep this as an experiment rather than a rule you must get right forever.
Words in this lesson
Working yarn
The strand that runs from your hook back to the yarn ball.
Hook shaft
The straight, full-width part where a loop is sized before it moves through another loop.
Notes & further reading
Original explanations and practice exercises by Crochet By Micky. UK stitch names are used; check the stitch key in any other pattern you follow.
Reviewed 25 October 2026. Cover artwork is an original illustration, not a third-party pattern or event photograph.