It happens to even the best of us; you go to pick up a project that you haven’t worked on in a while and you can’t remember which size hook you used? So out come all the hooks it could be and you try each one… but your eyes play tricks on you and you guess wrong. Next thing you know, you have to frog half your work. Nothing is worse (well, other than seeing a mistake 20 rows back, but I digress). There are a few things you can do to prevent this from happening, never use the wrong hook size on a WIP again.
Image courtesy Furls Crochet
- Always use the hook size listed on the yarn wrapper, that way you’ll never have to guess, just look at the yarn wrapper, better yet, keep the yarn wrapper with your work.
- If you’re like me, you have multiple hooks in the same size, I tend to keep my hooks with my projects, especially since different hook styles, and brands, produce different results even within the same size.
Another helpful hint. Pay attention to the mm size and NOT the letter on your hooks, especially if you have hooks from multiple brands as different brands use the same letter for multiple mm sizes. For example G hooks come in 4.00m, 4.25mm and 4.50mm.
- Mark your projects; use stitch markers that have the hook size listed on them, like these ones from The Crochet Dude.
- Make your own hook size markers. You can use a paperclip, a safety pin (my favorite), or a regular locking stitch marker, Or better yet… get ones that you can slip a small piece of paper into, like these from Clover. Just add a small lettered bead, or even a piece of paper.
How cool are these, just slip in a small piece of paper with your hook size, or even what row you are on?
- This one is kind of controversial… and I can’t do it myself, so don’t feel bad; only have one project going at any time. I know, I know, “are you kidding me?” you ask.
What are some things you have done to keep track of what hook size you have used on your projects?
Lorene Eppolite is the designer behind Cre8tion Crochet and has been designing since October 2012. She loves to create fun and easy crochet accessories and garments and strives to make her designs to be achievable for any skill level. Just because it is easy, doesn’t mean it can’t be beautiful. Lorene was named one of the Top Ten Designers by The Yarn Box in 2012, by AllFreeCrochet in 2013 and two of her patterns appeared in the Top 100 of 2014 for AFC where she was named a Top Blogger. Lorene has many patterns published by Red Heart Yarns.