Crochet supplies
The right hook and the right yarn are all you need to turn out some very beautiful accessories and trimmings in crochet. Here is how to go about it.
Crochet hooks – are chosen to suit the thread. The inside of the working end of the hook should be smooth – if it is too sharp, it will snag the yarn – marring the appearance of the project. The hooks at a glance chart shown below are self-explanatory.
Hooks at a glance:
| NAME | DESCRIPTION | SIZES AVAILABLE | USE |
| A Steel Hook | Length - 5” | Ranges from 00 to 14. The larger the number the smaller the hook size. | Ideal for working with very fine cotton, linen or silk yarn. |
| A Regular hook | Made of Aluminum or Plastic. Length – 5” or 6”. | Sizes C to K (3 to 11). The larger the number or the more advanced the letter, the larger the hook. | Ideal for working with wool and synthetic yarns – be it lightweight or heavy. |
| A Jumbo hook | A larger version of the regular hook. Made of light toned wood. Length – 10”. | Sizes 10, 11, 13, 15 and 16. | Used for working with bulky yarn like double knit or rug yarn. |
| An Afghan hook | Made of Aluminum or plastic. Length - 9”, 10”, or 14”. In afghan crochet stitches are worked onto the hook in one row and off in the next row – this hook is therefore of uniform diameter and has a knob at the other end to hold the stitches in place. | Sizes E to K | Used for working Afghan crochet also known as Tunisian crochet or Tricot crochet. Forms a knit like fabric. |
| A double-hook needle | Made of Aluminum or wood. Length - 14” | Sizes F to K plus M and N | Is a special hook used for working double-faced fabric in two colours. |
| A flexible Afghan hook | Made of metal and nylon. A regular metal crochet hook. It has a nylon extension with a knob to prevent stitches from falling off. | Sizes E to K | It holds more stitches than the regular Afghan hook. |
| A Jiffy hook | Made of hollow plastic. Length – 8” | Sizes Q and S | Used to crochet rug yarn or fabric strips. Work progresses quickly courtesy the jumbo size. |
| A Jiffy Lace needle | A jumbo single knitting needle. Made of hollow plastic. | Sizes 17, 19, 35 and 50 | Used with the crochet hook for working Broomstick lace also known as jiffy lace. |
http://www.karpstyles.com/crochet/hook-chart.html - this link has a hook size conversion chart. This chart is a must have especially if you collect patterns by European Japanese and American publishers. Each country uses a different system.
Hook brands: Clover, Susan Bates and Aero are the most popular.
Yarns: Yarns are chosen to suit the project under consideration.
Mercerized cotton yarn – means that the yarn has undergone a process to strengthen it and to give it luster.
Boilfast – means colour will not run or fade in hot or boiling water.
Ply – means the number of cords of yarn twisted together to make up a single unit – for e.g. 3-ply means three cords. Some are firmly twisted while some are not. It is the ply and the thickness (usually between 10 and 70 also called size – the higher the number the finer the yarn) and texture of the cord that give the yarn its appearance.
| Description | Size | Uses |
| 4-ply firmly twisted | 5 | Bedspreads , blinds, tablecloth, dress etc. |
| 4-ply Plus 1Metallic ply | 5 | Fashion Accessories |
| 8-ply firmly twisted | 3 | Bedspreads , blinds, tablecloth, dress etc |
| 4-ply very firmly twisted | 5 | Bedspreads , blinds, tablecloth, dress etc |
| 2-ply loosely twisted | 5 | Dress and fashion accessories projects for baby clothing |
| 3-ply very firmly twisted | 70 | Lace edgings, trims, doileys etc. |
| 6-ply very firmly twisted | 20, 30 | Lace edgings,trims, doileys etc |
| 3-ply very firmly twisted | 10, 20, 30 | Lace edgings, trims, doileys etc. |
D.M.C., Coats, Patons and Sirdar are some of the most popular yarns - D.M.C. being one of the oldest players in the field.
If you are curious to know more about ply – here is a good read - http://www.purlbee.com/2-ply-4-ply-why-ply/
Here are some yarn links:
http://www.v-comm.net/seattleknitter/rowandata.html - Yarn stock chart
http://annekesneedleworks.com/Fibers2.cfm all company yarn
http://store.knitting-warehouse.com/crochet-thread-dmc.html
http://store.knitting-warehouse.com/crochet-thread-coats.html
http://www.angelyarns.com/yarns.php - all kinds of yarn
http://www.patonsyarns.com/index.php?PHPSESSID=37a45b4e4
61eb7a6978091306ec66827 - Paton’s home page.
Tags: afghan crochet, afghan hook, crochet, crochet hooks, crochet pattern, crocheting, hook, yarn
