{ tools of the trade - crochet hooks}

So you've decided to crochet... There are lost of various tools that you can purchase from your local craft store (mine has a pretty decent selection).

First, of course, you'll need a hook or two (or three, or a set, etc.).

What you want to know about crochet hooks:

My personal collection of steel, aluminium & plastic hooks

There are endless choices, when it comes to hooks. There are those made of plastic, metal (steel or aluminium), with soft gel-like grip, etc. There are different sizing systems as well (letters, numbers and metric system are used). Some even come in funky colours. Personally, I prefer metal hooks. Those of really small sizes - think, lace hooks - are usually metal. The really chunky hooks are generally plastic.

TIP: I find that using a plastic hook for large projects, such as a blanket, is easier on my fingers.

Let's talk about hooks sizes because they are important. Usually, one tries to match the size of the hook to the thickness of any given yarn, unless you want to spice it up a bit and create a looser/tighter end result.

There is no international standard for hook sizes, so you might often see a reference to a letter/number and/or a metric size. Some of these might be confusing as different countries use different sizes, or don't even have a specific "name size" associated with some sizes at all. Here's what I've been able to compile from various sources (there is some discrepancy among them):

As you can see, the U.S. lettering/numbering may vary, so I generally rely on metric sizing (plus, that's the actual measurement of the hook size anyway), but it's nice to have this chart handy.

Sources:
Wikipedia: List of US standard crochet hook sizes
Jackie's Crochet & Knitting: Crochet Hook Conversion Chart
Pani Anya: Hook Sizes (in Russian)
Yarn Forward: Crochet Hook Sizes and Conversions
Look At What I Made: Crochet Hook Sizes and Abbreviations