This 'n' That - Finger comfort

Here is a tip for you crocheters. Recently I was checking some tutorials to see if I am doing some crochet stitches right, and I wasn't! After all the decades I have been crocheting, I guess I interpreted the written directions a little wrong. But that isn't exactly my tip today.

Do you know what these are?

Do you know what they are used for?

Some people call them pencil cozies. The name on the package says they are gel grips - for pens and pencils. They are found in the pen/pencil section of the store, and there are many in a package.



Here is how crocheters use them -

When I crochet large projects like afghans, my thumb  always got sore from gripping the hook at the flat part where the brand is stamped, and raised. These gel grips keeps that from happening, and it keeps me from holding the hook so tightly and therefore getting cramped. They would not stay in place as I worked so I wound a small rubber band at the top of the grip and now they stay in the proper place and I can crochet away without a sore thumb or cramped hands! Don't you like my color coordinating? I even found a little red rubber band for the red hook. I know you can buy hooks with the thicker shaft, but I have all the hooks I need so am not going to spend money on more. That's because I am a cheapskate frugal.

It took a little time getting used to them but I wouldn't want to be without them now. If this picture looks a little odd, it is because I am a lefty. I realize some of you hold the hook different than I do, so the grip may not be as important to you. You probably hold it more like I would hold a knife instead of a pencil like I do. The first time I saw someone crochet that way I thought it was really odd, but since then I have discovered many others do it that way also. And I found out that either way is correct. It is just a matter of how you learned and what you are comfortable with. I have tried it the other way and I had a hard time keeping my tension even, but I suppose if I kept at it I would eventually get it to work. But I don't need to change, and I have done it this way for maybe 60 years and it has served me well. But I will be using the grips from now on!

(rereading this I see I used a lot of 'buts' here, BUT taking them out didn't seem right either! This is the way I talk, so this is what you get.)