Crochet hook?

Agreed Katcoffee I like granny squares or other squares because they are a great way of using up yarn and the end result is a riot of colours.

I made this for my daughter.

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I use 4mm hook for DK crochet and a 4mm needle for knitting DK as well.
Although OP was thinking she can only do granny squares there is so much you can do using colours and juxtapositioning. Here’s a couple I made over the last few years.

After learning, I ordered a set of crochet hooks of different sizes but so far haven't used any apart from those between 3.25 and 5mm.

I bought a beginners crochet book 50+ years ago! It gave concise information. It had some patterns as well. Think I gave it to a charity shop. don't crochet any more and have more or less forgotten what I learnt.

I have a book by Flora Klickmann, Primrose, called The Flower Patch Amongst the Hills which is set in a village I know.
It was my MIL's book and I've never read it, perhaps I will and go in search of her cottage 🙂

It isn't about crocheting.

caravansera I have quite a collection of crochet books and these are my oldest but I love them. They date from about 1911.

It is my regret that now because of arthritis and poor eyesight that I have to give up all kinds of , craftwork. Could never contemplate sitting down with idle hands as I have to now.
I also did cross stitch. Also dressmaking, tailoring.
My husband was a beautiful knitter. So even. All his own socks.on four needles.
I have just given my daughter in law a pile of Stitchcraft magazines dating from 1952. Only 2 ply wool (no synthetics) was available then and even all baby vests had to be knitted. No such things as babygrows.
It is different World now with wives having to work, have children later in life and have child care.

I've got crochet hooks of both types, all metal and the ones with plastic handles. And a few bamboo ones too.
Sometimes when my hand gets stiff I might change from one sort to the other.
Most of our craft group have tried both.

Bijou, I like a chart for filet crochet. I've made table mats in cotton yarn.
I too have made everything from fine cotton doilies to baby clothes, blankets and sweaters.

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Primrose 53. I have my eye on the rug on page 118 hooked in T shirt yarn.

Bijou. I prefer crocheting and knitting from a chart. I know that new crocheters can struggle with stitch placement. Charts make it clear how the stitches stack on top of one another so I would always urge people to learn the symbols and how to read charts.

I learned to crochet when I was 16, from the Golden Hands partwork series. The first thing I laboured over was a lemon lacy kaftan. What's now called hippy chic was all the rage in the early 70s. It had a square yoke in what I think was probably dc, a flared lacy body and short but flared sleeves. Picot edges might have been involved but I might be imagining that.

Then I made a white lacy mini dress. Sadly (or fortunately) there are no photos of me wearing these garments.

I had the whole collection of Golden Hands and Fashionmaker and regret throwing them away. Although the fashions will be of their time (70s) the techniques would still be the same.

The books I always return to are the Harmony Guides to Crochet Stitches which have written and charted instructions. A more recent favourite is Edie Eckman’s Around the Corner Crochet Borders.

I even crocheted jumpers, cardigans and dresses.

I have crocheted since I was five years old and during my time made everything possible from thick wool to fine Egyptian cotton doilies and tablecloths.
Unfortunately no longer because of eyesight and arthritis.
The French and Spanish patterns are in diagrammatic form which are much easier to follow.

Thank you just taken look at Bella, best one I've seen, now I can try myself, she explains everything

Caravansera

Lucy Attic 24's mandala wall at Yarndale 2014. Mine is there somewhere!

Her blog page about mandalas:

attic24.typepad.com/weblog/2014/05/mandalas-for-yarndale.html

And one of my favourite mandala pattern books.

Lovely. I have that book but haven’t made anything from it yet.

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Lucy Attic 24's mandala wall at Yarndale 2014. Mine is there somewhere!

Her blog page about mandalas:

attic24.typepad.com/weblog/2014/05/mandalas-for-yarndale.html

And one of my favourite mandala pattern books.

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Tamayra

Look up Helen Shrimpton
Crystals & Crochet
She has fantastic Mandala patterns & crochet along together projects. She’s also on FB

I love Helen Shrimpton’s patterns. Here are some I have made.

I use slender hooks without a handle as I find them more comfortable. For dk wool I use sizes between 3.5mm and 4mm. I learnt to crochet from watching YouTube videos. Mikey was really good. He explains everything really well. Good luck. 🍀🍀🍀

Look up Helen Shrimpton
Crystals & Crochet
She has fantastic Mandala patterns & crochet along together projects. She’s also on FB

I would also use a 4mm hook with DK and also recommend looking at Attic24. I’m making 4 of her blankets for family for Christmas. Have started early and expect to do one a month - about 4 colours a night watching TV is average. It’s great to watch them grow so quickly.
On crochet hooks, I have used both thin and thick and hold each type differently. Sometimes your hand gets tired or achy, and a change of hook style helps.
Have fun experimenting- it’s such a mindful and satisfying occupation x

I'm self taught and unfortunately adopted a "knife" grip which has become an unbreakable habit, but I advise beginning crocheters to try to use a pen grip if possible because it's easier on the wrist

Me too, pen50. I do keep trying to hold the hook like a pen but it feels more under control if held like a knife.

Very keen crocheter here!

A 4mm hook is the traditional size for DK wool, but I would tend to use a 4.5mm one for hooking blankets as they can get very heavy, and the bigger hook means a bit less weight for a given area. However if you are making stuffed toys then a smaller hook is better to stop the stuffing working its way through the holes - I would use a 3mm one.

I have quite arthritic hands and find the hooks with handle much better. I can recommend Clover's Amour and Tulip's Etimo hooks. Clover do a different one called Soft Touch but I find them slightly too short for my hands.

I'm self taught and unfortunately adopted a "knife" grip which has become an unbreakable habit, but I advise beginning crocheters to try to use a pen grip if possible because it's easier on the wrist.

If you're making crochet clothing (as opposed to accessories) then I would advise not using DK; crochet uses about 33% more yarn than knitting and most people find garments crocheted in 4ply to be much more comfortable to wear.

I took up crochet during covid with help of Youtube. I had to order hooks from Amazon as shops were closed. I found the old style metal ones sore on hands and made a soft handle from bit of rubber mat/rubber bands. Now I see you can buy ones with decent softgrib tops. Lots of granny squares now into rugs!

I am an experienced in crochet and would say:
There is no 'right' size hook - it depends on the effect you want
When comparing hook sizes check carefully: as well as UK & US terms, the size is often given in millimetres (I use this one)
If I try to think 'UK or US instructions' I get confused - so I look up what the pattern uses, then make my own notes on the stitches used and keep that for the whole project.
I have just swapped all of my hooks for 'Tulip' - very expensive, but I can manage them so much better with my arthritic hands.
Ravelry.com and its companion The Crochet Project are useful sites.

I agree with 4.00 mm hook for most dk yarn. Hooks seem to be relatively expensive these days so ask at local charity shops. Save money, recycle and help the charity!

My daughter decided she’d like to learn to crochet. I said I’d join her. We watched a couple of videos on YouTube yesterday afternoon.

I made a long chain and after a while had had enough. I turned it into a band for my hair.

My daughter persevered and spent the afternoon trying, unravelling and trying again. She ended up with a chain, and then learnt how to make rows. She made a rectangle of rows which for a first try was great.

Then she managed to make a small basket - she doesn’t know how but it looks great! 😂

Very proud of her efforts