I recently was asked to design crochet patterns using K, L, M,  N & P crochet hooks.  I have been designing for 7 years and I was only familiar with the K hook.

If you are unfamiliar with crochet and its hook system it works like the Alphabet.  A is first and the smallest hook size-what you use to manipulate the yarn or thread as you stitch--with B the next size and so on, each growing in hook size as as the ABC's progress.  The hook size determines the thickness of yarn you can use and the gauge or stitches per inch you will get.

I found the K, L & M hooks easiest to use.  They worked well with the thicker of the new yarns out today.  The L & M I found were very good when working with two of more strands of yarn at a time.  With their larger hook size I was better able to keep both my strands of yarn at the same tention and was less likely to drop one of the yarns as I completed a stitch.

The N & P hooks were harder for me to work with.  It was a lot like someone who writes a lot suddenly going from a number two pencil to one of the fat pencils pre-school kids use.  In other words, I could use it, but it just didn't feel right.  It took far more concentration to manipulate and keep the tenion and yarn flowing.  It was such a struggle I gave up trying to design with these and went back to the L & M.

 I am happy to say one of the three designs I submitted was accepted.  The other two can be found in my eBaby store: Caron Clown and Lion Suede Shrug