These wooden crochet hooks from Laurel Hill are affordable and ergonomic!  See how they compare to other popular brands in quality and performance.

Laurel Hill has their own collection of handmade ergonomic wooden crochet hooks, and I got the chance to try some of them out!  The Laurel Hill Crochet Hooks are available in their online shop, and the folks over at Laurel Hill sent me a few hooks to test and review.  I enjoyed working with these hooks, so let’s get into the review.

Psst: During the month of November, these lovely hooks are on sale! The first 100 customers will receive a discount on the Laurel Hill Crochet Hook Variety Set.  Click Here to grab the deal.

What makes Laurel Hill hooks unique?

The beautiful wooden crochet hooks from Laurel Hill are handmade from exotic, sustainable wood.  They recycle small pieces of wood leftover from furniture and musical instrument factories, which would otherwise be burnt or thrown away.  Then, the craftspeople make these recycled materials into high-quality, hand-polished crochet hooks.

Crochet hooks from Laurel Hill are also more affordable than many of the other good-quality wooden hooks available.  They are priced at $9-$10 per hook, whereas many other handmade ergonomic wooden hooks range from $20-$90.

There are several things that I look at when I’m testing a crochet hook: the hook shape, the material, and the handle.

Hook Tip Shape

The wooden crochet hooks from Laurel Hill have an inline style hook tip, kind of similar to a Susan Bates hook.  However, the Laurel Hill hooks have a deeper notch and more distance from the notch to the very tip of the hook.

The tip of the Laurel Hill hook has a pointed shape, which helps the hook tip go in and out of stitches smoothly and easily.  I also like how deep the notch in the hook is.  It does a nice job grabbing the whole strand of yarn without splitting it.  The edges of the notch are nice and smooth, and do not snag the yarn as you are crocheting.

From left to right, Boye, Laurel Hill, and Susan Bates Crochet Hooks, size H / 5 mm.

Are wooden crochet hooks better than metal?

The way your yarn glides across the hook depends greatly on the material.  Some metal hooks have more friction than others, and the same goes with wooden hooks.  Many of the cheap bamboo hooks on the market have a lot of surface friction, which can make crochet slower and more difficult.  If a hook has more friction, the yarn does not glide in a way that allows you to crochet quickly.

All of the Laurel Hill hooks I tried are polished very smooth, with a finish coating on the outside.  It is super smooth, and is one of the slickest finishes I have found on a wooden crochet hook.  I love the way the yarn slides across this polished surface.

Some people prefer wooden hooks over metal, because wooden hooks warm to your hand and do not feel cold.

From left to right, Laurel Hill crochet hooks size H, I, and J.

The Ergonomic Handle

These hooks are designed to be ergonomic and comfortable to work with.  The thumb rest is smooth, with no sharp edges.  It is thicker than the thumb rests on the Boye and Susan Bates handles.  (See a comparison of the thumb rests in the photo under “Hook Tip Shape”.)  This thumb rest was designed with help from the Crochet Guild of America.  I find it pretty comfortable to hold.  The distance between the thumb rest and the hook is slightly shorter than I prefer, but is still very comfortable to work with.

Are these crochet hooks ideal for everyone?

These hooks can be used by many types of crocheters, but there is one thing about this hook that could make it ideal for some and not for others.  If you look at the shaft of these hooks (the area between the tip and the thumb rest), it tapers out to the large thumb rest in the handle.  For example, the H / 5 mm hook only measures 5 mm wide at the tip.  As you move down the shaft of the hook, it gets wider and wider.

Notice how the shaft of the hook is wider near the thumb rest than at the hook tip.

Since the loops on your hook have to slide up and down the shaft as you make your stitches, the loops in the stitch (especially the top one) get stretched larger.  This can cause the top of the stitch to be a little wider than the bottom of the stitch.  It can also make your tension much looser.

If you are a tight crocheter, then the larger shaft of the hook may help you loosen up your stitches.  However, for those with average crochet tension, this can make your stitches much too loose.  I found that I had to go down at least one hook size (if not two) to get the same gauge that I would normally get from a hook that size.  (In other words, the H hook gave me a similar gauge to what I would normally get with an I or J hook.)

Would I recommend these hooks?

Overall, I think the wooden hooks from Laurel Hill are of very nice quality, and are comfortable to work with.  I also really like the finish of the hooks and the affordable price.  I would definitely recommend them to tight crocheters.  They would also be nice for those with average tension if you don’t mind going down a hook size or two to get gauge.

Click Here to shop the Laurel Hill Crochet Hook Collection.

Do you have a favorite ergonomic wooden crochet hook?

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