Learn my top tips on how to stop your needles and hooks from squeaking – for GOOD! To view my tips keep reading below!
*This post may contain affiliate links. Please see my disclosures page for more information.
Let me paint you a picture…
You’ve just settled into your comfy spot on the couch. Movie queued up on the TV – check. Hot cup of tea – check. Your hook/needles, yarn and pattern – check. You’re ready to get back into your current WIP and start on your first couple of stitches. You think about how tonight is the most perfect, relaxing night and you can’t wait to progress a few inches on your project.
You start into just a few stitches and all of the sudden you hear squeak, squeak, SQUEAK! With every. Single. Stitch.
You can feel the squeaks between your fingers and hear it ringing through your ears. NOOOO! Its the dreaded needle/hook squeak! Its terribly annoying and is essentially the sound and FEELING of “nails down a chalkboard”.
So, what to do you ask?! You’ve come to the right place!
I’ve been knitting and crocheting for years, YEARS, I tell you! And I suffer from perpetual sweaty and hot hands (so embarrassing, but true!). Not the best problem to have when you love to knit and crochet!
I know I can’t be alone, so that’s why I wanted to share these tips with you today! And don’t worry… for those of you with hands that are cool as cucumbers and ya still get the squeak, these tips can help you too!
Without further ado, below are my top 5 tips to stop your needles and hooks from squeaking.
How to stop your needles and hooks from squeaking – for GOOD!
1. Wash your needles and hooks regularly
- As gross as this is, the oils and sweat from your hands can create a film on your needles and hooks. (Especially if you have sweaty/hot hands like me!)
- If the film builds up, the yarn will be unable to glide over the hook/needle smoothly causing a resistance on the yarn, resulting in the squeaking noise! So be sure keep your needles clean!
2. Avoid using plastic hooks and needles go for aluminum.
- In my experience with plastic hooks and needles, I haven’t found any in which my yarn glides over both smoothly and QUIETLY. I suggest skipping plastic altogether and going for aluminum.
- For crocheters – go for aluminum hooks with some sort of handle (these, these and these are my go-tos). The handle will absorb most of your hand heat, allowing for the aluminum tip to remain cool and friction free (see tip 3).
- For knitters – My favorite straight knitting needles are Boye and Susan Bates, and I also highly recommend this interchangeable Boye set as well!
3. Run aluminum hooks and needles under cold water (if you can) or rest on an ice pack to cool them down.
- As you work, your hands heat up causing your needles to get warm. Warm needles cause more friction for your yarn as it moves across your hook and needles, resulting in the ever terrible squeak! Yuck! So try and keep your hooks and needles cool!
4. Sit by a fan as you work on your knit or crochet project.
- Sitting by an oscillating fan really helps to keep your hands cool as you work. This works like a charm every time – trust me!
- I cannot recommend this tip enough. I have an oscillating fan that I move around the house with me and I never knit/crochet without it.
5. You might need to loosen up your tension.
- If you’ve tried all the tips above and you still have squeaky hooks/needles, your tension might be too tight. Try loosening up on your stitches a bit.
- Having a looser tension will allow for the yarn to glide easier on your hook/needles making for less squeaking noises!
These are all my top tips, now I want to hear from you!! Let me know if you gave any of these a try and if you have any advice you’d like to share! Share with me in the comments below!
Some knitting patterns you might want to try:
Some crochet patterns you might want to try:
