If you’ve done any research on crochet hooks, you’ve likely come across the Clover Amour and Clover Soft Touch. Today we’ll cover the benefits of each, and which one might be right for you.
As an Amazon Associate, I earn from qualifying purchases. Learn more.
I’ve been crocheting for about 12 years, and have used the Soft Touch almost exclusively for most of that time. I’m a true creature of habit, and once I find something I love, I tend to stick with it.
When a YouTube subscriber asked me to do a comparison between the Clover Amour and Soft Touch, I knew it was the perfect excuse opportunity to try out a new set.
You can find my video review at the bottom of this post.
Quality
First, I want to say that these are both excellent quality hooks. I genuinely don’t think you can go wrong either way. But they’re also not the only hooks out there, and I encourage you to try as many as you can!
Beginners, I want you to know that having an expensive or “fancy” hook is not going to help you nearly as much as practice and gaining muscle memory. Don’t buy into the hype that you have to have the prettiest or most expensive hook to create beautiful pieces. It’s just not true.
That being said, if you’re considering upgrading from a standard plastic or steel hook, these are absolutely worth the investment. The ergonomic handles will save you so much hand and wrist pain in the future. Not to mention, they will both last a very long time. I’ve been using the same Soft Touch hooks for a literal decade, and they show almost no signs of wear.
In fact, you can see in the picture below the only difference between my most used (left) and least used (right) Soft Touch hooks is a very slight fading of the gold shaft. I have had no issues with handles splitting, size markings wearing off, or decrease in smoothness.
I can’t speak to the longevity of the Amour hooks, as I’ve only been using them for a couple of weeks, however Clover is known for making quality hooks. There isn’t anything that immediately stands out to me as an area of concern. I also haven’t heard of any complaints in the crochet community about the quality.
Materials
Both the Amour and Soft touch hooks have a matte aluminum shaft. (The shaft is the part with the hook.) If you’re worried they have a texture or roughness to them, don’t. They both glide incredibly smoothly through all types of yarn. The aluminum also makes these hooks lightweight, which is a plus when crocheting for long periods of time.
The Amour hook has an elastomer handle. It’s basically a nice smooth rubber that feels very soft in your hand, but still provides excellent grip and control. Side note: I actually think it’s kind of ironic that the Amour isn’t called the Soft Touch.
The Soft touch handle is made from ABS resin, which is a strong plastic. The handle has a very slight texture to it, but not something you will noticeably feel in your hand. It just provides a bit more grip than a smooth plastic. While the Soft Touch is less grippy than the Amour, I still find they have excellent control.
Markings
Both hooks have the US and metric sizes on the handle. The Soft Touch has the info printed clearly in black. The Amour has the sizes engraved into the handle. There are pros and cons to both of these.
Since the Soft Touch are all the same color, you have to pull them all out of your bag to find the right hook. However since they’re clearly marked, you can easily see what size they are.
The Amour has a different color handle for each hook size. This is great not only because it’s more fun to look at, but once you learn which color belongs to which size, you can reach right in your bag and grab it. The downside is, the markings are less visible. Until you memorize which color belongs to each size, you’ll still have to pull them out of your bag, and it may be harder for some to read them.
Shaft and Hook
Both the Clover Amour and Soft Touch have a tapered hook. There are many great debates on whether tapered is better than inline hooks (and vice versa), but it truly comes down to personal preference. There are pros and cons to both (that’s another post entirely), but my personal preference is tapered.
However, there is one important difference between the hooks themselves! The Amour has a slightly deeper bowl (the groove of the hook itself) than the Soft Touch. But what does that mean for you? Well, it depends on exactly how you crochet.
Grab a hook and some scrap yarn, and make a few double crochets in super slow motion. Pay attention to the way you move your hook. Do you find that your hook is often facing down (for example, when you pull through the loops on your hook)? Do you rotate your hook to grab a yarn over? If so, you might benefit from the deeper bowl.
I personally don’t rotate my hook very much, so I have no issues with the shallower bowl of the Soft Touch. One caveat though: I do find I drop more stitches with the Soft Touch than the Amour when I’m using a chunkier weight yarn.
Another difference is the length. The shaft on the smaller Amour hooks is noticeably longer than the Soft Touch. This can come in handy when working something like a bobble stitch, where you have multiple loops on your hook. However, I’ve noticed the larger sizes have much less of a difference in length, especially on the J-6.0mm hook.
Handle
I personally think the handles are the biggest difference between these hooks, and for lots of reasons!
For purely aesthetic purposes, the Amour wins hands down. If you haven’t noticed, I really love color, and these are just so much more fun to look at. Plus, like I mentioned, each hook size has a different colored handle.
While I love the gold hook on the Soft Touch, the weird brownish tan of the handle just isn’t as nice to look at, and gets pretty boring.
The length of the Clover Amour is longer than the Soft Touch, both in handle and overall length. I can’t say which is better. It really comes down to personal preference. I will say the longer handle on the Amour felt strange at first, but that’s likely because I’m just used to a shorter hook. After using them a bit, I don’t notice it nearly as much.
The major difference here is the shape of the handle.
The Amour has a much more rounded handle. The only flat part is the thumb rest. The back side of the thumb rest is rounded and chunkier than the rest of the hook. It gives you a little more surface area to place your fingers (depending on your particular grip), and has a more ergonomic feel.
The Soft Touch has a wide but somewhat flat handle. The thumb rest has an insert that is made of what feels like the same material as the Amour handle. When I first ordered these, I thought the insert might be a bit squishy, but it’s not. Despite the relative flatness, it still has an ergonomic feel.
Another little note, the aluminum shaft of the Amour does not go all the way to the end of the handle. The tip has a small amount of flex to it, but it’s not floppy. I’m applying some pressure in the photo below. To be completely honest, I don’t know if there is a particular advantage/disadvantage to this, or if it’s simply to save on weight or cost.
Pencil Grip vs. Knife Grip
So which is better depending on the grip you use? I personally think the Amour hook would be a bit better for the pencil grip. Keep in mind, I hold my hook like a knife, so I’m no expert on the pencil hold. However, I personally found it easier to use the pencil grip with the Amour hook.
On the flip side, I have seen both holds used with both hooks, and crocheting at lightning speed.
Final Pick
You’ve probably noticed I keep saying “It depends”, or “It comes down to personal preference”. And that’s because it does. Only you can truly decide which hook is best for your specific style of crochet. If you’re able, I would encourage you to try one of each before you jump in to purchasing a whole set.
But that’s not what you want to hear, I know. So, if I had to pick one to recommend to you, I would go with the Amour. The reason is, I think they provide a more comfortable fit for a wider range of styles, and especially for beginners.
That’s not to say the Soft Touch is by any means uncomfortable, or should only be used if you’re a more experienced crocheter. I learned on the Soft Touch, and there’s a reason I’ve used them for so long.
Will I be switching? Truthfully, I’m not sure yet. There is still much playing to be done, and I encourage you to do the same.
Video Review
Below you’ll find my video review of the Clover Amour and Clover Soft Touch hooks. If you like videos, be sure to subscribe to my YouTube channel for new tutorials and reviews every Friday.
I’d love to know which hook you picked, or which one is already your favorite!