I was wondering if there was a rule of thumb as to the way to estimate the amount of fabric needed for the construction of any particular quilt. I realize it would probably depend on the design. The reason I am asking is that I ended up with an excess amount of fabric on the quilt I just made. That is ok as I had planned to use the excess for a couple of chair seat pads and a machine cover. Well the pads are made and the machine cover is 1/2 made and I still have lots of extra fabric. Does this mean that I have the start of a "Stash"? I hope there is a simple answer different than "it depends".
Yes, John this is the start of your stash. You can use it in a new quilt, keep it for a quilt repair in case something befalls your quilt, make practice blocks, trade it with another quilter, make HUG blocks, or whatever strikes your fancy.
There are fabric calculators online that someone mathematically inclined could use to help figure out yardage before purchasing it. I'm not math inclined so I just follow my instinct. I'm happy as long as there is enough fabric, and if not I now have enough stash to be able to use something different when needed. Debra in VA See my quilts at
John, it seems like you've mentioned that you would like to become proficient at free-motion quilting. That's a good use for your excess fabric. Make some sandwiches of it with batting in the middle. Eighteen inches square is a good size for practice, and practice is how you learn that one. If you're eager to have the excess gone, we have a quilter in this group who makes quilts for a pet rescue shelter and she is always grateful for fabric. Polly
I missed the link Mary sent you, but I use a rule of thumb of 2.5 (simple blocks) to 4 (log cabin or lots of piecing) times the area of the quilt in total - so a 7' X 7' quilt would be between about 12y and 18.5y. That is pretty generous, but then I have an ENORMOUS stash to maintain.
My first quilt I bought the exact amount I calculated I needed. I never did it again. Pre-washing, inaccurate cutting, minimum cuts - all have an impact. I would rather have too much than be an inch or two short. Now I buy in multiples of half yards/metres, in fat quarters, or in
5yard/metre pieces for backing. Everyone has their own preferences.
If a design calls for red I will usually use smaller pieces of 5-6 reds rather than 2.5y of one fabric. That way it is easy to change a design and work in another fabric to make up any short falls. If the tone/shade is close it is not a problem for the design, and I like the slightly randomised effect of mixing. To me it is what makes a quilt special - using lots of fabrics.
If you have a facility for figures you will quickly learn to estimate quite accurately.
I do a bit arithmetic. First, I figure the precise number of pieces of a particular shape in a particular fabric for the entire quilt. For each shape and fabric, I figure how many will fit across the usual 42" width of fabric (be sure to figure an extra 1/2" to account for seam allowances!) Then figure how many rows you will need for that shape and fabric, and that will give you the yardage. Be sure to add 1'2" between the rows for seam allowances. Do that for each shape and fabric. Now, if you are going to use sashing, figure that, too. And if you are going to make your own double bias binding, add 1 1/2 yards for a large quilt in the fabric you will use for the binding. Finally, add about a half yard or 10%, whichever is greater, to accommodate mistakes in counting, cutting, slubs in the fabric, etc. You will wind up with a bit of extra fabric for your stash, and not run short. When I am fabric-shopping, if a fabric I want uses all but a bit of a bolt, I just buy it all. Conversely, if there is not enough of a fabric I want, I choose another, and simply won't try to skimp.
I don't use the calculators, which are good for standard patterns, since I do all my own designing. At the moment I am piecing a design of my own that takes 72 pieces in each 12" block -- there are 2 sizes of squares and 1 triangle, and 2 fabrics. I was in a rather boring meeting in DC several years ago and doodled my way to this design -- the statistician was deadly dull, but the quilt is going to be great! I always take some quilting with me on vacation, and will take 30 to 40 blocks with me to piece on a world cruise I have booked. Stitching keeps me out of the casino in the afternoon, and is a great way to meet people.
Yep, you have the start of a stash! Congratulations! And for yardage estimating, if I need to know how much fabric to do the job, I use EQ5. It over-estimates, but at least I will know I have enough if I buy that amount.
I don't trust the pattern directions and always calculate how much fabric mathematically. I figure how many of a certain size can be cut from 40" width of fabric then divide the number needed by the that number. This tells me how many strips I need to cut. Multiply the number of strips by the width of the strip and you know how many inches of that fabric you need. Now I add at least 1/4 yard because you will lose a little in straightening. There are other things to take into consideration. Will you be using the border fabric in the body of the quilt? Figure the length of fabric needed if cutting the borders lengthwise. If you need four lengths at 6" width this means you will be using 24" of the 40" width. Can you cut the pieces for the body of the quilt from the leftover 16"? If so adjust your yardage for piecing. When you start to cut the fabric remember to cut the borders first (add several inches to the desired length just in case). Label this as borders for this specific quilt and set it aside in a safe place. Being an organized person you won't have an unfinished quilt sitting around for two years but some of us do. There is nothing worse that using fabric set aside for borders on another quilt.
Susan
Susan >I was wondering if there was a rule of thumb as to the way to estimate
I found it to be of more help than the one that Mary had posted, although hers works too. This one is more exact while Mary's is more of a ball park figure.
You calculate your yardage for each piece you need for your quilt. It will tell you how much yardage you need and also how to cut your pieces to get them out of that yardage.
Do watch it. There was one calculation that I did and ended up with twice as much as I would need, but it was new at the time so I'm assuming that they were working out bugs. Haven't needed one since so I don't know if they got it fixed yet. All my other calculations were accurate.
You will also want to make sure you allow a bit of extra for calculation errors, cutting errors, etc. And then yes, the extra becomes stash.
Well, there are formulas to calculate fabric requirements, based on number of square inches of the finished block, divided by number of pieces. Or you can work it out yourself, figuring that patchwork cotton is usually 40" of usable width. So how many 2.5" squares (for example) do you need, 16 squares out of each 2.5" strip of fabric, etc. But that's not how I make a quilt, so it's no use to me! Having stash is even more crucial than having all the crayon colors, because you could mix crayons in a pinch. Overdying fabric is time-consuming. Roberta in D, Queen of the Scrap Heap
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