Fabric Yardage Calculator

Pick a project, tell it how wide the fabric is, and add the allowances that apply. The base numbers assume a woven fabric, an average adult size and no directional print. The reasoning behind them is in how much fabric do I need.

Why the width matters so much

Yardage is a length, not an area, so the same garment needs far less fabric off a 60 inch bolt than off a 44 inch one. The calculator scales the base figure by the width ratio, which is a good approximation for most layouts. It is not exact for very wide pieces, because a skirt panel wider than the fabric cannot be nested no matter how much length you buy.

When to ignore the number

If you have the pattern, use the envelope. It was laid out by someone with the actual pieces in front of them. Use this when you are standing in a shop without a pattern, planning a purchase, or checking whether a remnant is big enough to be worth buying.