Quick reference for makers
| Measurement | Equals |
|---|---|
| 1 yard | 36 inches, or 91.44 cm |
| 1 inch | 2.54 cm |
| 1 US fluid ounce | 29.57 ml |
| 1 cubic inch | 16.39 ml, or 0.554 US fl oz |
| 1 US gallon | 231 cubic inches, or 3.785 liters |
| 1 pound | 16 ounces, or 453.6 grams |
Fabric widths
Standard quilting cotton is sold 42 to 44 inches wide, but after washing and trimming the selvages, plan on about 40 to 42 usable inches. Wide-back fabric for quilt backs is usually 108 inches wide, which covers most bed quilts with no seams.
Three habits that save materials
Measure in one unit. Most costly mistakes come from mixing inches and centimetres, or fluid ounces and weight ounces, in one calculation. Each calculator here works entirely in the unit you choose.
Add a margin. Every project loses some material: seam allowances, shrinkage, resin left in the cup, wax that clings to the pouring jug. The calculators include an adjustable allowance rather than an exact minimum.
Buy by the full amount. Fabric is cut in fixed increments and resin kits come in fixed sizes. Round up to the next increment instead of buying the exact figure, and running short halfway through is much less likely.
Every tool shows the formula and a worked example, so you can check the result by hand.