Who doesn’t love a soft, cuddly blanket? The best blankets are those that you sew using your own 2 hands. However, before you put needle to thread, you first have to figure out how much fabric to get in order to make a blanket.
On average, you will need between 2.5 and 4.5 yards of fabric to make a single blanket. The precise amount depends on what size blanket you want to make.
In this guide, I’ll explain what a yard of fabric is, how much fabric you’ll need to make various types of blankets, and how to calculate the amount of fabric you need for a blanket.
How Big Is a Yard of Fabric?
While a yard of fabric might sound like 3 × 3 feet, that’s not exactly how it’s calculated.
If you were to stand a roll of fabric upright, it would have a height of between 40 and 60 inches. This is usually referred to as the length of a fabric roll, while measuring how much fabric to cut from a roll is referred to as the width.
A yard of fabric is 3 feet of fabric cut from a roll. So, its measurements would range between 36 × 40 inches and 36 × 60 inches. Due to the wide variance, it can be somewhat confusing when determining how many yards of fabric you’ll need for a sewing project.
How Many Yards of Fabric to Make a Blanket?
To make matters even more confusing, you first have to determine what type of blanket you want to make before deciding how much fabric to buy.
Premade throw blankets at stores or online shops typically measure 50 × 60 inches. And since blankets are usually 2 pieces of fabric sown together with pom-pom trim stuffing, you would have to double the amount of fabric you need by 2 based on ready-made blanket measurements.
For instance, if you want to make a 50 × 60-inch throw blanket, you would need 100 × 120 inches of fabric, which is roughly between 2.5 and 4.5 yards of fabric.
Now, let’s take a look at common blanket types and their measurements to determine how much fabric you would need:
| Blanket Type | Blanket Measurement | Fabric Required (estimate, doubled) |
| Twin Comforter | 39 × 75 in. | 2.8 to 4.1 yards |
| Double Comforter | 53 × 88 in. | 4.4 to 6.5 yards |
| Queen Comforter | 60 × 88 in. | 4.9 to 7.4 yards |
| King Comforter | 78 × 102 in. | 7.4 to 11.1 yards |
| Twin Duvet | 64 × 89 in. | 5.3 to 8 yards |
| Double Duvet | 78 × 78 in. | 5.7 to 8.5 yards |
| Queen Duvet | 88 × 90 in. | 7.4 to 11 yards |
| King Duvet | 102 × 100 in. | 9.5 to 15 yards |
| Twin Throw Blanket | 66 × 90 in. | 5.5 to 8.3 yards |
| Double Throw Blanket | 85 × 90 in. | 7.1 to 10.7 yards |
| Queen Throw Blanket | 90 × 100 in. | 8.4 to 12.5 yards |
| King Throw Blanket | 108 × 100 in. | 10 to 15 yards |
| Crib Quilt | 36 × 60 in. | 1 to 1.5 yards* |
| Youth Quilt | 54 × 78 in. | 2 to 3 yards* |
| Twin Quilt | 70 × 90 in. | 3 to 4.4 yards* |
| XL Quilt | 70 × 90 in. | 3 to 4.4 yards* |
| Double Quilt | 84 × 90 in. | 3.5 to 5.3 yards* |
| Queen Quilt | 90 × 95 in. | 4 to 6 yards* |
| King Quilt | 108 × 95 in. | 4.8 to 7.2 yards* |
*Does not need to be doubled
How to Calculate How Many Yards of Fabric You Need
You can use the estimates in the table above to figure out the rough averages of how much fabric you’ll need. However, if you want a more precise figure (fabric by the yard can be expensive!), it would be a good idea to calculate your exact needs.
Here’s how you do it:
- Determine how long and wide to make your blanket.
- Add 2 to 5 inches to the final figure for edging and seam allowance.
- Compare those calculations to the length of fabric available to you (between 40 and 60 inches long).
- Divide the amount of fabric you need by the amount of fabric per yard (it helps to calculate in square inches).
- Multiply the figure by 2 to determine the final fabric yardage count. Disregard this step if you’re making a quilt.
Let’s assume you want to make a 64 × 89-inch blanket while your local fabric retailer carries 50-inch-long fabric rolls.
- Required Fabric = ((Width + Seam Allowance) × (Length + Seam Allowance) ÷ Fabric Yardage) × 2
- Required Fabric = ((64 + 2 inches) × (89 + 2 inches) ÷ (36 × 50 inches)) × 2
- Required Fabric = ((66 × 91 inches) ÷ (36 × 50 inches)) × 2
- Required Fabric = (6,006 ÷ 1,800) × 2 ≈ 7 yards
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