Boy do I need help!!
#1
Boy do I need help!!
I know I am in good hands here on this board. I need help figuring out how much fabric I need. I have a quilt top that is 76 inches long, 62 inches wide. I want to add fabric to the sides and bottom with a 16 inch measurement. I want to make it like this: A brown 6 inch stripe, then a 4 inch white stripe and finish with a 6 inch brown stripe. How much fabric of each do I need? Please tell me how to figure this. Any question that I have not covered, let me know. Thanks everyone.
#2
Power Poster
Join Date: Dec 2008
Location: Western Wisconsin
Posts: 12,930
Here are some questions.
Do you need to minimize fabric purchase by piecing the border strips? It's a lot easier to calculate the yardage if you can simply purchase enough yardage to match the longest measurements.
Are the 16-inch, 6-inch, 4-inch and 6-inch specifications finished sizes? (I would assume so.)
Do you plan to miter the corners of the borders? (I would not.)
Do you plan on adding the border strip to the longest edges first? (This is what I would do.)
Do you need to minimize fabric purchase by piecing the border strips? It's a lot easier to calculate the yardage if you can simply purchase enough yardage to match the longest measurements.
Are the 16-inch, 6-inch, 4-inch and 6-inch specifications finished sizes? (I would assume so.)
Do you plan to miter the corners of the borders? (I would not.)
Do you plan on adding the border strip to the longest edges first? (This is what I would do.)
#6
Power Poster
Join Date: Dec 2008
Location: Western Wisconsin
Posts: 12,930
Here are my calculations, assuming that you can buy enough yardage so you do not have to piece the borders. (In other words, you would be cutting each strip along the selvedge edge rather than our more common cutting of width-wise strips.) This is assuming that by "stripe" you actually mean border. If by "stripe" you mean "striped fabric" then I am assuming that you want the fabric strips running parallel to the quilt edges.
I am also assuming that your 76 inches by 62 inches are exact measurements of your quilt top (which means that these measurements include enough for a seam allowance).
First 6-inch brown border requires:
2 strips that are 6.5" wide and 76" long
2 strips that are 6.5" wide and (62 + 6.25 + 6.25)" long = 74.5" long
Second 4-inch white stripe border requires:
2 strips that are 4.5" wide and (76 + 6.25 + 6.25)" long = 88.5"
2 strips that are 4.5" wide and (62+6.25+6.25+4.25+4.25)" long = 83"
Third 6-inch brown stripe border requires:
2 strips that are 6.5" wide and (76+6.25+6.25+4.25+4.25)" long = 87"
2 strips that are 6.5" wide and (62+6.25+6.25+4.25+4.25+6.25+6.25)" long = 95.5"
95.5" equals about 2-3/4 yards of fabric. Unfortunately, you need 8 strips that are 6.5" wide which equals 52" and quilting fabric is at most 42". To not have to piece the brown borders, you would need to purchase 5.5 yards of fabric and you would have quite a bit left over.
The white fabric would require 88.5" in length, which would be about 2.5 yards if you don't piece.
It's an interesting challenge now to work out how to minimize the yardage requirements. I may have some time to do that later. (And *hopefully* my calculations above are correct. Perhaps someone else can check them and correct any mistakes. It's a little hard to scroll around in this small reply box to make sure I have not made a really stupid error.)
I am also assuming that your 76 inches by 62 inches are exact measurements of your quilt top (which means that these measurements include enough for a seam allowance).
First 6-inch brown border requires:
2 strips that are 6.5" wide and 76" long
2 strips that are 6.5" wide and (62 + 6.25 + 6.25)" long = 74.5" long
Second 4-inch white stripe border requires:
2 strips that are 4.5" wide and (76 + 6.25 + 6.25)" long = 88.5"
2 strips that are 4.5" wide and (62+6.25+6.25+4.25+4.25)" long = 83"
Third 6-inch brown stripe border requires:
2 strips that are 6.5" wide and (76+6.25+6.25+4.25+4.25)" long = 87"
2 strips that are 6.5" wide and (62+6.25+6.25+4.25+4.25+6.25+6.25)" long = 95.5"
95.5" equals about 2-3/4 yards of fabric. Unfortunately, you need 8 strips that are 6.5" wide which equals 52" and quilting fabric is at most 42". To not have to piece the brown borders, you would need to purchase 5.5 yards of fabric and you would have quite a bit left over.
The white fabric would require 88.5" in length, which would be about 2.5 yards if you don't piece.
It's an interesting challenge now to work out how to minimize the yardage requirements. I may have some time to do that later. (And *hopefully* my calculations above are correct. Perhaps someone else can check them and correct any mistakes. It's a little hard to scroll around in this small reply box to make sure I have not made a really stupid error.)
#7
Power Poster
Join Date: May 2008
Location: MN
Posts: 24,666
I gave you garbage numbers - and it won't let me delete!!!!
Use my drawing - and most of Prism's numbers!!! I ended up with 96.5 (76 + 8 + 12.5) for the last side border and 94.5 for the last top border (62 + 12 + 8 + 12.5)
I also ended up with 5.5 yards with the recalculation for the brown - and 2.5 yards for the white. (96.5 inches + 94.5 inches = 5.3 yards) Get a bit extra to allow for shrinkage and possibly wonky ends.
So - whether 62 x 76 is the actual size or the 'finished' size - these numbers are pretty close
Use my drawing - and most of Prism's numbers!!! I ended up with 96.5 (76 + 8 + 12.5) for the last side border and 94.5 for the last top border (62 + 12 + 8 + 12.5)
I also ended up with 5.5 yards with the recalculation for the brown - and 2.5 yards for the white. (96.5 inches + 94.5 inches = 5.3 yards) Get a bit extra to allow for shrinkage and possibly wonky ends.
So - whether 62 x 76 is the actual size or the 'finished' size - these numbers are pretty close
Last edited by bearisgray; 08-09-2012 at 06:05 PM.
#9
Power Poster
Join Date: Dec 2008
Location: Western Wisconsin
Posts: 12,930
Well, my numbers are a little off too. They work out more correctly if you drop all of the .25's from my equations. I am too lazy to repost all those equations with the real corrections; maybe later if I get some quilting done tonight and need a break! In any case, our yardage requirements come out the same if the borders are not pieced.
#10
Power Poster
Join Date: May 2008
Location: MN
Posts: 24,666
Well, my numbers are a little off too. They work out more correctly if you drop all of the .25's from my equations. I am too lazy to repost all those equations with the real corrections; maybe later if I get some quilting done tonight and need a break! In any case, our yardage requirements come out the same if the borders are not pieced.
I try to avoid width of fabric (WOF) cutting for borders - but this is not my project. Also - remember that MANY fabrics have only 40-42 inches of usable width.
(But it's late - maybe someone can come along and check it out again!)
Thread
Thread Starter
Forum
Replies
Last Post