YARN!
How many Balls, Skeins, or Cakes?
How many yards?
We are going to find out together in 14 steps!
Every project is going to be different. How much yarn you use is going to be different than what someone else used even if it's off just by a small number. The reason for this…
Tension
Hook size
Stitch
How you crochet including tension and hold of your hook is going to determine everything. Now let's add in the stitch you are using.
Every stitch from basic stitches such as single crochet and double crochet to stitch combinations such as moss stitch and V stitch. ALL of these are going to give you different numbers.
So, How much yarn do you need?
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It's a formula…
Measurement of overall project
How many stitches per inch
How many rows per inch
How much yarn per stitch
So lets say I am making a dish cloth. It will be 9 inches wide by 9 inches tall. I will use a single crochet. And a 5.5mm (I) sized hook.
1. So to start I am going to chain 15.
2. I will single crochet 1 time in the 2nd chain from my hook.
3. I then will take a twist tie and tie it on my working end of yarn where I finished my single crochet
4. Then I rip out the single crochet and 1 chain stitch.
5. I will put another twist tie. Where I ripped out the chain stitch.
6. Lay flat
8. Measure from twist tie to twist tie. Write down number. ( round to the nearest inch).
This is how much yarn you used per 1 stitch. We will come back to this.
9. Chain 1 again. You should have 15 chains.
10. Single crochet all the way across.
11. Chain 1 continue making swatch in a single crochet until your height is 1 inch tall.
12. Lay swatch flat
13. Measure how many rows you get per 1 inch. Write down number
14. Measure how wide it is for 1 inch. Count your stitches.
Now here are our numbers as an example...
Yarn usage per stitch: 4 inches
3 rows = 1 inch
4 stitches = 1 inch
9 inches wide is
4 stitches x number of inches (9)= 36 stitches
9 inches high
3 rows x number of inches for height (9) =27 rows
Stitches for width times (x) the number of rows is total stitch count
36 stitches x 27 rows =972 total stitches
Yarn per stitch times (x) the total number of stitches = total yard usage in inches
4 x 972 total stitches = 3,888 total inches
Total inches divided by (/) inches in a 1 yard.
36 inches= 1 yard
3888/36= 108 yards
You will need 108 yards to do a single dish cloth measuring 9 inch by 9 inch in single crochet using a 5.5mm hook (I).
Now let's say you used a larger hook and a different stitch…
Repeat the above process. Every hook and stitch will change how much yarn you use.
I hope this has made your calculating yardage so much easier to understand and allow you to know how much yarn you need.
May you always be able to find the yarn in the colors you need!
Best of luck,