Blanket yarn calculator and size chart

How the swatch method works

A blanket is mostly one stitch pattern repeated over a big rectangle, so yarn use scales with area. If a 6 × 6 in swatch uses 12 g, a 50 × 60 in blanket has about 83 times the area and needs about 83 times the yarn:

yarn = swatch yarn × (blanket area ÷ swatch area) × (1 + extra %)
12 g × (3000 ÷ 36) × 1.10 ≈ 1100 g → 11 skeins of 100 g

This is far more reliable than general charts, because it uses your yarn, your hook or needles and your tension.

Getting an accurate swatch

• Make it at least 6 × 6 in (15 × 15 cm) in the blanket's main stitch. Bigger swatches give better estimates.
• Trim the tails before weighing, and measure the swatch after washing and blocking it like the finished blanket.
• A kitchen scale that reads in 1 g steps is fine for swatches of 10 g or more.
• No scale? Unravel the swatch, measure the yarn, and enter it in yards or meters instead.
• Borders, fringe, bobbles and colourwork use more yarn per square inch. Add them separately or raise the extra percentage.

Common blanket sizes

There is no single standard, and sources differ by a few inches, but these are typical finished sizes: