Your border answer
You need 1 yard
for 8 strips, cut 4½″ wide
Maybe grab a little extra, just in case.
- Side strips (2)
- 80½″
- Top & bottom (2)
- 68½″
- Strips to cut
- 8
Pick a quilt off the shelf and its plan works out every yard for you.
How we worked it out
- Going all the way around takes 2 side strips (80½″ each) and 2 top/bottom strips (68½″ each, to cover the corners).
- That's 298″ of border needed. Every join between strips takes ½″, so 8 strips joined end to end give 332½″. Cut each one 4½″ wide: your 4″ border plus ½″ for the ¼″ seam on each side.
- Altogether, 1 yard.
Before you cut
- Measure the quilt top before the border is added.
- Choose the finished width of your single border.
- This calculator is for butted corners, not mitered or multi-border layouts.
Questions quilters ask
How do I calculate fabric for a quilt border?
For a simple border, cut two side strips the quilt height and two top-and-bottom strips the quilt width plus twice the finished border width. Cut every strip ½ inch wider than the finished border, for the ¼-inch seam on each side. This calculator totals those strips and rounds up the yardage.
Does this quilt border calculator handle mitered corners?
No. It is deliberately limited to a single border with butted corners, so the cutting plan stays clear and the result is easy to check before cutting.
Take the border numbers with you.
A one-page cheat sheet for every standard quilt size, worked out with the same math as this calculator.
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