Sewing & crafts
Embroidery thread budget
Estimate skein quantity from measured stitch use and working strands.
A clear answer. Here’s how.
Multiplies stitch count by your measured per-stitch single-strand length, working strands and waste factor. A skein supplies bundled length × bundled strand count of single-strand thread. Rounds skeins upward and assumes all strands can be separated and used. It does not assume a universal stitch length or account for colour-by-colour leftovers.
See a worked example
Worked example
A fixed demonstration, separate from the values you enter above.
- Stitches
- 2000
- Measured thread per stitch per strand (mm)
- 3
- Working strands
- 2
- Strands supplied in floss bundle
- 6
- Bundled skein length (m)
- 8
- Extra for tails, travel and waste (%)
- 20
Example result
- Total single-strand length (m)
- 14.4
- Equivalent bundled floss length (m)
- 2.4
- Skeins required
- 1
Uses your measured thread length per stitch per working strand. Assumes every supplied skein strand can be separated and used; include tails/travel in waste or measured length.