How many skeins of floss do you need?
Running out of one colour three-quarters of the way through is the most avoidable cross stitch problem there is. Dye lots vary, so matching a skein later isn’t guaranteed. Here’s how to estimate before you buy.
Short answer
Count the stitches of each colour on the chart, then divide by how many stitches one skein covers. A rough working figure for full crosses on 14-count Aida with 2 strands is about 900–1,000 stitches per skein. Finer fabric uses less thread per stitch, so a skein goes further on 18-count and less far on 11-count. Round every colour up, and add a skein for any colour you use a lot.
Try it on your photo Gingham shows the whole pattern before you pay anything.
What’s in a skein
A standard skein of six-strand embroidery floss, such as DMC Mouliné Stranded Cotton, holds 8 metres (8.7 yards) of thread made of six thin strands twisted together. For cross stitch you separate those strands and stitch with one, two or three at a time. Split into pairs, one skein gives you three 8-metre lengths of 2-strand thread — about 24 metres to stitch with.
A working estimate
Round up. Always.
How many stitches a skein covers depends on the size of each stitch and how many strands you use. As a rule of thumb for full cross stitches with 2 strands:
| Fabric | Approx. stitches per skein (2 strands) | 1,500 stitches of one colour needs |
|---|---|---|
| 11-count | about 750 | 2 skeins |
| 14-count | about 960 | 2 skeins |
| 16-count | about 1,100 | 2 skeins |
| 18-count | about 1,230 | 2 skeins |
The 14-count figure is the estimate Gingham uses. The other rows scale it by fabric count: a stitch’s thread length grows with the size of the square, so stitches per skein grow in proportion to the count. Treat all of these as estimates. Your tension, how you travel between stitches and how much you waste at the ends move the real number.
What changes the answer
- Strands. One strand covers about twice as many stitches as two, and three strands about two-thirds as many.
- Confetti. Scattered single stitches waste thread starting and ending, and a colour spread across the chart uses far more floss than the same number of stitches in one block. See confetti stitches.
- Carrying across the back. Long jumps behind the fabric eat thread quickly.
- Half stitches and backstitch use less per stitch but still add up on outlines.
- Your hands. Loose or tight tension and long tails at the start and end each shift the count by a noticeable margin.
How to count stitches per colour
Many chart keys already print a stitch count next to each colour. If yours doesn’t:
- Split the chart into its 10 × 10 blocks (the bold grid lines).
- For each colour, count or estimate how many blocks it fills, and how full they are.
- Multiply: a colour filling about 15 blocks is about 1,500 stitches.
For a large chart that gets tedious, which is exactly why a pattern maker that prints the counts is worth having.
Buying tips
- Round up every colour, even when the estimate says 1.1 skeins. Floss is cheap next to the hours in the piece.
- Buy the main colours all at once, from the same shop if you can. Dye lots differ slightly, and a patch of a different lot can show in a big area such as a background or a sky.
- Check colours in daylight. Colours on a screen are only approximate, and so are colour cards printed at home.
- Keep the numbers. Write the floss number on a bobbin or card for every colour as you wind it, and keep leftovers for the next project.
Get the shopping list with the pattern
Gingham’s color key lists every DMC number with its stitch count and an estimated number of skeins for your fabric count, so you can buy thread straight from it. Preview the whole pattern from your photo before paying anything.
