🧵 Floss Skein Requirement Calculator
Enter the total strand length your project needs (from your pattern's floss usage chart, or estimated from stitch count) to see how many skeins to buy per color.
A division that always rounds up
You cannot buy part of a skein, so the total you need is divided by what one skein holds and the answer is rounded up:
skeins = ceiling(total strand length / length per skein)
900 in / 480 in = 1.875 → 2 skeinsThe result is per colour. Run it once for each colour in the pattern, using that colour's own usage figure from the floss chart.
Getting the two lengths in the same units
The trap is mixing bundle length with strand length. A DMC or Anchor skein is 8.7 yd, which is 8 m or about 313 in of six-strand floss as it comes off the card. Pull it into single strands and the same skein gives 6 × 313, near enough 1,880 in of usable strand.
- Pattern quoted in single strands? Enter 1880 as the length per skein.
- Pattern quoted in skein-lengths or bundle inches? Enter 313 instead. The 480 in the box is only a placeholder — replace it with the figure for the brand you buy.
- No usage chart at all? One skein covers roughly 1,500–2,000 full cross stitches on 14-count Aida with two strands, so divide the stitch count for that colour by about 1,700.
Frequently asked questions
How many inches is a skein of DMC floss?
8.7 yd, or about 313 in, of the six-strand bundle. Separated into single strands that is roughly 1,880 in of working thread.
How many cross stitches will one skein do?
Around 1,500–2,000 full crosses on 14-count with two strands. Coarser fabric eats more: on 11-count the same skein does closer to 1,200.
Should I buy a spare skein of each colour?
Buy the whole amount at once and check the dye lot. Skeins of the same number from different lots can differ enough to show as a band across a large area of fill.