No sleeves makes the vest the most predictable garment to estimate — roughly 700–1,000 m of worsted at size M — but colourwork fronts need a generous buffer.
Without sleeves, yardage is essentially two rectangular body panels shaped at the armhole and neckline. Those shaping decreases consume surprisingly little extra yarn, so the rectangle estimate is accurate to within 5%. Where vests trip people up is colourwork: a stranded yoke or Fair Isle panel runs two yarns simultaneously, nearly doubling consumption for that section. A V-neck uses less yarn than a rounded neckline because it removes more fabric. Crochet vests worked from the bottom up in single crochet use around 15–20% more yarn than a knit stockinette vest of the same dimensions.
Calculated with 8 yarn weights, size M, 15% reserve. Pattern: Knitting → Stockinette · Crochet → Double crochet.
| Yarn weight | Meters per 100 g | Balls needed | Total meters | Approx grams |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Lace | 600–1200+ m / 100g | 2 | 828 m | ~103 g |
| Fingering | 350–550 m / 100g | 3 | 935 m | ~217 g |
| Sport | 250–350 m / 100g | 3 | 838 m | ~279 g |
| DK | 200–300 m / 100g | 4 | 880 m | ~352 g |
| Worsted / Aran | 150–220 m / 100g | 5 | 747 m | ~404 g |
| Bulky | 80–140 m / 100g | 6 | 592 m | ~538 g |
| Super Bulky | 40–80 m / 100g | 7 | 410 m | ~683 g |
| Jumbo | < 40 m / 100g | 9 | 248 m | ~828 g |
| Yarn weight | Meters per 100 g | Balls needed | Total meters | Approx grams |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Lace | 600–1200+ m / 100g | 2 | 994 m | ~124 g |
| Fingering | 350–550 m / 100g | 3 | 1122 m | ~261 g |
| Sport | 250–350 m / 100g | 4 | 1006 m | ~335 g |
| DK | 200–300 m / 100g | 5 | 1056 m | ~422 g |
| Worsted / Aran | 150–220 m / 100g | 5 | 896 m | ~484 g |
| Bulky | 80–140 m / 100g | 7 | 710 m | ~646 g |
| Super Bulky | 40–80 m / 100g | 9 | 492 m | ~820 g |
| Jumbo | < 40 m / 100g | 10 | 298 m | ~994 g |
The yardage multiplier (×) shows how much more yarn each stitch uses relative to stockinette / double crochet baseline. Sorted by yarn efficiency.
Open mesh saves yarn
Baseline—minimum yardage
Bulkier, +20%
Crossings eat +35%
Two-yarn floats
Minimum draw
Open motifs
Pieced motifs
Airier, lighter
Between sc and dc
Tightest fabric
Fabric area scales from XS to 2XL. Use this to understand why larger sizes need significantly more yarn.
| Size | Area multiplier | Fabric area (m²) |
|---|---|---|
| XS | ×0.78(-22%) | 0.70 m² |
| S | ×0.88(-12%) | 0.79 m² |
| M | ×1.00(baseline) | 0.90 m² |
| L | ×1.14(+14%) | 1.03 m² |
| XL | ×1.28(+28%) | 1.15 m² |
| 2XL | ×1.42(+42%) | 1.28 m² |
They're empirical multipliers measured against stockinette (1.0). Cables and stranded colourwork eat more yarn because of the extra bulk; lace and filet use less. The numbers are averages — if your tension is unusual, drop in a real swatch in advanced mode and we'll override them.
Simple mode falls back to typical gauges for the yarn weight you picked. For wearables we still recommend a 10×10 cm swatch — once you have one, switch to advanced mode and the maths gets sharper.
The base calc is area-based. Tricky shapes (raglan, A-line, hooded) are absorbed by the 10–20% buffer; for full-body cabled sweaters or steeked cardigans we suggest pushing it to 25%.
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