Hexies are sized by one edge: a “1 inch hexagon” has 1 inch sides and stands 2 inches tall. Enter that size and your quilt, and you get the count, the rows, the fabric squares to cut, and the yardage.
Your Hexagons and Quilt
Fine-tune: seam allowance and fabric width
Your Quilt Takes
1,247hexagons
29 columns × 43 nested rows of 1″ hexies
Cut 1,247 squares at 2.75 in, baste each over a 1 in paper, and join point-up in offset rows.Spread the yardage across your prints, the total is what matters.
- Each hexagon2″ tall × 1.73″ wide
- Cut square per hexie2.75″
- Squares per strip15
- Strips · yardage84 · 6 ½ yd total
The Formulas
One Hexagon’s Measurements
height (point to point) = 2 × side · width (flat to flat) = side × √3 ≈ 1.732 × sideHow Many Cover a Quilt
columns = quilt width ÷ (side × √3) · rows = quilt length ÷ (1.5 × side)Hexagon rows nest: each new row drops only 1½ sides, not a full height, because the points interlock. That nesting is why a hexie quilt takes fewer rows than its height suggests, and why the arithmetic trips people up.
Fabric per Hexagon
cut square = hexagon height + 2 × seam allowanceWorked Example
A 50 × 65 in throw from 1 in hexagons (the classic EPP size), ⅜ in seams, 42 in fabric:
- Each hexie: 2 in tall, 1.73 in wide. Columns: 50 ÷ 1.73 ≈ 29. Rows nest, so 65 in holds (65 − 0.5) ÷ 1.5 ≈ 43 rows.
- Count: 29 × 43 = 1,247 hexagons: hexie quilts are long games.
- Fabric: each cuts from a 2¾ in square → 15 per strip, 84 strips → 6½ yd across all prints.
Hexagon Chart
Computed by the calculator above: size, true height and width, cut square at ⅜ in seams, and hexies per yard of 42 in fabric.
| Hexie (side) | Height | Width | Cut square | Per yard |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 0.5″ | 1″ | 0.87″ | 1.75″ | 480 |
| 0.75″ | 1.5″ | 1.30″ | 2.25″ | 288 |
| 1″ | 2″ | 1.73″ | 2.75″ | 195 |
| 1.5″ | 3″ | 2.60″ | 3.75″ | 99 |
| 2″ | 4″ | 3.46″ | 4.75″ | 56 |
| 3″ | 6″ | 5.20″ | 6.75″ | 30 |
How to Measure Your Inputs
- Hexagon size is the side, not the height: paper piece makers all label by the side. Measure a template along one straight edge.
- Seam allowance: EPP wraps ⅜ in comfortably; rotary-cut machine hexies use ¼ in. The fine-tune field covers both.
- Fussy cutting? Count on fewer per strip, the chart’s per-yard figure assumes edge-to-edge cutting.
Assumptions and Defaults
- Hexagons sit point-up in offset rows, the EPP standard. Edge part-hexagons count as whole ones: you cut whole hexies and trim the quilt edge straight.
- Each hexagon cuts from a square; cutting true hexagon shapes saves a little fabric and a lot of patience.
- Counts round up. Yardage rounds to the next ⅛ yard as one total: split it across your prints.
Hexie Questions, Answered
How many hexagons do I need for a quilt?
A hexagon quilt needs about 1,247 one-inch hexies for a 50 × 65 in throw and about 3,500 for a 90 × 100 in queen. Larger hexies reduce the count quickly, so the same throw made from 2 in hexies takes about 330.
What does “1 inch hexagon” mean?
A 1 inch hexagon measures one inch along each side, so the whole hexie stands 2 in from point to point and about 1¾ in across the flats. Every paper-piece seller sizes hexagons this way, which means templates from different shops match.
What size fabric square do I cut for each hexagon?
Each hexagon cuts from a square equal to its height plus a seam allowance on each side, so a 1 in hexie, which is 2 in tall, cuts from a 2¾ in square with ⅜ in seams. Precuts line up well with this: 2½ in jelly roll squares wrap ¾ in hexies, and 5 in charms wrap 2 in hexies.
How much fabric does a hexagon quilt need?
A hexagon quilt needs its hexie count times the area of each cut square, laid out in strips, and the calculator turns your exact quilt into strips and yardage. The throw example comes to 6½ yd in total, which most hexie quilts spread across dozens of prints.
Why are there fewer hexagon rows than quilt height ÷ hexagon height?
There are fewer hexagon rows than a straight division suggests because the rows nest into each other’s notches, so each new row adds only 1½ sides of height rather than the full 2. Divide the height by 1.5 × the side length to count rows, because dividing by the full height overcounts by about a third.