So..... I'm making my first quilt, and the pattern called for 5/8 yards of 18 different purple and blue fabrics, in 4-5/8 strips, then cut into squares. Well, I only had 9 colors (and I'm a rebel, so they're not all shades of purple), so I thought I should make twice as much. I had about a yard of each. So I just started cutting away, and I kept cutting and cutting. I had half-square triangles of two different fabrics when I finally took another look at the pattern.
Gulp.
It said one 4-5/8 x 20-inch strip of each of 18 fabrics. I'm not sure where I got 5/8 yards. So I counted the two colors I had already cut, and I had more than enough for the whole quilt. But I didn't want the whole quilt out of just those two colors, so then I figured out exactly how many squares I would need of each of 6 colors.
I have enough half-square triangles left to make a baby quilt, at least. Thank goodness these will be good colors for a baby quilt! LOL
So the first lesson in quilting that I have learned is: READ THE PATTERN THREE TIMES BEFORE STARTING!