I am bothered by the quilt sizes that most quilting programs use and here is why: they show
King size as 110" by 110"
Queen size as 90" by 110"
Full size as 80" by 90"
Twin size as 72" by 90"
Crib size as 36" by 48" (personally I never make them this small)

there should be 2 more sizes that I can think of, one is Lap size and one should be Couch size.

When I think of Lap size, I think about all the people that are handicapped and for them to have a manageable size I think it should be about 48" by 60" which would be easy to fit around those people in wheel chairs.

and Couch size is for people that are taller then 5', LOL, that want to lay around on the couch and snuggle with their personal quilt. I would think this size could be about 54" by 70".

So what's your take on this?

I make my quilts for the actual size I need. What I use for a throw is really closer to a twin size. I want to be covered on the sofa and If I turn over I don't want any body parts uncovered.:)

I love lap quilts...just need from the waist down...while watching TV and typing on my laptop.

I make Hospice lap robes(mostly in wheelchairs) and the two sizes we use are 30" x 36" and 36" x 42". Our group finds these sizes work best and don't get caught in the wheelchair wheels.

When I am asked to make a lap quilt I always ask if it is for one or two laps. It makes a difference.

according to my reference, the measurements you gave for the standard sizes are sizes with a large drop...at least 14 inches. and like erstan947, my throws are almost as big as a twin...I call them nap quilts because they're big enough to nap under without sticking body parts out the sides.

The measurements sound good to me. I like my throws to be big too.

Now see!! This is the issue we've been having with the quits for Bert's soldiers in Afghanistan, too.

We set the size for these at average 48x64 (give or take, you know?), which means the batting has to be about 54 x 70. No such animal!!

We are reduced to piecing "cribs" (46x60) and "throws" (60x60) to get the length we need, and then repiecing the leftover sections . It's a lot of work when I'm dealing with about a hundred quilt tops! No matter what size we use, we have to cut and piece, except "king," and they're too expensive for us to use, getting only 4 quilts from one batt.

Jan in VA

Jan: I get the 30 yd rolls of batting and cut the size I need I get the 93" wide Dream Poly which is a good width for cutting. This is a more economical for the small quilts I make. It is available in 60" widt x 30 yds, 93" x 30 yd and 122" x 30.

Thank you, Holice; we are familiar with that roll. We are using cotton batting because it's so hot where these men are most of the year. Remember, we are getting the MBQProject batting at a substantial discount due to the generosity of the company we buy from; we can still get more quilts from piecing than from the roll, no matter the size. It's strange. We did buy a roll, though, for our long armer to use, though.