Crafting with Old Sheets

Reusing trash and recyclables is great for the environment, and frugal as well, but it can be difficult to know where to begin. In this series of articles, I will be examining the possibilities of reuse available for a number a different items, including crafts and other possibilities.

Castoff sheets, blankets and other linens are easy to come by very cheaply at rummage sales, thrift stores, and even in our own linen closets. Maybe these have become outdated, or maybe they just never fit correctly, were not comfortable to sleep on, or wore out in the middle. This does not mean they have to be discarded and added to landfill piles.

These pieces of fabric can be given lots of new life and usefulness by being used to sew new home wares and household goods. They are generally quite large, and can be had at a fraction of the cost of newly bought quilting fabrics and cottons. Used linens are the perfect source for materials for many crafts and sewing projects for the home.

-If a sheet is starting to get worn in the middle, but is still sound and good on the edges, take a page from our pioneer foremothers' book and "turn" it. To do this, cut the sheet down the middle, make new hems for the cut ends, take out the factory hems, turn these to the middle and sew a flat seam to re-join the two halves. Of course, this was easier in the time when sheets were made at home in the first place because fabric was woven on smaller looms then and so was much narrower than we have now. To make a piece of fabric wide enough to cover a bed, two lengths were whip stitched together and hemmed. When the middle started to wear, the original seam was ripped out and the pieces turned the other way and re-sewn.

-Sheets, pillowcases, and tablecloths are wonderful sources for beautiful and original fabric to use in quilt making. Many vintage items have hand sewn embroidery and other decorative touches such as hemstitching that can be preserved in a quilt. This way, even if a sheet has worn through to nothing in the center, or a pillowcase or tablecloth is stained, the good fabric and hard work of the original owner can still be useful and enjoyable.

-Because sheets are very large pieces of fabric without seams in them, they are really good to use as backing for quilts. Store bought 45" wide fabric has to be joined with a seam to back all but the smallest of quilts, but a sheet does not, making it ideal.

-Flannel sheets and light weight blankets are very good to use as "batting" inside quilts as well. There are advantages to using sheets and blankets instead of regular batting for this purpose. The fabric is woven, and so even if the quilt is tied instead of quilted, or quilted widely apart, it won't break down and bunch up after many washings the way that traditional batting can. It also makes for a nice light blanket as well.

-Wool blankets can be "fulled" in a hot washing machine, shrinking and felting the wool together, to make very thick, non-raveling material. This wool felt can be used to make oven mitts and hot pads, as well as being cut into shapes and used as appliqués on penny rugs or other felt projects.

-Tear or cut sheets, blankets, towels, and other linens into long strips which can then be used for making rugs a number of different ways. Braided and hooked rugs are traditional, but very stylish throw rugs can also be knitted or crocheted from fabric strips with large needles or hooks.

So, save those perfectly good sheets and lines from being sent off to a landfill and rescue them for an extended lifetime of pretty usefulness!