Sewing With Thrifted Sheets!: Cation Designs Guest Post

Today's guest poster is Cindy from Cation Designs. I love reading Cindy's blog and discovering her innovative and creative sewn creations, as well as enjoying her humor and wit. Cindy is a science teacher by day and a sewing diva by night!
We share a love of sewing dresses from vintage patterns and thrifted fabrics. Cindy has been such an inspiration to me with her many dresses made from thrifted sheets. And they fit her so well too!
Read on......... I hope you will stop by and pay Cindy a visit after reading!

My very first sheet dress, which still gets worn!

I remember my heart speeding up when I opened my email inbox and saw Justine's message inviting me to be a guest poster here at SCC; this is the first time I've ever had the honor of contributing to somebody else's blog content! She asked me to write about a favorite summer sewing project. Unfortunately, if you ask anyone who knows me, I have a very difficult time picking my favorite anything, so instead of picking just one project, I thought I'd talk about my favorite source of sundress yardage, which is coincidentally also my signature fabric: vintage sheets from thrift stores! In the past year or so that I've been sewing seriously, I've made almost two dozen dresses out of sheets that I've "rescued" from the thrift store. And while several were made from plain solid-colored sheets, most were made from fun (and occasionally ridiculous) prints.

I realize, of course, that many people get the hibbly-jibblies at the thought of wearing clothes made from somebody else's old sheets, but I'm here to tell you that I've been wearing sheet dresses for a year now and have yet to show symptoms of any communicable diseases! Honestly, the amount of yardage for the average price just can't be beat, even if one is armed with Jo-ann's 40% coupons. Add in the fun patterns that can't be found anywhere else, and I think the negligible risk is totally worth it. So if you're interested in sewing with vintage sheets, here are some helpful tidbits that I've picked up in my adventures:

Finding sheets: The best places to find sheets are large thrift stores. Many smaller secondhand shops may not even have a home goods sections, instead focusing on clothing and shoes. It may take some poking around, but I assure you they're out there! You may also need to visit fairly regularly, as some weeks the sheets might all just be stained, polyester pill-monsters. Be patient, though, and eventually a gem will show up! If you are having trouble finding worthwhile sheets in large city stores, chances are surrounding small towns will have a better, less picked-over, more unique selection. For example, when I was living in San Diego, I didn't find much in the city proper, but regularly brought treasures home from El Cajon and Poway. My friend Shayna, who brings me my best sheets, found my Star Wars, Spiderman, and Seamstress' Rendering sheets in the small town of Yucaipa.

I was lucky enough to find these sheets in their original packaging!

Worth bringing home? When you do find a sheet that you like, unfold it as best as you can and check for stains, bare patches, holes, or rips. If there are trouble spots, you'll have to decide if you can work around them. Twin sheets may not be worth the fussy cutting, but the increased yardage of queen sheets (and the greater likelihood that they're been gently used by adults, not abused by toddlers in potty-training) is usually worth it. Oftentimes, fitted sheets will have worn thin in the middle, but the flat sheet is still in good condition. Once you've decided that the sheet is worth getting, expect to pay anywhere from $1 on a good day to $8 in a more upscale store. I average about $3/sheet, and many places will not charge more for a larger sheet.

Cleaning and storing: Once you bring the sheet home, you'll want to wash it as soon as possible. I've made the mistake of leaving them in my stash, and the thrift store smell only intensifies. Wash the sheet on hot to get rid of any ickiness, and if it smells extremely strongly, throw a cup of vinegar into the rinse water. If there are any stains or dirt on the sheet, you can try pre-soaking the spot with either dishwashing detergent, hydrogen peroxide, or a cold saline solution. However, chances are that you won't be able to remove it, as the sheet may have already been dried with the stain in it, thereby setting the stain in the fibers. I like to dry my sheets in the sun when I can, as the UV rays will kill any lingering germs. When you're sure that the sheet is dry, you can fold it up for storage with the rest of your stash. Or you can sew with it right away because you're so excited to use it!

Here's an example of a fun kid sheet that worked well for a sundress.

Fiber content and care: Most vintage sheets are 50/50 cotton-poly blends, so they'll be difficult to get a good crease on when pressing. The flip side of that is that they'll also resist wrinkling to a certain extent. Since they're usually tightly woven, you can even get away with just pinking the seam allowances if you don't have a serger. My Nothing But Blue Skies dress has held up just fine through many, many washes, and even then it was a fairly loose weave to begin with. The other good thing about sheet dresses is that they're meant to be machine-washable and be able to stand up to regular use and wear! Unless your sheet is especially threadbare or fragile, you can usually just toss them into the washer and dryer with no worries. There's also no shrinking or dye bleeding to worry about, either, since somebody else has done that work for you!

This very soft, Art Nouveau-esque queen sheet made an

excellent attending-a-wedding dress.

Sewing clothes: Depending on your sheet's drape and hand, you'll need to pair it with your pattern appropriately. My older, smoother, obviously well-cared for adult sheets are drape-y enough for circle skirts and looser, body-skimming cuts, but kids' sheets are often "crunchy"-feeling because of coarser threads and weave, and are best suited for structured bodices or very full, gathered skirts that are meant to have a lot of body. Sheets in general also don't have a lot of give, so be careful to factor in enough ease to move your arms and breathe! Speaking of breathing, since most sheets have a pretty high polyester content, you may want to consider lining your dress with thin cotton if you don't want to have the poly next to your skin. 

Suggested wear: It's easiest to find pastel and bright-colored floral sheets; these make great sundresses, especially in vintage styles from the 50s and early 60s. Sheets from the 70s with more geometric or funky patterns may need to be sewn into a sleeker, less full dress in order not to overwhelm. And don't be afraid to work with crazy kids' sheets! I know not everyone is into superheroes or other media franchises, but I'm always excited to find boys' sheets at the thrift store because it's a way to make clothing that shows off my geeky side. And of course, if you really can't find Star Wars sheets at your thrift store, you can always buy new at a big box store (I must confess to being seriously tempted by the thought of an X-wing dress!).

All the geeky dresses I've ever made from boys' bedsheets: Superman, Batman, Star Wars, Spiderman, and Clone Wars.

Other: I know I keep blathering on about sheets, but don't overlook the possibilities afforded by curtains! It can be trickier to find them in breathable fibers, but it's not impossible.

And lest you think sheet dresses must always be crazy prints, here are some examples

of dresses I've made from plain blue sheets: Alice, Pan-Am, and Ondine.

I hope my tips and pictures of past projects help you feel empowered and inspired to use old sheets as a fabric source! I love how this unlikely fabric can be so helpful to so many parties at once -- to the thrift store beneficiaries (they are often run by charities that help various disadvantaged groups), to the environment (since you are reusing old fabric instead of buying new), and to your wallet (it usually ends up being about $1/yard, which is pretty hard to beat!). And as a bonus, you are unlikely to ever run into anyone else wearing the same dress!

Thanks for having me here at Sew Country Chick, Justine. I hope you enjoy your vacation!

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