Thursday, February 14, 2013

Did you know: sewing tip of the day

Did you know that a king sized flat sheet gives you 11,016 square inches of fabric to work with? Thats the yardage equivalent of  just under 7 yards of cotton by the yard (based off of 44" wide fabric)

Thrift stores are a gold mine of vintage print sheets that mimic the bright happy floral motifs of the 50's and 60's. King sized sheets can usually be had for around 5 dollars. You can get a nice full skirted dress out of one $5 sheet instead of 5 yards of cotton from the store. If you're lucky you can catch a good sale and spend $6 a yard. $5 vs $30? I'll keep hunting for sheets!


Image courtesy of chaletgirl
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4 comments:

  1. Mariela SantillanFebruary 15, 2013 at 7:55 AM

    Great tip! I've been doing this for a while. The sheets also tend to be thicker and are made to be washed repeatedly.

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    Replies
    1. UnknownFebruary 15, 2013 at 9:42 AM

      I'm actually cutting a dress today! I want to test out one of the butterick reproductions with a vintage sheet before I go cutting in to some of my more expensive fabrics

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    2. Mariela SantillanFebruary 15, 2013 at 10:29 AM

      I hear ya. It's a cheaper, safer alternative to ruining expensive fabric. I want to make myself some retro jeans but am waiting to see how one of the repro patterns will fit me.

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    3. UnknownFebruary 15, 2013 at 12:44 PM

      arrgh this butterick pattern claims easy, but the bodice is lined AND full of darts. its super frustrating. I need to get some transfer paper this weekend because doing it with pins and a washable fabric marker is driving me insane. Transfering with chalk lines is sooo much easier

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