I've been lucky enough to acquire a fair few sheets and other cuts of vintage fabric over the past few weeks. I haven't had much time to visit charity shops, but on the last three occasions I've made it to one local one I've left with 1970's bed sheets and pillow cases. My gran gave me a checked blue skirt I remember her wearing in the 1980's and 90's, along with a 1960's pillowcase still in its original packaging. The packaging had unfortunately perished and had to be thrown away, but the pillowcase is quite literally good as new.
The middle above was part of a lucky win in a giveaway by Oooh Betty.
The above embroidered tablecloth was bagged for a cheeky pound at a car boot sale a while back. I've been very fortunate in that the charity shop which has been producing this fabulous fabric fruit is not one of those which has cottoned on (pardon the pun) to the vintage craze and decided to sell sheets at obscene prices. I generally never pay more than £2.50 for a sheet. That said, I've been on a winning streak, I can go months at a time without finding any vintage fabric at all, and it's at these times that I take to the likes of Etsy in search of cottony retro treasures to add to my growing vintage fabric stash.
Here are some of the shops I like to browse and sigh over:
Vintage Sheet Addict ~ The queen of vintage sheets herself, Ada Bea! She sells the most beautiful FQ bundles, and her shop has become really popular since it opened last year. Her blog is also the perfect place to get a vintage sheet ogling fix, not to mention all the wonderful things she makes with them.
Pattern Like ~ Such an array of lovely vintage floral fabric as you never did see, all the way from Denmark. I browse this shop on a bad day and all the colours lift my spirits.
Ducky House ~ Based in Winnipeg, this shop has some unusual vintage fabric designs, which very much remind me of all things granny chic.
Reloved Preloved ~ Splendiferous items made from vintage sheets! I'm enjoying these aprons:
If you have any vintage fabric shop or blog recommendations please share them in the comments below, so I can continue to drool. You know, I think my appreciation of these lovely retro pastel colours is heightened by my desperation for Spring to arrive. It's good to know that when the winter blues strike I can simply stick my head, ostrich-like, in my fabric stash box!
Next week I'll be taking a little break from blogging to catch up on some work (boo), make buttons for my shop (yey!) and go on some mini adventures in search of all things creative, vintage and inspiring with Beatrix (woof), so I have lined up some fab guest bloggers for you. I'm pretty excited so please show them some love!
In the meantime, have a high thread count Friday,
These are beautiful and look so pretty all together. It's great when you find a charity shop that no other vintage shoppers seen to have found. I have one round the corner from me that is packed with vintage tea cups and sewing bits. I love it!
ReplyDeleteI posted yesterday about some of my vintage fabric collection. You might like it!
http://vintagefrills.wordpress.com/2013/02/14/my-vintage-fabric-collection/
Thank you Catherine, I would love to find another charity shop full of vintage china, but I fear I would end up owning more than I could handle! I'll take a look at your post, thanks! x
DeleteWhat a lovely collection! Might I ask how you wash your vintage fabrics?
ReplyDeleteI tend to use the 'handwash' cycle of the washing machine, and lace etc, is washed by hand. I've not acquired any particularly delicate vintage fabrics yet, but would handwash those if I did. x
DeleteSuch a lovely collection. I'm sure I've said this before but my parents had a laundry basket in the exact same pattern as the orangey/beigey/browny sheet. I also remember everyone having embroidered tablecloths in the 80s just like the one you have. I need to see if my mum still has any lying around in the attic, I'd love to get my hands on them! x
ReplyDeleteThose 80s embroidered numbers are cropping up for astronomical prices at flea markets! I think I need to visit your parents' attic too, I keep hearing about all these amazing treasures stashed there! x
DeleteI have nominated you for the Blogger of the year award. :)http://knitnrun4sanity.wordpress.com
ReplyDeleteThank you so much! I'm very flattered. I really must get around to answering these award posts. x
DeleteYou've found some great ones there! I will check out the other sites, need to get my fix from somewhere! :) x
ReplyDeleteIf I had your stash I'd be smiling at it all day long and get nothing else done! x
DeleteYou always manage to bag some lovely finds Anna! You're lucky that your charity shop hasn't caught on (loved the pun) the vintage craze, as unfortunately all of my local ones have! Sad that you're taking a little break, don't work too hard! But looking forward to seeing who your guest bloggers are! Xx
ReplyDeleteIt's a funny charity shop really as it mostly has modern homewares, books and clothes, and then these sheets pop up every now and again hidden among the other bedding. I think they think they must sell them cheaply as they're old! Thank you, looking forward to a week of crafting! x
DeleteI've always known it must be possible to find vintage sheets for a song in charity shops and the like, but I guess I'm just not a dedicated enough charity shopper (and I think Claire will agree with me the Cambridge ones tend to be pretty expensive). Add to that very limited offline shopping time and I tend to go for eBay and Etsy every time (big fan of Pattern Like too - and FrauSvensson too, but her colours might not suit your taste). That said, I'm super lucky as I have loads of vintage fabric FREE from my mum who is passing her stash over to me bit by bit. I love using fabric that will always make me think of her every time I glimpse it (as I'm sure that pillowcase makes you think of your granny).
ReplyDeleteI've just checked out FrauSvensson and love it, thank you for the recommendation. Sometimes I like bolder prints among more neutral backgrounds. Vintage fabric free from your mum?! Highly jealous, and you're right, the sentimental value attached to these fabrics is so precious too. x
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