resently bought bunch of material trying to make extra cash
 

i recently bought a buch of large bed sheets, think rools of think fabric and not sure how to tell what each is made of and which i should cut into fat quarters and 4x4 quilting squares can someone help me out please.?

you need to *market* it as 'bed-sheets'
many quilters will not use sheets for quilting- the weave is tighter and it is much more difficult to stitch through-
the tags on the sheets should contain fiber content- will say 100% cotton or polyester or what ever combination of fibers are in the sheets.
you can do a burn test on an edge-
cotton will (flame) make ash and still have a soft edge- poly (or other synthetic fiber) will melt- leaving a hard edge.
when (quilters) do use bed sheets they are used as a backing- so fq's and 4" squares would be a waste...only whole sheets are generally used
quilting cottons are normally about 60 thread count-----sheets generally start at about 200 thread count.

I would sell them as bed sheets for quilters to use as backings. Do not cut the sheets up.

I'd be hoppin' mad if someone sold me fabric and it turned out to be old sheets. A fabric fat quarter has a selvedge edge, sheets don't.

I agree. Be very careful how you represent these. Like the above ladies said, most quilters won't use sheets or pieces of sheets to make quilt tops, although some will use them for backs. Myself, I don't use them at all. So you have to make it really clear what the fabric is.

Good advice, as always. QB is a great place to find answers

I could not agree more.

Many people like to use vintage sheets for quilting. On Etsy, there are several sites selling them cut into fat quarters. You can do a test on a scrap of the fabric using a match. Put a piece in an ashtray or something similar. Touch the lit match to the fabric. If it turns to ash, it should be all cotton. If it turns into a hard lump, there is some synthetic fiber in there, most likely polyester. Sheets from the 60s, 70s, and 80s are usually made with some polyester. We loved the no ironing aspect of it.

DITTO...I don't use sheet fabric at all!

thx to all who commented. i am glad i read ur posts before i spentt my hours cutting squares. thx again'

My mom sometimes used sheets for quilting we found that the edged frayed on the sheet fabric and the blocks did not hold up for that reason the fabric was good but the seams did not hold. She used it successfully for backs or on pillow shams.

i use them for backs of quilts but not piecing

I just bought two king flat sheets at an estate sale this weekend, real high quality feel to them. I paid 1.00 per sheet. I plan on making pillowcases and little girl pillowcase dresses and crib sheets. So as you might not make a quilt out of it, there is still money to be made.
A word to the wise, bedbugs are on the rise in America, If you bring it in your house, wash in hot water immediatly and be sure to run it through a good hot dryer.

I don't think I would use sheets for quilts to sell.

I have seen a blog from a lady who buys "vintage" sheets and then sells them... Wish I could remember where. The colors and designs are very pretty, but since I hand quilt, they are hard to quilt through. Good luck with your endeavor!

I totally agree. I am a longarmer and the sheets are woven so tight that the stitches skip ,break thread and in general a pain to work with. Some longarmers have no trouble with using sheets but I refuse.

I don't know what "rools of fabric" means. Do you mean rolls of fabric? Do market this as sheeting, however.

Well, at the risk at being tossed off the QB on my thrifty behind, I must step up and take an opposing opinion. I often use 100% cotton sheets, pillowcases, bed ruffles and curtains when piecing my quilt tops. I have never had a complaint from one person who has received one of my quilts. I do my own quilting and I use fleece for backing.
The only time I have had a problem with ravelling is when I tried using some polyester blend where the poly content was higher than the cotton. I didn't end up using that in the quilt. The lowest blend I will use is 60 cotton/40 poly.
Good quality 100% cotton sheets that are not worn out, make great fabric for piecing in my opinion. Often, if the middle of a sheet is worn, the edges are still quite good and usable. And just FYI, many sheets do have selvage edges.
I absolutely believe that a seller should be completely honest about what they are selling, including stating that it is cotton sheeting, should that be the case. However, if the price is right, and I don't mean $1.99 per FQ, lol, I do believe that there will be buyers for sheeting FQs and squares. :thumbup:

Thank u toall. I am thinking of keeping the sheets and piece a few to make a quilt from pieces and use the others as its backing. It will be a great expierece and another 1st for this beginner. :-) I think i will take photos of the other fabric i have up for sale and see if they sale cuz they r heavy material and large pieces. great brand new quality. suggestions on prices on poly and poly mix could help bunches. i also have a few yards on silk feels high quality. i'll post pix soon.