Old fabric -- risky?
 

I am making scrappy blocks and needed more "light" colored ones so I went ahead and used some fabric that I used to make dd a little sun-hat and that was...ummm..35 yrs ago! The fabric is thin but seems ok..and its cotton. I think in typing this i prob will not use it bc this quilt has sooo many tiny pieces to it i'd hate for it to start to shred prematurely. But, I'd still like to hear your thoughts also?? Concur?

wash it in the washing machine. See how it holds up. That should tell you.

the last quilt my mother made me she included a block with fabric scraps from my baby blanket 3+ decades ago and it's held up just fine! I don't know if she interfaced it but it doesn't feel like she did and the fabric wasn't even faded, she said she found it at the bottom of a box of fabric so it didn't get any sun or anything

I use stash from eons ago all the time. Never had a problem. Of course I did toss all the "see-through" stuff.

I'm with you- I wouldn't use fabric that old for a quilt.

I have quilts made in the 50's and the fabric is just fine. As long as it goes thru the washer and dryer and isn't too thin or tears easily, I'd use it.

The fabric should be fine. There are many people using older ( vintage fabrics).

i love love vintage fabrics. love the prints, the colors ..everything about it. have been collecting fabric from estate sales & auctions for over thirty years ..i've never, ever had issues resulting from fragile aged fabric. cotton is a vegetable fiber and is susceptible to the ravages of time ..but unless it's been recovered from worn clothing or worn/faded antique/vintage quilts it should be fine mixed in with modern fabrics. but even as i say that i am reminded of all the teddy bears, totes, placemats etc that people have made out of "cutter" quilts over the years w/o problems of fragility arising from usage. your leftover from childrens clothing from only 30 years ago should hold up fine.
tho personally, i now sort my vintage fabrics to be used only with other vintage fabrics. i love the look of them all together :)

I made a simple 4 patch for my dog some years back. One fabric was the thin stuff, and it started to pull away from the others after just a couple of washings.

I had some black from the 50's dissolve over time. The greens from the 1800's whispered away.
I don't call fabric 35 years old, old :)