Soft and Subtle Vintage Sheet Plus Quilt

Happy Thursday! I have another finished quilt to share today, this plus quilt is made from my vintage sheet collection using my Arithmetic Quilt Pattern!


This quilt came together really quickly over the last few weeks. I've wanted to make a low contrast plus quilt for a long time. I had never thought about what kind of fabrics I'd use, until last month when I realized vintage sheets would be perfect! I decided to not only go with low contrast fabric choices, but to also use really subtle low volume prints. I would typically use prints like these as background fabrics in a quilt. I dug through my stash and pulled out sheets that were primarily white or cream, with varying amounts of color in the print design.

To see the many projects I've made with vintage sheets, check out this post: Projects Made with Vintage Sheets


I had so much fun pulling the fabrics for this quilt. I used some of my favorites, and a few designs that I thrifted back when I first started collecting sheets. When I make quilts from vintage sheets, it always feels kind of like a memory quilt to me. It just makes me think about all the great thrifting adventures I've been on, and who I've enjoyed those adventures with! Sometimes I even remember finding particular patterns.


I really wasn't sure how this quilt would turn out, but I'm absolutely thrilled with it. I love how soft it is. The low contrast between the fabrics means you can only just see the plus design in some places. It's there, but it's not in your face. The sheets themselves have such sweet and soft designs, but are also literally soft too. To be honest, the more quilts I make with alternative fabrics, the less I want to make quilts with quilting cotton! I just love how silky and soft vintage sheet quilts are.

This is the baby size from the pattern, using 4.5" squares. It finishes at 36"x48".


I used one of my very favorite sheets for the back. It's also featured on the quilt top.


I had some leftover binding made from this pink stripe, so I cut a few more strips to make enough binding for this quilt. Felt good to use up the leftovers too!


I used one of my custom woven labels to finish it off.


The quilting is super simple, just lines 1/4" on either side of each seam.


This was such a fun experiment for me. It left me full of ideas for more soft and subtle quilts! I actually already started my next one. It also made me look at my sheet stash differently. I have collected many sheets in this category, primarily with the intention of creating quilt kits or using them as background fabrics. I see so many possibilities beyond that now, which is exciting. I can't wait to see hoq the next quilt comes together!

Soft and Subtle Vintage Sheet Plus Quilt Pattern: Arithmetic Quilt Pattern (Baby size 4.5" squares)
Fabrics: Vintage Reclaimed Bedsheets

Happy Quilting!