Where am I Currently Finding Vintage Sheets?

(Please note that affiliate links have been used in this post.)

If you are following me along on Instagram, you may have noticed I’m in vintage mode again. Sometimes I love Ikea and sometimes I love Salvation Army. Sometimes I love modern quilting fabrics, and sometimes I love vintage sheets.

Right now I’m enjoying Salvation Army and vintage sheets. Both have their pros and their cons. My husband sometimes shirks when I run into Salvation Army. He knows I never spend a lot of money there (just the nature of a thrift store), but he also knows I often come home with another project.

Vintage sheets.

Sometimes you find some. Sometimes you don’t. It’s hard to find them in excellent condition. It’s hard knowing they only come in limited quantities. It’s defeating sometimes knowing there are so many other vintage pickers out there searching right along side you.

But then in a world where there are ample amounts of material possessions, I remember sometimes it’s wise to reuse and make the most out of things that already exist. The patterns and colors and history of a vintage sheet are hard to find in modern fabrics. Bringing in vintage artifacts to our home puts my eclectic heart at a bit of ease.

Thankfully there is opportunity for me to sew with vintage florals and just keep on creating for the joy of it.

So where do I buy vintage sheets? Or where do I search for them?

Here’s where I’ve been currently searching.

1. Salvation Army – I head to our local Salvation Army maybe once every two months. Not often. Thrift stores are BY FAR the least expensive place to buy vintage sheets. If I happen to stumble upon sheets in good condition, I usually find them marked anywhere from $3 to $6. Do I wish I could head to thrift stores more often? Yes. But with three young children right now, it’s kind of exhausting for me to load them up and go very often. The employees at my local store tell me there are pickers who come in every day looking for them. I can’t go every day.

2. Etsy – I haven’t found Etsy to be have a huge market for vintage sheets, but I appreciate the small business world and the customer service I receive from fellow Etsy ‘friends.’ I have purchased from A Little Shabby Shack and recently from Vintage in the Fort. They both have had very good customer service. I can also tell they both make a good effort to relieve the sheets of their vintage / musty smell. Sew Sugar Beans also sells scrap packs every now and then.

3. Instagram – Have you heard of Instagram sales? Here’s how they work. You follow an Instagram account of a vintage collector. They announce that they are having a sale at 7:00 on Monday. Every couple minutes they list a new item with details, pictures, and price. The first commenter to mark ‘sold’ claims the item.

Sometimes I’ll follow along on these sales, but many times I avoid them intentionally. I despise the stress of trying to type as fast as I possibly can to ensure I beat anyone else also watching the sale. Does that make sense?

I have found myself retreating from certain accounts once they get bigger and then go and find other smaller accounts where I’m not competing with a huge audience. Two of the larger accounts I follow are Marigold Vintageness and Thrifters Gonna Thrift. I’ve recently enjoyed following Holly and purchased a sweet yellow pillow case from her. Others are Lavendar House Wife and La Coquette’s Vintage.

4. Ebay – For the first time ever, a couple weeks ago I bought a pair of fitted sheets off Ebay. Ebay is probably the most expensive place to buy sheets, but it is also (I believe) the best place to buy sheets in excellent to perfect condition. You will find a reasonable selection of sheets that have never even been opened. My favorite search terms are ‘vintage flower power sheets‘ but if you like more muted colors, just search for ‘vintage sheets.’

(The middle yellow, pink, green, and brown floral sheet pictured below is the very first sheet I’ve ever purchased off Ebay. It is a twin fitted sheet I bought for $15, and it’s in perfect condition.)

5. Garage sales, Estate Sales, Flea Markets, Vintage / Antique Shops – I believe each of these places are going to be comparable to shopping at thrift stores. You may find some, and you may not. I would DEFINITELY spend more time shopping and browsing flea markets and the such, but I have not chosen (at this time) to cart three young children around to these venues. I have been known, though, to send my retired parents to a sale or two with vintage linens in mind.

6. Consignment Shops – Just this weekend, my sister and mom and I traveled around our local city hopping from one second hand shop to another. We visited a number of shops we’d never been to before after googling for thrift stores in our local area. We stopped at one consignment shop with some great (very expensive) antique quilts. I asked her if she ever had vintage or flower power era sheets and linens come through her shop. She said she did and asked if she could text me pictures when they arrived. Of course I obliged and immediately said yes. How kind of her to offer!

How much will I pay for a vintage sheet?

Good question.

The average price I’m paying per sheet is definitely on the rise. I cringe a bit knowing I could pay $3 to $5 per sheet, but like I mentioned above, I can’t go looking every day at the thrift store.

The most I will pay is around $15 to $20 for a sheet in EXCELLENT condition. I have learned that sheets worn in the middle and faded are easier to find. Especially since I am often using these sheets to create product for customers, I have grown pickier and pickier about the quality of the sheet.

Just like most hobbies and learning curves, it took me a while to ‘land’ on what kind of sheets I like best. Extend yourself some grace as you may go through your learning curve of mixing and matching vintage items. I also encourage you to ask vendors questions if you are ever uncertain of the condition of your item.

I will keep on collecting in small quantities. Sometimes my eyes sew faster than my hands, but these beautiful floral treasures will likely continue finding their way into our home.

I have a number of other blog posts that in some way or another reference vintage sheets. Feel free to check them out:

1. Sewing with Vintage Sheets and a Few Tips I Learned Along the Way. This is a generic post with lots of great information on sewing with sheets instead of quilting fabric.

2. How to Sew with Vintage Sheets. This post is a sequel to the one mentioned above. I learned some more after sewing a third vintage sheet quilt!

3. A Finished Quilt Made from Vintage Sheets. If you need some inspiration to cut your sheets and sew them back together again, you may enjoying browsing these photos.

4. The Story of my very own Vintage Chalkboard. Are you a vintage hunter and sometimes find the best things? You may be able to relate to our story.

Follow along on my Vintage Sheet Pinterest board for some other great inspiration!