Save money quilting - Flannel Sheets as quilt backings

Flannel sheets are becoming my new favorite way to back my quilts. I live in an area where we have winter almost half of the year so our quilts are used quite a bit and they actually need to be WARM! I frequently use sheets as quilt backings.

Three reasons I love flannel sheets as quilt backings

They are warm
They are cheap
No piecing required

If you buy the sheets large enough (like a queen or a king) you can actually get two backings from one set of sheets. That is a huge savings! I just counted up the number of quilts I made in the last two months and it’s a lot. 15 to be exact. So saving a little money on backings is so helpful.

Here are some of my favorites available right now

Aren’t those sheep the cutest!!?

My go to for flannel sheets is usually Target for their price and convenience. I’m not afraid to use any brand of sheets though. I do try to stick with 100% cotton sheets for quilt backings.

Quilting with Sheets

I don’t treat sheets as quilt backings a whole lot different than any other quilting material. I’m kind of a fearless quilter and just plunge ahead with anything that strikes my fancy.

However, here are some tips for quilting with sheets

Use a fine quilting needle if you are having trouble. Sheets are more tightly woven than quilting cotton so a sharp fine needle (like this one) will be helpful in getting through those layers.

Prewash if you are worried about shrinking or bleeding. I admit, I rarely prewash anything. Even flannel sheets. Even linen. Even mixed substrates in the same quilt. So maybe don’t do as I do, but do as I say. If you are the cautious type, prewash so there are no surprises!

Baste as usual. I’m a spray baster and I baste up flannel sheets just the same as quilting cottons. I use 505 Spray baste exclusively.

There really isn’t much to it! Give sheets a try as a quilt backing and see how you like it. Flannel sheets make the softest quilt backings.

I think we will all be fighting over this recent quilt finish because the mix of the flannel and the Essex Linen is a warm and cozy combination. (I wrote about quilting with Essex Linen here.)

The flannel sheet below is from the Target Wondershop Collection.
Quilt pattern is North Star found here.