Making Pyjamas from Old Bedding

Rethinking What Fabric Can Be

Recently my bedding ripped, right at the button opening, millimetres away from being repairable. While this duvet cover wasn’t expensive and had served us a long time I couldn’t help but dream of what I could create with all that beautiful blue striped pure cotton fabric.

I’ve been on a journey of drafting and making my own wardrobe….a deep learning process. And if you know the story, it’s been on a budget (catch up here). Staring at the torn bedding, my brain formed a plan! Pyjamas were the answer. I could use the bedding to make a wearable toile without wasting calico, while also trialling pattern shapes I’m working on for future tops and trousers.

And on top of that…I really need pyjamas. It was a zero waste strategy solving multiple needs. 

What I didn’t expect was a list of advantages to using “old” fabric. My “new” pyjamas are the softest I’ve ever worn...years of washing, fresh-air, tumble-dried, lived in softness. Those years of care and wear also meant I had no concerns about shrinkage. There was also something strangely comforting about sewing with fabric that already felt like home.

But to avoid my new pyjamas completely blending into my remaining bedding (yep they are identical!), I wanted to give them a feature to set them apart. So I designed and embroidered a little botanical motif on the shawl collar. Now they feel uniquely special in their new life. 

Rethinking what fabric could become, and using what I already had, brought the greatest creative joy to this make. And this phrase has stuck with me…you already have the fabric you need. That felt incredibly empowering when the budget was tight. From torn bedding, curtains, or a tablecloth…what will you creatively give second life to? 

Now I must gently break it to my husband that the bedding became pyjamas. I feel like Julie Andrews and the curtains once again.

You can watch the making process here...