Patterns for Pirates

P4P stylish, modern, wearable patterns

Fall Into Fashion – November 2 :: RagDoll Raglan

All November long, we are looking to “Fall Into Fashion” with some sewing and style fun. As the weather cools down, fashion heats up! This time of year can provide some of the best opportunities for styling yourself.

Have you ever heard the term “capsule wardrobe”?  It is the practice of editing your wardrobe down to your favorite clothes (aka the items that fit your fashion sense, your body, and your lifestyle right now), remixing them regularly, and shopping/sewing less often and more intentionally.

Here at Patterns for Pirates headquarters, we thought it would be so fun to show you how to do this with your handmade wardrobe!  We hired some incredible sewists from the Pirate Community and asked them to sew a pattern from our collection, and then show you how to get more wearability out of it.  They are showing up each day to remix a different P4P pattern AND the pattern of the day will be on sale for that 24-hour period.  So fun, right?

TODAY’S FEATURED PATTERN

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Pattern: RagDoll Raglan

Quick Summary: This is a loose, slouchy, baggy top that is perfect for pairing with those tighter fit bottoms like leggings or skinnies.  You can sew it up in a drapey rayon for a lighterweight top in the summer or a sweater knit for a super cozy, oversized sweater in the winter! It has raglan style sleeves, which are very beginner friendly, but they have a drop, batwing that mimics the look of a exaggerated dolman sleeve.  It is straight through the body and loose fit throughout, besides being fitted at the lower arms.  It has a wide, low neckline to continue that comfortable, loose fit and pairs with a thicker than average neckband.  If you use a very stretchy fabric you can pull the wide neckline off one shoulder if you like some days.

This pattern is on sale only thru tonight, at 11:59pm CST. If you’ve had your eye on it, don’t wait to jump on the deal!

Make sure you check out Instagram and Facebook today, for more fun videos and photos from our featured sewist! But before you go, here are a few quick pics to keep you inspired!

Fall Into Fashion – November 1 :: Straight Palazzos

All November long, we are looking to “Fall Into Fashion” with some sewing and style fun. As the weather cools down, fashion heats up! This time of year can provide some of the best opportunities for styling yourself.

Have you ever heard the term “capsule wardrobe”?  It is the practice of editing your wardrobe down to your favorite clothes (aka the items that fit your fashion sense, your body, and your lifestyle right now), remixing them regularly, and shopping/sewing less often and more intentionally.

Here at Patterns for Pirates headquarters, we thought it would be so fun to show you how to do this with your handmade wardrobe!  We hired some incredible sewists from the Pirate Community and asked them to sew a pattern from our collection, and then show you how to get more wearability out of it.  They are showing up each day to remix a different P4P pattern AND the pattern of the day will be on sale for that 24-hour period.  So fun, right?

TODAY’S FEATURED PATTERN

SHOP NOW

Pattern: Straight Palazzos

Quick Summary: This beginner knit pattern has all the style you need in a soft comfortable pant! It is a slim fit over booty and falls straight/wide down legs for a flattering fit on any size!
Options include: shorts, capri, and pant length with 30″,32″, and 34″ inseam cut lines. Yoga wasitband you can fold over or wear high waisted, and enclosed elastic waistband. (Thicker width elastic for a much more flattering look!)

This pattern is on sale only thru tonight, at 11:59pm CST. If you’ve had your eye on it, don’t wait to jump on the deal!

Make sure you check out Instagram and Facebook today, for more fun videos and photos from our featured sewist! But before you go, here are a few quick pics to keep you inspired!

Fall Into Fashion – November 2020

Happy Fall, Pirate Friends!! We are beyond thrilled to finally be able to announce what we’ve been working on behind the scenes here at Patterns for Pirates! Get ready for a super fun-filled November — because we sure are!

Each day during the month of November, we are going to be featuring a different Patterns for Pirates pattern.

On that day you can expect:

  • a 24-hour sale for the daily featured pattern.
  • videos and photos from your favorite sewists + bloggers.
  • daily styling inspiration.

We challenged our promo team by asking them to make one item from the daily featured pattern, and style it three (or more!) ways. For the next thirty days, you’ll see our team take something like that a basic t-shirt and make it look sporty, professional, and casual — simply by styling it differently. Or pairing a Wiggle Dress with different items from their closet to dress it up, or dress it down.

I’ve been blown away by everyone’s creativity and fashion know-how and I think you will be as well!

Be sure to keep an eye out each day in the Facebook Group / Page, on Instagram, or at this blog — because that’s where we will be notifying you of the featured pattern, and letting you know how to get your hands on that 24-hour sale price.

We could not have done this without our team of talented, creative, amazing people! Let’s meet each of them!

Judy Hale – Owner and head designer for Patterns for Pirates. Instagram | Facebook | Facebook Group | Website

Nicole Lanzarotto – P4P Crew Member and Owner of Edge Apparel and Accessories. Facebook

Alex Radu – P4P Crew Member and blogger at My Creative Room. Instagram | Facebook | YouTube

Ashley Toombs – Designer at Lexi Lee Handmade. Instagram | Facebook

Brad Schultz – Designer at Brad Schultz Design. Instagram

Kamali Obiagu – Blogger at Obiagu Makes. Instagram | Blog

Livia Jonker-Yamada – Blogger at Liviality. Instagram | Blog | Facebook

Katy McKinley – P4P Crew Member and Owner/Blogger at Wild + Wanderful. Instagram | Facebook | Facebook Group | Website + Blog

Erinn Ounsted – P4P Crew Member, teacher, blogger at Love Madelynn. Instagram | Blog

Aaronica Bell Cole – Blogger at Crunchy Mommy Blog and Needle and the Belle. Instagram | Facebook | Blog

Becca Eutsler – Owner of Black Sheep Fabrics. Instagram | Facebook | Facebook Group

Kaara King – Blogger at Poppie Darling. Instagram | Facebook | Blog

Leanne Fayard – Blogger at Thready for It. Instagram | Blog

Rachel Hopkins – Blogger at Always a Project. Instagram | Blog

We are so looking forward a month full of celebrating fashion, fall, and sewing at Patterns for Pirates. Are you ready for the fun??

Sporty Piko Sew Along – day 6 (cuffs and waistband)

We made it to the last day of the sew along. Today we add the cuffs to the long sleeves and waistband to the shirt option. If you opted for the crop, tunic and short sleeves you finished yesterday so today you just admire your creation. 

When creating the cuffs and waistband it’s highly important to press the wrong sides together lengthwise. Stitch each cuff and the waistband, right sides together to create a loop. Take a look over our P4P University Knit Cuffs blog to get some tips and tricks for beautiful cuffs. When adding the waistband, remember to mark the quarter points on both the raw edge of the waistband and bottom of the shirt. Dana talks about waistbands in the P4P University blog. I highly recommend giving it a look. 

That’s it!! Great job! All you have to do now is post a picture of the completed Sporty Piko in the comments of DAY 6 sew along album in the SAL group. We will select the winners from the pictures in the comments there. Meet us back here on Monday evening for the winners blog. 

Sporty Piko SAL | day 1

Sporty Piko SAL | day 2

Sporty Piko SAL | day 3

Sporty Piko SAL | day 4

Sporty Piko SAL | day 5

Sporty Piko SAL | day 6

Sporty Piko SAL | day 7

Sporty Piko Sew Along – day 5 (hood and hems)

Good morning! Today we create and add the hood as well as hem the short sleeves and crop/tunic length. The hood can be lined or not. My personal preference is lining the hood as it gives it more structure. If you like a more loose hood, definitely go for the unlined option. You will just hem the front before overlapping. I opted for the lined hood so you will see the process in the video below. 

My little one’s Sporty Piko will be the banded shirt style. I will show you how to add those tomorrow.

If you are sewing the tunic , you can hem it using your sewing machine’s twin needles option or your coverstitch. Before you start, take a look over our Hemming blog because we have a few tips for easy and successful hemming. If you are finishing the bottom hem using twin needles, a good refresher blog is the P4P University Twin Needles Tips. The crop style hem includes a drawstring and grommets. Be sure to check out our P4P University Grommets blog. Rachel gives you great tips for using them. Katy shows you how to add  elastic in the crop hem and skip the drawstring. Read all about it here. 

Once you complete today’s steps, snap a photo of your progress and add it to the comments of day 5 photo of the sew along album. See you back here tomorrow! 

Sporty Piko SAL | day 1

Sporty Piko SAL | day 2

Sporty Piko SAL | day 3

Sporty Piko SAL | day 4

Sporty Piko SAL | day 5

Sporty Piko SAL | day 6

Sporty Piko SAL | day 7

Sporty Piko Sew Along – day 4 (side seams and neckband)

Another easy day in the Sporty Piko sew along, but let’s face it…they are all pretty easy. All of us will be sewing the side seams first. Pin the seam, right sides together, matching the under arm, sleeve ends and bottom. Sew with a stretch stitch, or your serger, following a 1/2 ” seam allowance. 

If you are making the hooded option, like I am, you are pretty much done for today. Snap your picture and check in by commenting on the day 4 photo of the sew along album. If you are sewing the neckband option, you will add that now. Take a look over our P4P University Neckbands 101 blog post. The key to a beautiful neckband is using fabric with excellent recovery and quartering the neck opening. If you followed previous sew alongs here on the blog, you have seen how I like to add the neckband to various P4P patterns. By the way, did you know all P4P blogs and videos stay up forever? Check out our YouTube Channel!

Great job so far! Don’t forget to check in for today so you qualify for the prizes!

Sporty Piko SAL | day 1

Sporty Piko SAL | day 2

Sporty Piko SAL | day 3

Sporty Piko SAL | day 4

Sporty Piko SAL | day 5

Sporty Piko SAL | day 6

Sporty Piko SAL | day 7

Sporty Piko Sew Along – day 3 (shoulder seams and sleeves)

Welcome to day 3 of our Sporty Piko Sew Along. Today’s steps include sewing the shoulder seams and adding the sleeves. Remember, the pattern follows a 1/2″ seam allowance snd it’s highly important to keep that constant. 

Tip: Add clear elastic to the shoulder seams to strengthen them and make sure the shoulders don’t stretch throughout the day. 

When attaching the sleeves start by pinning the center of the raw edge to the shoulder seams, then pin the sides. You will be easing the sleeves in the sleeve opening. Optionally you can top stitch the seam allowance.

I have posted today’s video below. As always, you will be checking in with your progress photo in the day 3 picture comments of the Sporty Piko Sew Along album. 

 

Sporty Piko SAL | day 1

Sporty Piko SAL | day 2

Sporty Piko SAL | day 3

Sporty Piko SAL | day 4

Sporty Piko SAL | day 5

Sporty Piko SAL | day 6

Sporty Piko SAL | day 7

Sporty Piko Sew Along – day 2 (chest pocket, back colorblocking)

Good morning, pirates! Today we start sewing our Sporty Piko shirts. First step is to add the optional chest pocket. It is optional but I wouldn’t skip it, it adds a little extra something to the front….plus, you can hide your little treasures in it 😉

The key to getting a nice pocket is pressing! Yes, I know, I know… I say that all the time but it’s true. If you have a favorite woven you would like to use instead of knit, you can do that for the pocket. 

Next and final step of the day is to create the back piece by sewing the top and bottom together. Simply match the center point and pin in place. The two edges are 1:1 ratio so they will match perfectly, no stretching.

Tip: if you plan on adding any embellishments to the top back piece (like HTV, sublimation, iron ons, etc) do that before you sew the pieces together. 

You can see the day 2 video below. Once you complete these steps, post a picture of your progress in the comments of day 2 photo of the sew along album. You can find this album in our SAL group. 

 

Sporty Piko SAL | day 1

Sporty Piko SAL | day 2

Sporty Piko SAL | day 3

Sporty Piko SAL | day 4

Sporty Piko SAL | day 5

Sporty Piko SAL | day 6

Sporty Piko SAL | day 7

Sporty Piko Sew Along – day 1 (print pattern and cut fabric)

Welcome to the Sporty Piko Sew Along!

I am happy to sew with you a Sporty Piko this week. The pattern comes in Youth and Adult and you can of course get the bundle and save. If you are still undecided which style to make, our Round Up blog will give you a glance at all options included, from sleeve lengths to necklines. You can also use the Easy Hacks blog for added options.

Let’s start by taking the measurements needed for the best fit. P4P has an amazing blog that gives you tips for accurately taking your measurements. You can read all about it here. If your measurements put you in a different size for chest/waist/hips be sure to check out our P4P University blog and grade to achieve the perfect fit. The Sporty Piko patterns include videos as well. On page 3 you will notice an active button that will take you to the video about adding or removing length. Please refer to it if you are taller or shorter than 5’5″.

Unsure about which knit type will work best for your desired look? Take a look over our P4P University Knit Types blog. We also included a cheat sheet that you can print. If you are like me and sometime are just keen on using a specific print for a specific pattern, read our Different fabric, different fit blog post before you cut your fabric.

The Sporty Piko patterns include a crop, shirt and tunic length. If you would like to make a dress length simply add 8-10 inches length. The simplest way to do that is to cut both the back and the front pattern pieces at the crop cut line, add the extra length there and tape the remainder of the pattern to it. You can see in the video below how to do that. This is my dress hack made with bamboo lycra.

This pattern is drafted from light to medium weight fabrics with 20-30% stretch. The Sporty Piko has an oversized, relaxed fit so using thicker fabric like cotton lycra, french terry or sweatshirt fleece will give you a bulkier, more rectangle look. It would work great for the youth option, though. For my Sporty Piko I will be using a cute custom cotton lycra from Hapa Fabrics. Hapa is this sew along’s sponsor so be sure to check them out and show them some love in their Facebook group.

You can see the day 1 below, including how I use my projector  with the A0 file. Once you cut the fabric, post a picture of your pretty pile in the comments of DAY 1 photo of the Sporty Piko album in the M4M & P4P Sew Along Group.

Sporty Piko SAL | day 1

Sporty Piko SAL | day 2

Sporty Piko SAL | day 3

Sporty Piko SAL | day 4

Sporty Piko SAL | day 5

Sporty Piko SAL | day 6

Sporty Piko SAL | day 7

P4P University – Grommets

Raise your hand if grommets scare you? Have you done everything possible, including skipping that cute drawstring, just to avoid installing eyelets?

I did for years! I even made buttonholes to avoid installing those little metal devils. Buttonholes!

But, I’m here now to show you how truly easy it is to install grommets in your makes. Within the next few minutes, you’ll wonder why you were ever intimidated.

For those who prefer a video tutorial, I’ve got you covered!

If you prefer a written tutorial, read on.

First, the anatomy of a grommet…

You will have your eyelet – that’s the piece that has a post. It will always be on the right side of your fabric. The backside is called the washer. The larger sizes typically have sharp teeth that help to better secure the grommet in place. The smaller sizes often have a plastic ring that sits between the back of your fabric and the metal washer.

Most grommet kits will also come with an anvil (remember the Coyote and Roadrunner from Looney Tunes?!) and a setting tool. It’s important to use the right anvil for the size of grommet that you are setting.

I always iron a bit of interfacing on the backside of where my grommets will be installed. That extra security means that you won’t be replacing a grommet due to your fabric stretching out.

Snip a small “X” where you want to place your grommet, taking care not to make the opening too large. You want it just big enough to push your eyelet post through.

Place your washer around the post of the eyelet. If you are using a smaller eyelet, place the plastic ring under the metal washer.

Set your grommet, face down, on top of the anvil and insert your setting tool in the post with the short end.

Give it a few good whacks with your hammer – four or five should do. As you are hammering, the post is actually folding down over the washer and securing it in place.

And that’s it! You’re ready to install your second grommet. You can feel how tight the fit is around your fabric. If it feels too loose, replace your setting tool and strike it with the hammer a couple more times.

Setting grommets is a wonderful garment-making skill to know and it will unleash even more creative possibilities in your future projects.

If there is any detail that I’ve left out of the written instructions, please do watch the video above. Feel free to reach out to me through the P4P Facebook Group, too. I’m happy to answer any questions you may have.

Until next time, happy sewing!

Rachel

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