Pattern Hacks Archives - Page 11 of 12

Sunshine Dress- Hacks

July 28, 2016

You know we love to show you how to take your P4P patterns that are filled with options and stretch them even further!

Here are a few easy hacks to the newest P4P pattern the Sunshine Dress!

Hello there! For those who don’t know me, my name is Erinn and I have a confession to share with you… I love dresses! Ok, truth: I love them September through June when I have to wear “real clothes” for my job as a teacher and not live in my comfy summertime clothes! So when the Sunshine Dress came out, the first thing I thought of was, “How can I make this work for a teacher?”. I absolutely love the cross-over bodice, but knew I would need to wear a cami under it for work, which would just mean more laundry (another confession: I hate laundry!). So, I give to you my friends- the modesty panel! It provides you with the extra coverage of a cami, minus the bulk of layering (again, not to mention the extra laundry of one more shirt- isn’t that reason enough to make one?).

What You’ll Need:

Partially finished cross-over bodice (Complete through attaching the neckband)
Pattern piece for Strapless liner (front only)
Coordinating fabric

Creating Modesty Panel

First up, you will need to create your modesty panel. To do this, you will need to make a few quick changes to the strapless liner piece. Cut along the armscye line that would have be used for the halter version. Next, remove 1” from the bottom of the pattern- there is already a lot of layers once the skirt is attached, so this will allow you to reduce some of “extra bulk”- nobody wants that!

Cut out your modesty panel using your new pattern piece as well as the binding for the top of panel. For the binding, you will want to cut a strip that is 2” wide and long enough to go across the top of panel.

Fold binding in half and iron, then attach to the top of the panel- make sure to stretch slightly as you attach. Trim the excess binding to align with your armscye. Press seam down.

Attaching Modesty Panel

You should have your cross-over bodice finished through attaching the neckband. Layer pieces in order according to pattern, then place the modesty panel as the top layer. Pin in place (no one will judge how many you use- that’s a lot of layers to keep in place!). Run a basting stitch down both sides- be careful on armscye, making sure to not baste all three layers together. Check the fit/placement of your panel and once everything looks good, sew your side seams together.

Voila! You have now created your modesty panel. All that’s left to do is attach the armbands and skirt, then enjoy your Sunshine dress… with a little added coverage.

Bodice with No Ruching:

This is a SUPER simple hack! All you need is your Sunshine pattern, no measurements, no guessing and just one quick change! For halter and strapless instead of cutting 1 main fabric bodice (front and back) simply cut out 2 lining pieces front and back.

Assemble exactly the same skipping the ruching steps in the tutorial. Done! For cross over bodice just cut out 2 under/not gathered front pieces, making sure to make them mirror image. Skip ruching steps and assemble normally. 🙂 Was that the easiest hack or what?!?! Now you have 3 more bodice choices with this already option packed pattern!

Making a separate skirt from the Sunshine pattern:

Maxi skirts are all the rage right now and with this simple hack, you can use the Sunshine Dress Skirt portion to create your own. (of course it works great for the other lengths too!)

Cut 1 waistband and 2 skirt panels. Construct the skirt in the same manner as the tutorial. Instead of attaching to a bodice, you will attach to the waistband. To create your waistband, sew short ends together, creating a circle then fold in half with wrong sides together. Find the 1/4 points of both the waistband and skirt and match skirt side seams to the waistband. I like to gather my skirt while it is pinned to the waistband to help ensure even gathers along each of the 1/4 points. Your skirt will be gathered to the same width as the waistband. Stitch with 1/2″ seam allowance. Pull basting threads. All finished!

Essential Tank- Open Back Hack

June 12, 2016

I’m excited to share another hack to the new Essential Tank pattern! I’ve seen this look in the popular athletic wear brands and love it! But being 5’10” means no way I can buy it off the rack, even if I wanted to splurge on the price tag 😉

So, I hacked the newest pattern in the P4P collection and I’m so in love with the result! I used a brushed polyester blend that is super soft.

I took the front and raise the neckline by 2″ (although the inspiration tank was probably 3″ higher I just can’t take a neckline that close!). Make sure your neckline ends at a straight angle or you will have a point when you open up your folded front. If you have a french curve use it for a nice smooth neckline. If not, you can get it as smooth as possible.

Next I cut the back. Here I cut the full piece to help demonstrate, but you can skip cutting the entire piece to save on fabric.

I took my straight edge and alined it to the widest part of the racerback. I sliced it straight from the top of the shirt to the bottom hem. (I’ll mention here I did shirt length cutline. but left it unhemmed).

Then I cut another MIRROR image back piece.

I decided to leave my hem and back edges raw. If you wanted to hem, go ahead and hem those back center edges now.

Tip-I ALWAYS cut a center notch on the necklines of every shirt- they’re cut on the fold and you always need that center mark for attaching your neckband marked anyways. It is such a quick, easy time to mark it with a notch!

With both right sides up and aligning the center, baste the overlapping sections along the neckline. Looking back I would also advise to baste just outside the 3/8″ seam allowance as well to hold it in place while attaching the neckband. It’s such a small section that extra baste will really help keep it nice and neat.

Then just sew up the shirt as the tutorial recommends, treating the back as 1 back piece. If you make the neckline higher you will need to shorten your neckband a bit as well. A good ratio is about 80-85% of the finished neckband plus your seam allowance.

And wa-lah! Now you can waer it open and loose or tie it at the bottom for a more fitted look! And a big bonus (for me anyways ;)) is that you can untie the back and it’s super nursing friendly! I already have 2 more fabrics that need to become this hack! I can see myself wearing these with some capri peglegs throughout the hot TX summer! I have it paired with a cute Siren Swim Top I made for a sports bra!

Don’t forget to share your final creations in the P4P Facebook group, tag me on Instagram, or in your favorite sewing forum! <3 I absolutely love to see your P4P creations!

Essential Tank Maternity Hack | Guest Post

June 9, 2016

MATERNITY BLOG TUTORIAL: Applying the Layer Me Up Maternity Modification to Other Patterns For Pirates Patterns

Guest Blog Written by Kelly Bailey

Hi there! I’m Kelly and I am here to share with you my knowledge of making maternity garments; more specifically, how to apply Judy Hale’s Layer Me Up maternity modification to the rest of her other patterns. I have been a pattern tester for Judy for a while now and love it. I also run my own sewing shop Spindle & Seams and I work for the fabric shop So Sew English! If you are here I imagine you are expecting or expecting to sew for somebody who is. Congratulations! This is a step by step tutorial and I hope that after reading through this you feel much more comfortable trying your hand at maternity wear. For this tutorial you will need your pattern of choice and the Patterns for Pirates Layer Me Up Maternity pattern.

NOTE: I am 20 weeks gestation (4^th baby) in all of these photos.

STEP 1: Does the pattern even require a maternity modification?

Does the pattern your thinking of making really need a maternity modification? There are several patterns out there that are maternity friendly without even trying to be and some that would turn into a mess if you tried. Two of my favorites are the Patterns for Pirates Free Spirit Tank in the curved hem and the Boundless dress in the empire waist option. The Free Spirit tank leaves lots of ease throughout the bodice and angles out wider as it approaches the bottom hemline. The Boundless dress, in an empire waist, is only fitted just under the bust and accentuates the baby belly in the most darling way! The Everyday Elegance can also be maternity friendly if you opt to make it using a knit fabric with great stretch. This one has a lot of ease throughout the bodice even without using knit fabric but definitely will fit you until the end if knit is used. Some patterns just are not meant to be altered to be maternity. There is one P4P pattern that I just wouldn’t attempt for this purpose; the Sweetheart dress and peplum. This pattern is drafted to be an “at the waist” and is very fitted from the waist up. The Sweetheart looks best in thicker, more stable knits like ponte or scuba that only provide restricted stretch and are the most fitted in a location where your belly is going to grow drastically.

So when looking at a pattern ask yourself; Does the pattern have an empire waist? Does it have an at the waist skirt/peplum? What is the ease like through the waist and hips? What patterns cannot be modified easily for maternity and which ones IMO just wouldn’t look great on me? What kinds of patterns are COMFORTABLE for maternity wear? Will I be able to wear this garment post partum to ease the transition back into non pregnancy clothes?

Here is a rough guide of the patterns I would, wouldn’t or might alter:

Patterns that don’t necessarily require maternity modifications:

Patterns that I wouldn’t attempt to make maternity:

Sweetheart Dress and Peplum Top

Patterns that can be easily modified for maternity:

STEP 2: Choose your fabric content wisely. What fabrics to use for maternity and what to avoid.

Sometimes you can get away without making any maternity modifications if you use the right fabric on a pattern that has enough length to accommodate. Tunic length garments can be a great way to have a before and after baby closet staple. But most of the time you will need to make the modifications to comfortably fit until after baby is born. Here are a list of some knit fabrics to use and some to try to stay away from when sewing maternity.

Fabrics that are great for maternity use:

Rayon Spandex Blends (This can include french terry)
Polyester Spandex Blends (like ITY or brushed poly)
Cotton Spandex/Lycra Blends (This can include french terry)
Cotton Spandex Interlock Knits
Liverpool depending on the amount of horizontal stretch
Lightweight Sweater knits with lots of stretch

These fabrics all have great stretch and recovery. 4-way stretch is great but because you are adding in length to the front bodice you can easily use 2-way stretch knits as long as the horizontal stretch is pretty good.

Fabrics to try your best to steer clear of using for maternity wear:

100% cotton Jersey knits or Interlock
100% cotton French Terry
Ponte
Scuba
Nylon spandex and other athletic knit blends

These types of knits typically do not have very good overall stretch or they have what I call restricted stretch. Restricted stretch would be a fabric that has good overall stretch but is tougher to pull to get there. Similar to how some athletic knits try to hold you in as you work out. Maternity garments made with these knits may fit for a little while, but will likely not comfortably last you up until that cute little babe pops out of your full-grown belly.

Now that you have chosen a good sewing pattern and paired it with the right fabric we can move on to altering the front bodice piece of your chosen pattern. There is no need to alter any other pattern pieces. Yay!

STEP 3: Assembling and analyzing your maternity modification pattern piece and what the modifications mean.

Your Layer Me Up maternity pattern is going to give that belly some ease throughout the waist to accommodate growth width wise. It is also going to give you more length through the front bodice to completely cover your full-grown baby belly. You definitely don’t want your hand crafted top turning into an early 90’s belly shirt ¾ of the way through your pregnancy! For this tutorial you are going to need to purchase the Layer Me Up maternity mod pattern and a maternity mod friendly pattern of your choice. Now is the time to assemble both of these patterns and to cut out your sizes. Pay attention to your current bust and hip size. They may have changed since before you became pregnant. You may need to do some pattern grading because of it. See Judy’s blog post on pattern grading if this is something new to you.

STEP 4: Picking the pattern you wish to modify and lining up the maternity mod pattern correctly on top of it.

Now we are going to lay the pattern pieces on top of one another to see where we need to make modifications to our non maternity pattern. We will only be modifying the FRONT BODICE piece of the non maternity pattern. We are using the Layer Me Up maternity piece as a guide to adjust our original pattern. Line up your maternity pattern piece on top of your original pattern piece using the armpit at the reference point. The Layer Me Up mod piece should be placed a couple inches below the armpit of our front bodice piece. As you can see in this photo I have also laid the top original Layer Me Up front bodice piece to show that the reference point. If you do not own the Layer Me Up original pattern, don’t worry, just place the maternity piece a couple of inches below the armpit.

STEP 5: Adding paper along the original patterns waist curve for tracing.

You can see from the above photo that some parts of the maternity piece fall within the bodice piece of your original pattern, but there are parts that stick out as well. We are going to do some gentle transitioning and tracing on our original pattern to accommodate. First things first, decide where you need to add your tracing paper to your original pattern. Tape that piece of paper into your original pattern like so.

Now once again lay your maternity pattern piece over the top so that we can trace the new curve.

Be sure to use some gentle grading to transition the curve from your original pattern bodice piece to the maternity pattern piece. Trace along the maternity curve. When you are finished tracing trim off the excess paper.

Here is where you can decide to use the full width of the maternity curve or to trim it down about 1/3” to be more fitted for early pregnancy. If you choose to slim it down your top may not fit all the way up to your due date.

STEP 6: Adding Length to the front bodice piece.

Analyze the pattern pieces to see how much length discrepancy there is for the hem lengths. Pick a good location on the original pattern to cut and add in more length there. I like to add the length in at the shortest hem length on the original pattern. Once again, we are going to lay the Layer Me Up maternity piece on top of your original pattern piece.

As you can see from the above photo there is several inches of difference between the hem lengths. For this part of the tutorial I am going to illustrate how to add in the length necessary for rouching. Take measure of the difference.

Take note of this measurement and then cut your original pattern piece at the shortest hem length. On this particular pattern, this falls at the curved hem.

Add in your blank paper here and tape your original pattern pieces to the blank sheet being sure to only add the measured difference back into the original pattern. Trace a smooth transition line and trim off excess paper on the sides.

Now once again lay the Layer Me Up maternity pattern piece on top of your now altered original pattern and be sure that your hem lengths now line up with one another.

STEP 7: Transfer over the elastic sewing markings.

Line up the two pattern pieces and from the Layer Me Up maternity add on pattern and transfer the triangle elastic markings to your now altered original pattern.

Wallah! You now have altered your original front bodice pattern piece to be maternity!

STEP 8: Check out your new maternity pattern.

It’s super easy from here! Cut out your altered front bodice piece from your fabric and follow the LMU Maternity mod instructions as written. Make any adjustments through the bodice as necessary for a better fit for you! Again, you do not need to modify any other pieces from your pattern to make it maternity. I highly suggest trying on your top or dress BEFORE you attach the binding or hem in order easily make any necessary adjustments.

Siren and Hello Sailor Hacks

April 25, 2016

We couldn’t help ourselves to a few hacks to the new Siren Swim Top and Hello Sailor Swim Bottoms during testing! We loved them so much we decided to share a few of our favorite quick and easy mods.

The Double Strap Hack: (My favorite! I couldn’t stop using this one 😉 )

This one is super simple and quick! You have 4 straps per cutting instructions. Instead of sewing them right sides together to create 2 straps, we sewed each strap folded in half width-wise down the long edge.

Turn right sides out.

And place both side by side on the top pick ups.

The Double, Straight and Cross Strap Hack:

Then we had even more fun doing one set of straight straps and one set of criss-cross straps… cute right?!?!? Just baste and double check you have them all placed correctly before finalizing the stitching! I slipped swim elastic inside this navy/white top straps for more support. It also keeps the straps in place and hold their shape (not get folded or wrinkled up).

Fringe Hack:

The only change during construction is that I did not sew the flounce into the side seam.

Once the top was compete I began in the center and used my rotary blade and clear quiting ruler to cut 1/4″ strips up to the seam line. I continued all across the top, keeping my slits straight. I wont lie though, it was REALLY late and I was tired… I threw the ruler aside and went at it all crazy!

I went back with scissors and clipped all the way up through the pick ups (I couldn’t get my roatary up that far without cutting through the main top pieces.

It was crazy windy on our picture day with my cousin (isn’t she the cutest?!?!) so we only caught a few where the fringe wasn’t wildly blowing around! You could do the slits as small as your patience allows for and you could also tug them a bit to let the knit curl to hide some imperfections too! It’s a fun, flirty mod! I hope you don’t mind the other watermark on her pictures, my amazing sister took these photos and edited for me :).

Double Flounce Hack:

Creating the double flounce is as simple as cutting 2 of the front and back flounce pieces. I just kind of eyeballed how much shorter I wanted the top layer flounce but ended up cutting about 1.5″ off the front and 1″ off the back. Depending on your size, you could also use a smaller size length as a guide. Be sure to keep the side seams the same length on both the front and back flounce of the layer you cut. For construction, I basted the two layers together to help keep them together as it is a little trickier to stitch 5 layers of fabric.

HELLO SAILOR BOTTOMS

Piping Detail Hack:

This adds a bit of visual interest to those paneled options! Just cut strips at least as long as your seam where your front center and front side panels meet. The width is a personal preference, but you will need double what you’d like your finished width, plus double the seam allowance (3/4″). I choose 1/4″ finished width for mine, so I cut a strip 1 1/4″ wide.

Fold strip width-wise and place right sides together matching raw edges along seam where front center and side panel meet.

Then place side panel on top and stitch with normal 3/8″ seam allowance. (You will be stitching through 4 layers of fabric)

I choose to top-stitch mine down along the folded edge.

I love the little, simple detail!

Separate Skirt Cover Up Hack:

I created a separate skirt for my cousin to use as a cover up! I just cut 1 extra waistband than the pattern calls for and sewed it to the skirt just like the waistband (folded with right sides together along the top raw edge.)

Now she can slip on the skirt when she’s walking around and take it off when she’s ready to really go swimming 🙂

One-Piece Hack:

For some, a two piece suit is not their style, so we hacked the Siren Swim Top and Hello Sailor to create an on trend one piece. You will construct your top and bottom as in the tutorial but will not attach your bottom band of the top or the waistband of the bottoms. I chose to keep the bottom band of the top for extra support, but you can omit if you choose. We will be connecting the top and bottom with a connector piece so you do not need the waistband of the bottoms. Try on your top and bottom.

To determine the length of the connector piece, measure the distance between the raw edge of your top and the top edge of your bottoms at center front and center back. You may need to find someone to help you with the back ;). Add double the seam allowance (0.75″) My gap was about 3″ so the length of my connector piece was 3.75″. I used the waistband measurement for the width of the band as I wanted it to be held tight there. Note: if your hip is much wider than your under-bust and waist, it will be difficult to pull up over your hips so you may need to shimmy it on!

Connecting the top and bottom is the same construction as the bottom band and waistband but you will be using the connector piece instead. Stitch short ends of the connector piece and bottom band. On the bottom band only, fold with wrong sides together.

Matching raw edges and wrong side facing up, slip bottom band over connector piece. You should have 3 layers of fabric. Mark in 1/4s and with right sides together, match raw edges of the connector piece to the Siren Top. Stitch. Flip open and press seam down.

Turn your Hello Sailor bottoms inside out. Matching raw edges of the connector piece, with right sides together, slip your Siren Top inside the bottom. Be sure to match the front of your top with the front of your bottoms. Stitch.

Exposed Seams Boutique Look Hack

March 8, 2016

I’ve seen the boutique french terry raglan with exposed seams countless times in the group, pinterest, and other sewing boards over the past couple years! I made one about a year ago, but never wrote up a blog about how to get the look. We’re still asked for it all the time, so I did another one while we’re updating the Women’s Raglan to include the extended plus sizes and new features our newest P4P patterns have, like layers. It’s looser fit is perfect for french terry, which is what the boutique ones are always made of and gives the same “slouchy” looser fit.

Overall, it is a really basic “hack”. But, I’m going to have to beg forgiveness for the photos! Apparently I did not check my photos as I was taking them and they are not great quality! Hopefully you can enjoy my Peter Pan-esque comedic shadow in them!

You will cut out your pieces exactly the same as a normal raglan for the main shirt. If you want to add the cowl with unfinished bottom edge you will cut 2 like the pattern states, but NOT on the fold. You could still cut on the fold to keep the fullness and just not sew in the bottom edge as well. Depending on how thick your fabric is and how big you want your cowl. I easily get claustrophobic with things around my neck, so one layer not on the fold was an easy decision for me ;).

When assembling the sleeves to the bodice front and back you will put WRONG sides together and stitch with your sewing machine using your favorite stretch stitch.

Trim the notches and smooth out your seam allowance.

Press seams out. You could top-stitch here if you preferred, but I left it open and free 😉 I thought it went with the look better.

Sew down side seams with right sides together, like you would normally.

I added the inseam pocket option from the Add on Pack as well (I can’t seem to make a tunic length without this option anymore!). I went with hemming the front to the right side to show the wrong side there as well.

For my hems I left them all raw and allowed them to roll up towards the front to show the wrong sides there too.

I attached the cowl the same way as the tutorial states, but only attaching one raw edge of the cowl to the neckline instead of two.

Done! Now you have a lovely boutique look that was such an easy sew and hack!

Button Cuff Hack!

January 26, 2016

I look to online boutiques and Pinterest for sewing inspirations all the time. By adding small details to an existing pattern, P4P of course ;), you can transform your favorite finds into your very own me-made version. During the entire month of January we are running a #PINspiredPIRATES contest. I took on the challenge and added a super cute button cuff to the Slim Fit Raglan. You can use any of the knit shirt patterns as a base, but chose the Slim Fit Raglan since it was the best to recreate the overall look. (original inspiration pic credit: Three Birds Nest.)

Supplies: 4-6 buttons; knit scraps, small hair ties, fold over elastic, ribbon (whatever you’d like to use for the loops)

Most of the cuffs included in the patterns are a little shorter than I wanted, so I added 1″ to the length. Since both ends of the button cuff are finished, I added to the width to account for the seam allowance. Refer to your cut chart in the pattern for measurements, then add 1″ to each. Cut 2.

Cut 6 button loops. You can choose what you would like to use for your loops. I went the easy route and cut 1/2″ strips of knit that was the same fabric as my cuffs. Since knit does not unravel, you can leave the edges raw. I pulled them taught so that it would roll in on itself. I cut them 2.5″ long but after completion they ended up a little too long for the smaller size button I used. I wrapped them twice around to keep the cuff closed. I would use 1.75″-2″ depending on your button size.

Fold cuffs right sides together.

Fold loops in half lengthwise and place them equal distance apart between your cuff layers. Be sure to leave at least 1/2″ from raw edge for your seam allowance when attaching your cuff. I just kind of eyeballed their placement to be sure they were even.

Stitch Short ends. Be sure to catch the raw edges of your loops.

Turn Right side out.

Add buttons. Be sure to attach buttons at opposite ends to create mirror images, otherwise, you will end up with 2 cuffs with tabs in the same direction.

Button the cuffs. Again, be sure to button them so you have mirror images.

Baste open edges together. I used a zigzag stitch to tack them together. Do not stitch through all layers or you will sew your cuff shut. You are only stitching through 2 layers of fabric.

Insert cuff inside sleeve with right sides together. Buttons should be lined up to the folded side of sleeve with button loops pointing to the back.

Stitch with 1/2″ seam allowance.

VOILA!

Followed this hack? Or came up with something of your own? We would love to see it! Share your latest make in the Patterns for Pirates facebook group, on Instagram (@patternsforpirates) and don’t forget to submit your PINspiredPIRATES entries by January 31st with tag: #PINspiredPIRATES

Women’s Raglan Nursing Mod

January 19, 2016

If you’re a nursing mom, you know that there are not many fashionable and functional tops out there for nursing that are reasonably priced. After having my little one last year, I quickly realized I wanted a nursing hoodie. I usually just wore a camisole and did the pull up method, but with a hoodie or sweater, that’s not quite as easy. I searched a few sites for inspiration and came up with a mod that works great for the looser relaxed cut tops. We just so happen to be testing the raglan add on pack at the time, so I used the Women’s Raglan as my base. This mod works best with thicker, more stable knits like French Terry, jegging (what I used in the tutorial), fleeced back knit, cotton Lycra, Ponte de Roma and so on. If using a knit with poor recovery, you will want to invest in some clear elastic.

First, you will cut two (2) Front pattern pieces on the FOLD. One will be your under layer and only needs to be about half the length. Measure from armpit to a couple inches below your bust. My example is approximately 9″ from armpit to bottom edge.

UNDER LAYER: Cut a “V” from about 2″ from bottom edge to top. You can also keep fabric on the fold and cut a diagonal line to create the “V”. Since knit does not unravel, you can choose to either leave the V and bottom edge raw, or finish the edges with your preferred method. You can also add a band at the bottom edge. I would recommend measuring the width and subtracting a couple of inches. This will help tighten the under layer and keep it under your bust.

TOP LAYER: Cut a semi-circle from each side. (tip: cutting the curves while the fabric is still on the fold will keep them equal) My curves start at approximately 4″ from neckline to 7″ from armpit however, you can adjust the curve to your liking based on your bust size and how deep you would like them.

Fold under curve 1/2″ to the wrong side and finish using a stretch stitch, zig zag or cover stitch. If your knit is less stable with poor recovery, add clear elastic in the hem for extra stability.

Place top layer wrong side to right side of the under layer. (my picture shows opposite, as I later decided to use the wrong side of the fabric as the right side of my finished garment.) Baste neckline and side seams.

This is now your new front piece. Continue construction of the raglan as shown in the tutorial. Finished product = An awesome nursing friendly hoodie or sweater! Once you’re done nursing you can go back and topstitch the curves closed and have an added design detail that no one would ever know it was for nursing.

Followed this nursing hack? Or came up with something of your own? We would love to see it! Share your latest make on the Patterns for Pirates facebook group!

Carefree with added Button

December 22, 2015

I’ve seen a lot of draped front cardigans with the big wooden buttons on Pinterest and in the Boutiques…and of course I thought, “I can do that!” So the Carefree Cardigan Big Button Modification was born!

The Carefree Cardigan is perfect for the look.

I choose the neckband only option, cuffed long sleeve, and choose to leave the front and bottom raw.

I’ve been making a ton of Carefrees after Baby Girl made her arrival… it is such a nice baby wearing cardigan that I feel cute in and can wrap us both up in when it’s windy or cold. I can also use it nursing her so easily without worrying about bringing another cover or getting anything on or ready when she’s ready to nurse! So, I thought I’d make TWO buttonhole placements… one for normal wear that just pulls the cardigan closed at the neckline… and a second for when I’m wearing Baby Girl and need the neckline open much more.

I sewed up my entire cardigan exactly as normal. Then tried it on both with Baby Girl on me and without and marked where I would like the cardigan to close. Of course, Little Guy had to come photobomb a few shots ;).

I placed my button down a bit away from my neck, because I happen to be one of those people who can’t stand anything tight up against their neck (you will never see a turtle neck from this designer ;)).

So now I needed to create the buttonholes, which is a bit different then usual because I wanted the GIANT buttons that are so popular right now and my sewing machine can’t fit a button near that big on my automatic buttonhole foot. SOOOO, I made my own buttonhole with 2 different size zigzag stitches.

First I marked my button placement and how big I need the buttonhole to be.

Then I sewed a very narrow rectangle that would be my buttonhole. I turned my zigzag length down very low to 1, so that it was a tight stitch.

For the top and bottom of my rectangle I used a wide 5 zigzag and for the sides I used a narrow 2. I simple freehanded it.

I used matching navy thread, so I knew if it wasn’t exactly perfect that no one would be able to see. Actually, the thread matched so close it was REALLY difficult to get a picture of the buttonhole!

Then I used my seam ripper to very carefully rip a line inside the narrow rectangle/buttonhole.

I created a second buttonhole for my baby wearing, looser option.

Wa-lah! Now I have a great on trend cardigan that was quick and easy that I can button up with or without Baby Girl! 🙂

Raglan Colorblock Tutorial (Guest Post)

December 15, 2015

Today’s post is a fun one!
We are giving you all a special guest post from a Patterns for Pirates fan, who sewed up this adorable colorblocked version of the Women’s Raglan. Ashley posted this on the P4P facebook group and we couldn’t help but want her to share it on here.

Ashley’s tutorial is specifically for the women’s raglan, to achieve the look that she has masterfully come up with. BUT, you can take information from this and colorblock anything with these techniques! (For instance, P4P’s Katy shows you how to do a curved colorblock with the women’s henley on her blog HERE.)

Without further ado, take it away Ashley!

Front Colorblock

a. Start with the Front of the Raglan Pattern. Mine is cut for the Small size. I then take a sheet of wax pattern and unroll it until it’s just about the size of the pattern piece. Trace the existing pattern onto the wax paper and decide what length and neckline you would like. In this example, you’ll see the curved hem and a modified V Neck (see step 2 for instructions on doing the V-‐Neck prior to going onto step b).

b. From the end of the arm hole measure 2.5 inches Draw a line straight across the pattern piece (shown as the green line in Figure 1). . Then measure ¼ of an inch down from that line and draw another line. ( Shown as the blue line on Figure 1. Here you are adding on ¼ seam allowance for when you add your stripe pieces).

c. Cut on the pattern on the 2 ¾ line (blue). Continue with cutting the rest of the pattern. Make sure you make all of the original marks like fold lines and notches so that you can line up the pattern correctly. I also label what each piece is so that I don’t get confused later on. d. FT = Front Top, FB= Front bottom.

V-‐Neck adjustment

a. I personally don’t like a deep V-‐neck. So what I did on the Front is where the flat part (small pink line) is on the top of the pattern, where the front scoop (green line) and the armhole meet, I extended it to the left, approximately 1/4inch. I then eye balled it where I wanted the V to end on the middle front of the shirt and drew a diagonal line from that point to beginning of the new flat part (long pink line).

Sleeve alterations

a. Start by taking the sleeve piece and unroll two pieces of wax paper. You’ll have to tape them together in order for it to be wide enough.

b. Trace the outline of the existing sleeve.

c. Measure 2.5 inches down from the left shoulder seam that will eventually meet the front seam ( green line). In my example it’s the short sleeve line for the red dots line on the original pattern.

d. Measure ¼ inch from the green line and draw a straight line across the pattern (blue line). Again here we are just adding a seam allowance. In my example it’s the short sleeve line for the red dot dash on the original pattern.

e. RT= Right Top

f. I then used the existing solid red short sleeve line for where I wanted my stripe to end. I drew a line across there (green) and also ¼ of an inch down from there (blue). The middle piece with the seam allowances added is equal to 2.5 inches wide, which when sewn, will give you an ending piece of 2 inches.

g. Now that we have the top and bottom sections of the arm we need to do the middle part with the stripe. What I did to make things easier was draw lines across in the middle of the middle sections and shaded it in so that I could see how wide the stripe was going to end up being on the finished product. (See photo)

h. After I was happy with it I cut the pattern on the GREEN line of the RT and the BLUE line of the RB. Now here’s the tricky part. If you were to just cut out that piece you would end up with a middle piece that’s too small and therefore our sleeve length will be short. I took the RM in the wax paper and taped it onto two pieces of computer paper. I then measured ¼ inch on the top and ¼ inch from the bottom. I extended the lines out in order to make the total width of the RM 2.5 inches.

i. For the stripe in the middle of RM I measured the shaded in part of it and then traced the measurements onto a piece of computer paper so that I had a hard copy and not just the wax paper.

Cutting

a. Whew! The hard part is over. Now would be a good time to eat a donut or whatever your favorite snack is because you just made it through the hardest part of the hack (in my opinion.)

b. Now that you have all of your pieces you need to decide what color you want the top and bottom parts of the front. In my example the top is plaid and the bottom is black. I then took all the parts for plaid, FT, RT, RB, & stripe and made those into a pile. Then FB, RM, and Back in another pile for black.

c. When you lay out your pattern pieces make sure that if it needs to be on a fold, like the FT, FB, or back that you put it on a fold. For all of the sleeve pieces I just doubled up my fabric so that I end up with a Right and a Left once cut instead of mirroring (too much work).

d. I added about 1.5 inches to the bottom of RB also so that I could hem the sleeves. You do not need to add as much as I do it’s your preference. You can do anywhere from .5 inch to 1.5 here because we aren’t attaching cuffs.

e. The only thing you need to remember with cutting FB is that you need to measure up ¼ inch in order to account for the seam allowance when you sew them together. All of my seam allowances are ¼ inch until you sew the side seams and sleeve seams. Those you would do your normal ½ inch.

f. You also want to cut out your RM pieces. Those do not require a fold.

g. Once you have everything cut out, keep the pattern pieces for the sleeves pinned so that it’s easier to put all the left and right pieces together.

Sewing machine/Serger time!!!

a. Time to put this shirt together. The first thing I always do is my hems, so that they are out of the way. You can do them however you want but I find it easiest to iron first, then use hem tape, and finish with a straight top stitch. I avoid zigzag stitches at all costs just because that’s the easiest way for me to tell between a store bought and homemade shirt. Personal preference only.

b. Now that the shirt hems and sleeve hems are finished let’s start with the easier pieces. Take TF and BF with right sides together and sew at the seam. Always remember rights to rights.

c. I serge everything when it comes to apparel so when that is finished I press the seam and top stitch so that it lays nicely when you wear it. This is optional.

d. Now it’s time to do the sleeves. I took a strip of Heat N’ Bond Lite (or Wonder Under) and with the wrong side of the stripe on the sticky side, iron on the Heat N’ Bond. Let cool and then peel off paper backing. Then line up in the middle of MR and press to adhere to MR. Top stitch or zigzag around edges in order to secure (optional).

e. Line up TR bottom edge with MR top edges, rights to rights, and sew. Open seam, press, and top stitch

f. Line up MR bottom and BR top edges, rights to rights, and sew. Open seam, press, and top stitch. Repeat with Left sleeve pieces.

You are in the home stretch.
Now all that’s left is to follow the same steps you would take with any other raglan. Attach the sleeves to the front and back panels and then sew sleeve seams and side seams.

The VNeck I treated similar to any other neckband except I didn’t start with a loop nor did I measure it out beforehand. I just cut a strip about 1.5 inches wide, folded in half, and press, then starting at the V in the front attach like you would binding on a quilt or other necklines.

I hope everyone enjoys this new colorblock design and if anyone has any questions I’d be happy to help out or explain something!

***Next time I think I’ll just make the MR and Stripe one piece similar to the elbow patch instead of spending so much time sewing each piece of the sleeve together and topstitching. That way you could cut full sleeve pieces and then attach the MR/ML with Heat N’Bond and zigzag stitch down.

Lumberjack Shirt :: Sleeve Hack

December 12, 2015

Sometimes, I want/need to make a new dress shirt for my kiddo but I want to make it as quickly as I can. The collar and button plackets take enough time as-is, so the only thing I can truly eliminate (and save time on) is the cuffs. Most of the time, Louis is pushing and rolling his sleeves up anyway, so I thought maybe I could cut some corners and give him a shirt with the rolled up sleeve look. It’s cool and casual, but still has a “dressy” appeal to it. I love the entire look and idea of it.

First, you will need to get your hands on the Lumberjack Shirt pattern. If you don’t own this yet and you have a little person in your life, you should probably get on that. The Lumberjack is great in that it can be made lined, with a hood, and be this super awesome fall/spring jacket. Or you can make it unlined and with a collar and have yourself a custom-fit buttondown shirt. I’ve done both versions plenty of times now.

To achieve the faux rolled sleeve, it’s just a few easy steps. Promise.

After cutting out all of your pieces (you won’t need the cuff or placket!), per the pattern’s instructions lay out your sleeve pieces and take two inches off of the bottom edge. Why? Because when you roll the sleeves, it is tighter at the bottom and it might be too snug. Even with those little arms that are fitting into the top.

Sew the shirt as you the instructions direct you. When you get to the cuff/sleeve part, all you’ll need to do to finish the sleeves themselves is a simple three step process.

#1: Finish the edge. Serge it or do a small rolled hem. Anything to keep the edge from fraying, as it will not be fully enclosed.

#2: Turn the edge up 1/4″ and press.

#3: Turn the edge up 2″, but do not press. You want this to allow the “rolled up” look of the sleeve. Once rolled, hand tack the sleeve in two places (I chose the arm seam and directly opposite of it). The tacking will help the sleeve stay in place but still allow for the look to be pulled off.

Finish the rest of the shirt as instructed. And then sit back and enjoy the new beauty you just created.

I adore how the simple change of sleeves moves from a more formal shirt to something more casual. It’s such a fun look for a little dude, especially one who is singing in a Christmas concert at his school.

Followed one of the hacks shared on this site? Or maybe you came up with something of your own? We are DYING to know! Share your latest make on the Patterns for Pirates facebook group and let us see.

And while you’re at it, make sure to pick up your very own copy of the Lumberjack Shirt. Happy sewing!

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