Patterns for Pirates

P4P stylish, modern, wearable patterns

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P4P Cardi Week is here!

January 22, 2017

We had so much fun when we ran #P4PRaglanWeek that we decided to do it again.  But this time, we are focusing on our favorite layering pieces: Cardigans!  That’s right, Pirates!  We are asking you to dig out your Grandpa/Cpt Mack, Carefree, and Cocoon/Butterfly Cardigan patterns…and the Kimono pattern too!  Let’s get busy sewing!

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We are giving you a full week of cardigan sewing, with hacks and add-ons and easy tutorials.  This is going to be so much fun!

Take a look at our jam-packed schedule of cardigan love!

Saturday, January 21: #P4PCardiWeek Announcement

Sunday, January 22: Cocoon / Butterfly Ruffle + Lace Hems

Monday, January 23: Ribbon Tie Closure Hack

Tuesday, January 24: Carefree Cardigan Fringe Hack

Wednesday, January 25: Duster-Length Adjustment

Thursday, January 26: Kimono Ruffle Sleeves

Friday, January 27: Varsity Sweater Style Hack

Saturday, January 28: Carefree Cardigan Flannel + Vest Hack

Monday, January 30: #P4PCardiWeek Winner Announcement

You can follow along on the blog here, or in our Facebook group.  Search #P4PCardiWeek to be able to find our posts all over social media.  And please feel free to sew-along with us on one or all of the days.  The more the merrier!


To sweeten the deal, we’ve gone through and updated the older patterns to include the layers feature, as well as the international and copy shop files.  How do you get the updated copies from previous purchases?  That’s easy!

  • If you purchased from PatternsforPirates.com or Craftsy, log into your accounts and download the updated file.  It’s already in there, waiting for you!
  • If you purchased from Etsy, email a copy of your receipt to help@patternsforpirates.com and the Pirate crew will email you with your updated files.

But wait, there’s more!  We wanted to create a friendly pirate-y competition with our P4P Cardi Week!

Between tomorrow and Saturday, January 28, sew up a Patterns for Pirates cardigan using one of our hacks, or by keeping the pattern as-is.  Share your photo with us on Instagram or in our Facebook group and use the tag#P4PCardiWeek We will pick our favorite and the winner will win a free P4P pattern of choice AND be featured on this blog.  Fun right?

To make it even better we have put all the cardigan patterns in the shop on sale all week (no code needed)!

Grandpa Cardigan | Cpt. Mack Cardigan | Carefree Cardigan | Cocoon Cardigan
Butterfly Cardigan | Summer Kimono

Now get out there and sew some cardigans, matey!

Filed Under: Announcement 8 Comments

Sew, what do I wear? Holiday Edition

November 19, 2016

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We teamed up with the Made for Mermaids ladies and have been sharing some great inspiration pieces to add to your holiday wardrobe; whether it be for family photos, dinners, or parties.   You can usually find me in some SOS Pants and a Sweet Tee or Mama Bear Joggers and a Boyfriend Tee but we have some fun holiday parties and a trip to Las Vegas coming up so decided to go all out and use some sparkly and luxurious fabrics.  My three little ones keep me pretty busy and if you’re anything like me, I tend to wait until the very last minute to sew up my items and am left running out the door, trimming my last thread.  So, with that, here’s my take on our ever famous Peg Legs  and Pumpkin Spice Dolman, two of the quickest and most beginner friendly patterns, to make them party worthy.

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First, let’s talk about Peg Legs.  If you haven’t heard what Pegs legs are…Check out this blog post: Peg Leg 101.   My drawer is full of basic pegs, but I didn’t want just any old pair so I decided to use stretch velvet.  While the fabric does meet the minimum stretch requirements, I opted to take a slightly smaller seam allowance just to ensure that they wouldn’t end up a little sheer at the booty and looking more like tights. I also used supplex for my waistband since I wasn’t sure if the velvet would cause the waistband to slip too much.   Changing the type and texture of the fabric took my “mom-iform” pants to luxurious!

Now on to my top.  I’ve recently made a few Off -the-Shoulder Raglans using our raglan hack from a few weeks ago and am really liking the look so I thought it would be a perfect addition to the Pumpkin Spice Dolman to take it up a notch. I was also limited on my fabric and ended up using two front pattern pieces so I could use it for both the front and back.  The back pattern piece of the PSD is wider since naturally our curves (our booty and shoulders) need the extra ease but I was ok with slightly slimmer fit through the hip that I would end up with by using the same pattern piece for the front and back.

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To create the off the shoulder look, I widened the neckline at the shoulder seam by removing 2″.  I also turned the edge 1/4″ and hemmed it rather than adding a neckband.

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I hemmed the bottom and sleeves as well.   To be honest, my serger hated the sequins and I ended up having to do most of the construction on my sewing machine. The blade was able to handle them, but with the combination of the speed, my needles kept breaking.  So just as a cautionary tale, if you decide to use sequins, go slow!  Even with my serger issues though, I was still able to complete my entire outfit in just over an hour…yes, you read that right; an hour! Now, run and grab all the sparkly fabric you can find and shine straight into the New Year!

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Don’t forget to check out all the amazing ladies and their makes, if you haven’t already!  There is sure to be something that inspires  you!  Have you joined in on the fun and made a P4P or M4M holiday outfit?  Join the Facebook Group and share away.  We’d love to your creations.

Nov 14 – Wild & Wanderful/ What Does She Do All Day?/ My Creative Room
Nov 15 – Sew A Piece of Joy / Red Stitch Blue Stitch/ Sewn Of A Stitch
Nov 16 – MaMoose / Rebel & Malice / On Wednesdays We Sew
Nov 17 – It’s Liesel / Stitching and Making / The Kisses Co
Nov 18 – SewSophieLynn/ I’m Just Like Mommy/ Lady and the Gents / The Crunchy Mommy

 

Filed Under: Blog Tours, Pattern Hacks 2 Comments

Sew, what do I wear? Planning and Sewing for Family Pictures

November 19, 2016

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I, along with a lot of apparel seamstresses LOVE to sew up something special for family pictures! We get our family pictures done every fall.  And each year I like to think I get a little bit better at my part, which is coordinating/sewing the outfits.  Or most of them!

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I think the most important “rule” is to have solid back ups.  I like to pick out a true back-up plan with clothes we already have.  I’m a last minute kind of girl, but nothing is worse than really being under pressure to finish something right before you need to look happy in front of a camera! And, you never know when a project decides to be a “doomed project”… you know it happens from time to time that it just isn’t meant to be… everything that could go wrong goes wrong! So… have a REAL back-up… something you will genuinely be happy with and have picked out and ready just in case.  It will take off pressure, stress and be there in case you need it 🙂 This year we slipped into someone’s “spot” after they cancelled… so I only had about 24 hours to get ready. I made Little Guy a Deep Sea VNeck and he wore a pair of Cpt Comfort Jeans I had already made him.  Hubs and I both wore all store bought.  And I still love the pictures 🙂 and I’m glad we could slip in with this photographer that I love!  This year we did navy, green and cream/khaki and my undershirt had a little tiny bit of pink.

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On to the next… I don’t ever try to sew every single piece of clothing in the picture.  That’s a lot to take on, especially if your family is growing and has lots of bodies to clothe! I like to pick the most important to me and make those extra special.  That way I have time and energy to make those “show stoppers” and leave the rest to store bought or something that was made a few months ago! My poor husband pretty much never gets anything made for him…maybe next year 😉  Last year when I was at the end of my pregnancy I only made my shirt (a Layer Me Up )! I wore some SOS skinny pants I had and my Little Guy wore a Yo Ho Henley I had also made previously.  I paired a sweater that was my Granny’s (so still a special to me piece) and the rest was store bought we had on hand.  I had set out to make a cardigan and pants for Little Guy, but those back ups came in handy when I couldn’t muster up the energy!

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When picking colors I love to pick colors that I think compliment both our skin tones and my house! I print the pictures and have them in our living room every year… so I don’t want some crazy colors that aren’t going to go well with all my other decor.  We happen to all be very fair skined, so it’s easy to compliment all our skin tones with the same cooler tones.  If your family has different skin tones, no biggie! You can mix in cooler and warmer tones with different shades and colors. When I’m deciding I love to search Pinterest for family photo in the colors I’m deciding between.  I can’t pull off brighter warmer tones like yellow and orange, so we usually do cooler greens and blues.  I did do a bold lip color this year, but I don’t think I’ll be repeating that 🙂

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I like to pick only a couple colors to use in our pictures and just add neutrals to fill it in.  I almost always go for navy as a base.  It’s super easy to use because you can find it so easily in male and female clothes, jeans and chambray are great and easy neutrals to work with navy/blue as well.  I also always add in white/cream as another neutral.  It helps balance the picture having a dark, mid and lighter tone color.  Then I pick a midtone color or two to work in.  This year we did navy, cream and darker khaki/caramel for the neutrals and teal for the color and I added in a tiny pop of pink since it was our first family pictures with Baby Girl and thought it needed that pop of pink to celebrate! Don’t worry about making everything the same exact shade either, adding different shades of the same color help give some dimension.

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Next is finding a good mix of texture, solids, prints in your outfits.  This can be tricky and honestly a bit time consuming.  But, I really cherish these pictures forever and I don’t mind sitting and staring at a mix of fabric and clothes for a day for them! I like to use jean, knit, plaid, stripes, prints, sweater, ect to make us have some depth.  I like a lot of solids or near solids as well though, because in the end I really want our faces to be the highlight of the picture not our clothes (as hard as that is for a seamstress ;)).  Adding things like buttons and trim to a solid can be the best of both worlds!  A little trim can really make your solid apparel look extra special without being distracting at all like a loud print can become. I usually like to do the kids in the bolder prints or colors but I have mixed it up where I wear a floral, like when I was a million months pregnant last year…. everyone was looking at the belly, so I thought I’d go ahead and highlight it!  And I put Little Guy with a pop of a brighter mustard color to bring some attention to him too.  Here we did navy, cream and olive with his pop of mustard and my floral brought in a bit of pink.

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Layering is a great way to add some more depth and texture.  But, if you’re finding it hard to pair that many items together don’t worry.  It doesn’t make or break your photos if you’re not layered! We did our first year in the summer months in Texas— no one was going to layer anything!  Again we’re in navy, white as neutrals and added that pop of red.  I put Little Guy in the boldest and we’re both in a more subtle print.

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But, you know… if your personality is loud print, then go for it! It’s all about outfitting your family to show them off… put them in something that reflects who you guys are!

I do think it’s important to be comfortable enough that you and your kiddos can sit, stand, walk, and move around without having to adjust your clothes every time.  Otherwise you will spend more time in your session fixing clothing than taking pictures and no one wants that! Or even worse you get them back and  you look uncomfortable! You don’t want to wear something you feel like you need to stand a certain way to be flattering…so suck in the whole time! (This is also wear layers can help mamas cover areas they might be more self conscious of!)

Even though I was super pregnant and merely standing was pretty uncomfortable, I just had on stretchy SOS pants, a super soft rayon spandex Layer Me Up and sweater. So I could sit, squat without worrying about my clothes at all!  (A little secret though, I pulled my hamstring muscle squatting down for this picture, lol!)

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I almost always let my Little Guy wear some kind of t-shirt.  It’s what he always wears day to day and I want him to look like him! I want him to look and feel comfortable while we take the pictures as well.  This Deep Sea V Neck is in a sweater knit.  So the fabric choice dressed it up a bit while he was still very comfy!

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For this year I used the Timeless Tunic for myself.  I did a solid teal rayon jersey in the dress length.  I did size down to a small since I used a very stretchy and drapey knit rather than a woven it’s drafted for.  I also drafted out the bust darts since it was knit.  I used the sleeve split hack that Angela had shared when it released and used a little crochet trim along the split.  I thought it gave the solid a little more umph! I also love to put us in trendy clothes, which is sometimes a “no-no” for family photos.  But, since we do them every year I love the idea and I can’t wait to look back through the fashion!  I paired it with a long necklace and wedge booties.  I was comfortable in the knit and the skirt wasn’t so tight that I felt like I needed spanx or to “suck in” the whole time.  The split sleeve was something I had to be aware of while taking pictures though and how they were laying.

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For Little Guy I made him a plain grey Jolly Roger Raglan in a heathered cotton jersey.  The heathering gave it a tiny bit of texture/interest even though it was a solid.  I also made him a Lumberjack out of a flannel (the poor baby was so hot! It was in the higher 90’s when we took these!).  I did the hood option and added quick knit bands in place of the cuffs.  I also didn’t have time to actually make the button holes if you look closely! But, I bet no one else will ever notice…I hope! He wore some store bought jeans with it.

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Baby Girl wore a High Low Tide Top in a french terry.  She was the only one is what I’d consider a more bold print.  Since she’s so little I thought it was a great way to drawl your eyes to her. She also had the pop of pink within the color scheme in the floral.  A nice soft knit for her too so she would be comfortable and I wouldn’t have to worry about it getting all wrinkled everything I held her or she plopped down walking a few steps.   I added a little of the crochet trim and the buttons on Little Guys’s Lumberjack to her leggings (I used the Bonny Leggings by M4M).  Just a tiny detail that no one else will probably notice coordinates and matches but me.

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Husband wore all store bought–sorry honey! Darker khakis, a button up and a sweater (he was also VERY hot— but he looks great right? 😉 Gotta love a man who will wear layers on a hot TX day for you!)

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I love seeing the family pictures pop up in the Patterns for Pirates Facebook Group!  And I see the questions for help from time to time too! So I hope this helps you get your family pictures planned and sewn  up for next time!

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Blue and Red- Photos by Crystal Ingle Photography, Green, Navy and Blue, Floral- Photos by Colleen Hauth Photography, and this years teal- Photos by Contemporary Portaits.

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Nov 14 – Wild & Wanderful/ What Does She Do All Day?/ My Creative Room
Nov 15 – Sew A Piece of Joy / Red Stitch Blue Stitch/ Sewn Of A Stitch
Nov 16 – MaMoose / Rebel & Malice / On Wednesdays We Sew
Nov 17 – It’s Liesel / Stitching and Making / The Kisses Co
Nov 18 – SewSophieLynn/ I’m Just Like Mommy/ Lady and the Gents / The Crunchy Mommy

Filed Under: Blog Tours, Frequently Asked Questions Leave a Comment

P4P Professional Looks

November 18, 2016

“How can I make this look more professional?” “Is this okay to wear for an interview?” These are just a few of the questions that we see asked all the time about P4P patterns. Well, Angela and I are here to help give you some ways of how you can make and wear Patterns for Pirates a part of your professional wardrobe- and trust us, it’s possible.  Angela works in the insurance world and I am a teacher and both of us admit to wearing P4P almost everyday! So here are a few tips and tricks from to help make you the envy of your office!

Fabric Content Choice
Every pattern will have a different look depending on which type of fabric you use. Some of our favorite contents for workwear are liverpool, ity, sweater knit, ponte de roma and brushed poly. It is important to be aware of the pattern you are using, as each fabric has a different drape and some are more suitable for different patterns. Liverpool is a more structured, textured fabric with great stretch. It is wonderful for patterns such as the Sweetheart, Sweet Tee, and SOS Knit Pants. Ity fabric is a very soft fabric with amazing drape and a smooth, soft texture. It comes in a variety of patterns and is great for making tops look more “dressy” and its a great choice for dresses like the Boundless Dress. Sweater knit is a very easy way to make patterns such as the Pumpkin Spice Dolman and the Grandpa Cardigan look professional for work. It can be found in a variety of weaves (loose to tight), textures, and weight. Another great option is ponte de roma, it is a nice weight and again is more structured so works well for the Pirate Pencil Skirt and bottoms like the SOS Knit Pants, Palazzo Pants and it really dresses up the Mama Bear Jogger shown below with a sweater knit Slim Fit Raglan with the cowl from the Add on Pack.  Another great fabric that seems to be popping up everywhere is brushed poly and it can be used for so much more than peglegs!  Brushed poly comes in various weights and can be single or double brushed and it has a great drape to it so it works well for tops and dresses.  Rayon spandex and bamboo spandex blends are another great choice for tops and dresses.

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Fabric Pattern Choice
In the professional world, it is very easy to play it safe with neutral colors. Neutral colors can be a great base for any outfit- as you can see with most of ours. We both tend to have a solid color somewhere in an outfit and then will pair this with something more bold. For example, I used the Sweetheart skirt hack to create a circle skirt in a solid gray. I then paired this with a polka dot Essential Tank and a cardi. I have also paired the Mama Bear Joggers in a floral french terry with a solid top. And Angela has paired a solid black ponte de roma Pirate Pencil Skirt with a patterned brush poly Sweetheart Peplum.

 

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Adding Details
Adding details such as lace, trims, even a belt can help elevate a pattern to the next level. Lace is one of my favorite things to add to make an outfit look more professional. As you can see below, I used the Sweet Tee in the dress length, however added a lace trim to the hem. Angela added a belt to the Everyday Elegance to dress it up a bit. Or even just adding some jewelry like a necklace on a Pumpkin Spice Dolman. What shoes or boots your wear also can make such a difference on making your outfit look casual or office appropriate.

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Every office is going to be a bit different in what they allow and don’t allow. Some office will allow Peg Legs where as other office won’t allow any type of leggings, some won’t allow a skinny pant where as others will.  Patterns for Pirates have all your bases covered. Both Erinn and I get away with peg legs at the office but you will notice in pictures you see of us in our work attire we stick to solids for leggings. A lot of these looks would also pair nicely with a blazer for a more corporate look or try adding a Grandpa or Carefree Cardigan if your office is cold.  I know both of us have plans to sew a lot of the new Cocoon Cardigans for work as well.

And now that you’ve read some of the basics for becoming a “Professional Pirate”, here are a few more pictures for some inspiration!  And you know getting photo’s of your office attire isn’t easy so I’ve included some bathroom selfies cause I know that you all love seeing bathroom selfies 😉 Happy sewing and make sure to share your professional looks in the P4P Facebook group! ~ Erinn and Angela

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Filed Under: Blog Tours, Uncategorized Leave a Comment

P4P Halloween Costume Contest: The Winners!

November 3, 2016

Halloween costume sewing is basically my (Katy) favorite type of sewing.  It’s allowed to be over-the-top, silly, and super creative.  And I feel like it pushes sewists out of their usual comfort zones.  We held a costume contest in a thread on the Patterns for Pirates Facebook group!  If you were curious about all of the costumes shared, head HERE to find all of the amazing sews.

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I have a hard time choosing just one winner.  So I decided to let my husband and son pick their favorites too this time around!  Here are our picks!

Louis’ Favorite (in the least surprising choice…from my Pokemon obsessed 6-year old): Jennifer Rowe with her Pikachu, made from the P4P Jolly Roger Raglan + Add-Ons, and the Pirate Playground Pants!

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Bennett’s Favorite (another non-surprise from my Star Wars nerdy husband): Jennifer Richardson with her Darth Vader / Rebel Pilot dresses using the Me Hearties Peplum/Dress pattern.

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Katy’s Favorite (I couldn’t help but die a little bit over this unicorn.  I think the hooves sold me.): Jamie Grey with her Unicorn made from the Sweet Tee and Peg Legs.

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Congratulations to the winners!  I’ll be contacting you about your winnings!

And thank you so much to everyone who shared their amazing creations.  I’ve now got a lot of new ideas for next year’s costume sewing extravaganza!

Filed Under: Contest/Giveaway Leave a Comment

And the Winner is…. P4P Sew it, Win it, Build it Giveaway!

October 24, 2016

I truly enjoyed this past couple weeks with my newsfeed on the P4P Facebook Group, Pinterest and Instagram all filled with the P4P Sew it, Win it, Build it Giveaway entries! I loved seeing your sewing spaces big and small, messy and tidy, and sparse or packed full! It’s so fun to see how everyone sews! But, lets get to it, because I know everyone is ready to see who won the biggest giveaway we’ve ever done!

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Who will get this amazing grand prize???

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Okay okay…without anymore suspense… the random lottery winner from ALL the entries (there were a lot ladies!!)

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From our Instagram feed!  I will be sending you, livingyoungfitness a private message on Instagram!

 

Thank you all for participated and cheering each other on! I love to see the friendship and camaraderie the P4P Facebook Group is filled with! <3 We’re all just a bunch of ladies and gentlemen who have a love for sewing!

Thank you so much for letting me share the love of sewing with such a lovely group and I hope livingyoungfitness can build the sewing space she’s been dreaming of since the start of the giveaway!  If you weren’t the lucky winner I hope you got some great sewing done with the motivation and have some ideas for your holiday wishlist for your sewing space too! 😉 I know I do!!

Filed Under: Announcement, Contest/Giveaway 4 Comments

Last Call for Entries- Sew it, Win it, Build it Giveaway by P4P

October 23, 2016

I hope you’ve read and entered into our biggest giveaway ever!

The Sew it, Win it, Build it Giveaway- the chance to win a sewing room make-over!

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We wrote a week full of posts all about planning, filling, organizing a great sewing space- rather you’re in the dining room, bedroom, or lucky enough to have a sewing shack we hope they helped you find the perfect storage solution, find the best tools, and plan a great layout that works for you!

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We are also having our LAST sale of the year with a huge 30% site wide sale through tonight, use this code below for the discount at check out:30kcouponcode

Today is the LAST day to enter or grab patterns with the sale code!

Contest  and sale will end tonight at midnight. So last entries can be posted until 11:59PM Sunday October 23rd US Central Time Zone. (So you have about 8 hours to get somethings sewn up and post from now!)

Good Luck! Winner will be a random lottery winner- so everyone has a chance!

We will announce the winner tomorrow 🙂

Make sure to read through those entry rules here!

One last THANK YOU for all your support and giving me the pleasure of helping 30k members of our Facebook Group sewing up P4P patterns!

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Filed Under: Announcement, Contest/Giveaway Leave a Comment

Sewing and Craft Room Storage Idea- Sew it, Win it, Build it- from P4P

October 23, 2016

We’ve been talking this week about building a better sewing space.  We’ve talked about how to plan one, what our favorite tools are to have it one, how to store our fabric and patterns and now we’ll get into storing all the other sewing supplies that most of us have or want in our craft rooms.

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We’ll start out with general organizing and move into specific areas.

I love to have little “station boxes” in my craft room.  I have a storage box at my cutting table with my pattern prepping and fabric cutting tools.  I used to have a mismatch collections until I got this matching little set from Hancocks while they were all going through their “going out of business sale”.

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Another storage box next to my machines with those tools I need while I’m sewing like my tube turner, seam ripper, snippers, ect.

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And again on my ironing board with my tools I use there like starch, hem tape, scissors, ect.

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I love them because they’re convenient and I can close it up quickly when I’m done (or frantically tidying up because someone is coming 😉 )

If you are in a small space something like Roberta uses on the back of a door is a great space saver and you can keep a lot of smaller tools and supplies within an easy reach.

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Thread storage!

I keep mine on a boring thread peg organizer.  It works pretty well, it’s a little unstable since I just have it sitting on my desk rather that hanging.  I also quickly filled it up! I plan on using a peg system, but much larger and on the wall on the new sewing space.  I like that I don’t have to open anything, I can easily see all the colors I have instantly.

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My sister and mom both keep their thread in a drawer container sorted by rainbow colors.  They both love their system as well, easy in and out, and easy to compare the different shade when color matching.

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I currently keep my serger thread in my desk drawers.  It is convenient to grab at my machines and the shallow drawer works great.

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My deeper drawer is more difficult to use this method and I end up digging a lot to find the set of colors I’m looking for (I keep the stretch thread inside the bucket within the deep drawer).  So I will be planning on some kind of bigger peg board in the new sewing space!

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Here is how my sister Nicole stores her serger threads in bins that look like the perfect height!  PS- One day I’ll have all those color of serger thread 😉 #goals

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I keep my bobbins in a little container like this. I love that I can close it and keep it from getting caught on anything as I’m reaching or sewing and pulling out a thread and trailing it!

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Roberta loves the open circle bobbin holders like these:

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Pin and Clip Storage!

My sister Nicole made this awesome pin cushion and basket for me last year and I LOVE it! It is meant to be a pin cushion on top and trash/thread scrap basket on bottom.  But, I use the bottom basket for my wonder clips! That way I have both pins and clips right next to me at my desk easy and quick in and out while sewing.

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I also have one of these classic pin cushions in my ironing station and in my cutting station as well!

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A lot of ladies love to use a magnetic bowl of sorts to store pins. The magnetic helps grab and hold onto the pins.

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Sewing Machine Pieces/Tools!

I am super boring here ladies.  I keep all my parts/tools in the little ziplock bag that comes with the machine! Lazy? My sister Nicole has made an adorable zipper pouch for each of her machines to hold their extra parts, feet, tools, ect..

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Buttons!

I feel like buttons are one of the sewing supplies that most are able to organize fairly easily.  You can find so many little organizers with smaller compartments that work great for rainbow sorting.  The only thing you have to worry about is little fingers coming along and “helping” you reorganize them… my Little Guy LOVES doing that!!

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Stuffing!

If you have a big bag of stuffing laying around you can make a big, simple drawstring bag to keep looking tidy and easy to get in and out when you’re using it.

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I’m sure I left some supplies out, some we didn’t have a great way we were happy with! But, I hope this helps you find the right storage for your craft and sewing supplies in your sewing space!

Don’t forget to enter into our Sew it, Win it, Build it Giveaway! Today is the last day for entries- until tonight (Sunday October 23rd) before midnight- 11:59pm US Central Time Zone.

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Pattern Storage- Sew it, Win it, Build it- from P4P

October 22, 2016

We see the question, “How do you store your printed patterns?” all the time in the P4P FB Group! So, as we’re celebrating hitting 30k members in the group with our “Sew it, Win it, Build it” Giveaway we’re hoping to answer that question today!

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We’ve been discussing all about planning, building and organizing your sewing room this week as one lucky member will win a Sewing Room Make-Over Grand Prize! Pattern storage is one that has been really tricky for me as I am planning my new sewing room! I’ve changed my mind a few times and I’m still not 100% certain with what I’ll have in there!

Currently, I use a file folder and standard filing cabinet.  It works very well for youth size patterns.  I usually only have to fold them a bit to fit nicely into a file folder and I have each drawer labeled as boys, girls, ladies, mens, ect. So, they’re very easy to find, throw back in, and keep fairly tidy.  My only complaint is that my adult patterns do get folded quite a bit and I often have to re-tape and work at flattening them back out when I pull out and go to cut.

It’s currently in our garage since we packed up our house to show/sale, so excuse the packing tape and packed garage behind it 😉

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So, I was wanting something that I didn’t need to fold- at least not as much- on my bigger adult patterns.  Kelly hangs her with a little hole punch and ring:

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This is a good solution for not having to fold, but I don’t have any closet space in the new room.  So, I’d have to either do a curtain rod, wardrobe or something like this to use this method.  I’ve been on the hunt for a beautiful antique wardrobe to hang them in, but they’re hard to come by! And I don’t have too much time to spend hunting, but maybe one will fall into my lap! I can hope, right? Patty hangs hers with clips onto a mobile wardrobe hanger.

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Another option is big shallow drawers.  I’ve found a few horizontal file cabinets for engineers or photographers that are pretty big that would work pretty well.  The only pull back to this is how many drawers can it have? Not enough for each pattern to have a drawer that’s for sure 😉 So, I would have to think of a way to keep them organized even within the shallow drawers, which could be difficult!  Plus, the couple I have found have been very high priced!

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A lot of ladies use big envelopes to store their patterns.  Patty has them with the pattern cover on the front and fabric requirements on the back.  Then she has them sorted by categories in magazine holders.

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Erinn stores her traced pattern pieces in binders.  She has the pieces in a clear paper protector with the pattern and size labeled. She also keeps the bigger master copy just on the very top of her bookshelf if she needs to retrace a new size.

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We’ve heard members rolling their patterns and slipping them into toilet paper/paper towel cardboard to store!  Some use milk crates to keep slip each pattern into and hold it in place too, seems like a great way to keep the big master copies!

My sister only keeps her very favorite patterns she uses over and over.  For those she makes a giant “file folder” from poster boards and labels them, slips the pattern pieces inside!  And if you’re super cute like my sister you can even decorate them with hearts <3!

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We saw a great share in the P4P Facebook Group that she likes to roll her big printed copies up and labels them with paper towel or toilet paper rolls!

 

I hope seeing all these option for storing your sewing patterns helps you find the perfect solution for your craft room! Don’t miss out on the rest of our posts this week and to enter into our “Sew it, Win it, Build it” Giveaway! 

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Fabric Storage Ideas – “Sew it, Win it, Build it” from P4P

October 21, 2016

We’re talking all about Sewing Rooms this week with our awesome “Sew it, Win it, Build it” giveaway!   Today we’re going to continue talking about sewing rooms and how you can store all those supplies you need/stock/hoard? 😉

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We hear a lot of questions in the P4P Facebook Group asking how to store things in sewing spaces.  So, here is a little list to help you see the options you have out there.  Today we’ll just be doing fabric storage, but we will also cover pattern storage as well as other sewing supplies later this week! *(This post contains affiliate links)*

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The big one right? How in the world do you store all your fabric so that you can see and get to it easily when you’re trying to find that perfect coordinate, where it takes up minimal space, and where you can fit a lot?  Or is that just something I worry about?

I store my fabric in open shelving.  I like to be able to see my fabrics really easily so that I don’t end up pulling them ALL out to color match or see my options. (Although sometimes I still do this a bit!)  I use cube shelving.  I like that each cube isn’t too wide that the fabric gets lost under others.  I’ve folded mine and rolled mine.  I like the idea of rolling better, I can see it more clearly when that shelf is getting really packed full, but I’ll be honest and say I didn’t have much success getting myself to keep up the rolling! When I would get it out to color match or decide between a few choices I would find myself not wanting to roll it back up! So, back to folding I went 😉   I also will use the little bins for scraps as well, I have one for knit and one for woven scraps. (Yes, one… I’m not a scrap hoarder!  When I get too full I go through it very quickly and give my nieces any that I take out for them to practice with.)

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Maybe you happen to be a scrap lover…hoarder…like my dear sister Nicole 😉 She keeps everything! She sorts her scraps by color into bins:

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There is the “ruler folding method” for storing on bookshelves.  Which just helps you keep each cut folded at the same width so it fits nice and tidy on the shelves.  I’m just always in too much of a rush to be this neat and tidy! Maybe one day 🙂 The jist is to use your quilters ruler as a guide to fold your fabric cuts.  Here is a helpful blog post from my sister’s blog explaining how in detail.

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Another way I’ve seen is to use comic book boards to fold your fabric around.  It’s like having tiny bolt of fabric on your shelves!  Roberta uses this method and it gives you such a nice and tidy look as well.  She has done it for a while and can count the number of layers around the board to get a good estimate on yardage without unwrapping and measuring! Great little trick!

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You can also buy these fabric organizers made exactly for this use too.  They have little grips to slide/tuck your fabric into.

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Another way I’ve seen around is to use filing cabinets. You can hang your fabrics on the file folders and sift through them.  Again, I think this really only works for smaller cuts of fabric.  You could fill up a cabinet way too quick with adult size cuts of french terry! I’ve never stored my fabric this way, but here is a blog post I found explaining how she does it.

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Another one I see often is in tubs.  I currently have all my fabric in tubs because we had to pack up my sewing room to show and sell our house.  But, I hate it!  Personally I sew way too often to have to dig out fabric from tubs every time.  I end up making a huge mess pulling it all out trying to find something! But, it would keep it out of eyesight if you don’t want your fabric on display.

When we helped organize my mothers quilting fabric, which is so different than apparel fabrics since it’s a lot of smaller pieces rather than larger cuts.  We folded them and stored them into drawers and small bins vertically.  That way she could open the drawer or bin, and see all her fabric in that one at once.  she could easily pull pieces in and out without disrupting the others.  This is a view with drawers open and looking down into the drawers:

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The last way I’ve seen is to hang.  On curtain rods, a wardrobe system, or if you happen to have a closet in your craft room. You can use a hanger and fold the fabric over the bottom like Patty does here:

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Or you can use curtain rings and clip them. Here is an example of this from Crafterholics blog:

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Now that you’ve decided what you’ll be storing your fabric with you can move on to thinking about how you organize it within that unit.  I like to keep my fabric organized by type.  Meaning I have all my french terry together, rayon spandex, sweater knits, ect.  Some of my very favorite types I split into more– solids, prints… I also keep most of my “t-shirt weight knits” together and sort my solids, stripes, prints.  So– it might looked haphazard to someone just looking at it.  But, when I go to look for a certain project it’s perfect for me! I can look for the weight/blend that I’m needing for that project and then move into what print/color/ect. from there.

My mom also organizes her quilting stash in types.  But, obviously not fabric type since it’s all quilting cottons.  She uses the type of quilt it’s for… meaning- low volume goes together, a quilt set from a certain designer, brights, holiday prints, I spy quilt fabrics, ect.  So that when she’s ready to sew up a low volume quilt she can go to that drawer, pull it open and pick from there.  We also did her blenders all together in a rainbow sort.  So if she needs a blender in a certain color she can quickly get to it as well.

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My oldest sister Nicole organizes her fabrics in 2 big categories- she does both apparel and quilting sewing a lot. So, she has… a lot of fabric… a lot… lol… She has all her knits together and then sorted by rainbow colors.  Then her cotton wovens together sorted again by rainbow colors.  It does look pretty in there all rainbowed out!

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My sister Megan organizes by type like me- she also has a separate place for fabric for her son and then for her daughter.  It helps when they’re ready to pick something out!

Whew… Well, I hope that helps show you a few ways you can store your fabric!

Stay tuned for some more ways to organize your sewing/craft room this week including pattern storage and other supplies!

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