Fierce Bra and Undies – Easy Hacks

November 1, 2019

Ahoy, pirates! In true P4P fashion we could not let the DOUBLE release happen without showing you some simple hacks for your new Fierce Undies and Bra. All these simple mods can be applied to both our adult and youth pattern.

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Undies with bands

I love the new Fierce Undies. They feel so amazing! But I know sometimes I prefer a knit waistband instead of elastic. So today I will be showing you how to hack a knit waistband on the Fierce Undies.

The first thing I did was cut and assemble the pattern according to the pattern. Then I measured the top of the undies to see how wide it is.

Now here is the formula I used to the band width: (undies width X 2)+1 X 80%. I like to use 80% because I like my band a little smaller but not too tight. Here is a picture of my measurements.

So my finished number is 24.8. So I cut my band at 4” tall and 24.8 wide. I cut my band 4” high because I like the 2” thickness. I fold my band short ends together and sew.

Then I fold it again raw edges together.

Now I quarter the band and undies, then I put the band over the undies with right sides together matching the quarter marks.

Sew the band on, top stitch if desired.

Now you have a knit and Fierce undies!

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Undies with picot lace

Nicole will show us how to add picot trim to the leg opening soon!

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Bra with knit biding

For this hack, we will be using knit to create a binding instead of fold over elastic (FOE). This is a a great hack to use if you don’t have any FOE on hand or if you want your binding to be a cute print or exact match of one of your fabrics.

To get started, cut out the three 2” strap pieces using the width measurements as indicated in the elastic cut chart according to your size. Optional: serge along the long edges for additional stability. Then, press all three binding pieces into 1/2” strips: Fold pieces in half, press, open back up, then bring raw edges to meet at the center crease, press, fold in half, press.

Open up your binding neckline piece, match the center point of binding (right side) to the center point of the neckline (lining side). Stretching slightly, stitch along the neckline using a stretch stitch and a 1/2” seam allowance (along the first crease).

Finger press binding and seam allowance up, then re-fold the binding in the same manner as done previously to get a 1/2″ strip. Re-fold the entire strip to form your straps and pin/clip in place. Stitch using a stretch stitch along the entire binding to close and finish the binding/straps.

Continue with pattern instructions for construction. Repeat binding steps with outside straps: be sure your binding pieces are open before stitching the ends together when getting started on the outside straps.

and now you have your own custom knit binding! <3

(bra pictured has elastic band attached differently than pattern)

Lacy

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Youth bra with cups

My daughter is getting to be that age that she wants just a bit more coverage and loves all her ready to wear sports bras that come with padded cups. The first thing that she asked me about the new fierce bra is if it had cups and I said no but not to worry I could add them for her. This hack is super easy and the construction does not change at all! Let’s get started!

First we are going to trace off our front piece, next we need to create an opening for our cups to slide into. I used my french curve but you can certainly free hand a curve similar to what I have shown here. I just estimated how big to make it, it does not need to be to big, you want to be able to easily slide a cup in and out of it. Next cut away the line you drew on your piece, this will now be your lining piece. You will cut one main front and one lining from your newly created piece.

Your construction will stay exactly the same, you will just have the curves in your lining piece. I choose not to finish the edges of my curves as I was using a really nice quality athletic fabric but you can always finish that edge with your serger or with a narrow hem on your sewing machine. Once finished you will be able to slide in cups, I just grabbed a set from my daughters ready to wear bras but you can also buy bra cups and cut them down to fit. My daughter is only 10 and really doesn’t need them to add any type of support she just likes the extra coverage so really any cheap cups from Amazon will do the trick and are easy to cut to size.

All done and my girl is happy to have a bra made to fit her perfectly

Angela

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Undies with lace band

Up next I wanted to show you another way to add a waistband to the Fierce Undies. Instead of the 3/4″-1.5″ waistband elastic you can use stretch lace. I used 1″ for my example but 1.5″ would work beautifully as well. Start by cutting your pattern as instructed but cut stretch lace instead of elastic.

Sew the short ends of the lace to form a loop. You may find it easier to use a piece of water soluble stabilizer between the machine’s feed dogs and the lace so as to deter your machine from trying to “eat” your fabric.

Sew the undies as instructed in the tutorial. Pin the lace at the top, overlapping 3/8″. The wrong side of the lace will be against the right side of the undies. Sew in place using a zig zag stitch of a coverstitch.

Tadah! Done! You just added one more option to the Fierce Undies.

Judy is rocking a pair of Fierce Undies with a 2″ lace band.

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Swim suit

Last but certainly not least we want it to show you how easy it is to make Fierce Swimsuit. You will need:

swim suit fabric
swim lining (or solid swim like I used)
1″ swim elastic for the waistband and under bust band
3/8″ swim elastic for the leg openings and bra straps
optionally power mesh and cups (I have not used them on mine)

Start by cutting you undies front and back pieces from swim, the liner from solid swim or lining. Cut the waistband 3″ by the length of the waistband elastic (from the cutting chart) plus 1″ for the seam allowance. Cut the 1″ swim elastic the length of the waistband elastic from the chart. Now cut the bra pieces, making sure that the under bust band is 3″ wide by the length of the elastic plus 1″ seam allowance. You will also need to enclose swim elastic in the bra straps so you will but binding strips that are 1.5″ wide by the length of the pattern straps pieces.

Sew the undies and side of the bra (and lining) as instructed in the tutorial. Now let’s make the waistband and the bra under bust band. Same technique…butt the ends of the elastic together and sew with a wide zig zag stitch. Overlap the band with the right sides together and sew it in a loop using 1/2″ seam allowance. Insert the elastic inside and put pins or clips at the quarter mark. Put the bands aside for now.

Hem the legs of the undies as in the pattern. The only difference will be that you will be using swim elastic for the briefs and thong, no elastic for the cheekies. Take your swim elastic and baste it to one edge of each of the bra straps.

Attach the bra straps binding as Lacy is showing you in the hack above.

All you have left to do is add the waistband and under bust band that you prepared earlier. Mark the 4 quarters of the undies waist and under bust opening. Add the respective band matching the quarter points. Sew them with your serger or a triple stretch stitch. Optionally, top stitch.

All done! You just added one more swim suit to your collection. You can use the same tips for both the youth and the adult pattern.

We hope you enjoyed these spins on the new Fierce Undies and Fierce Bra pattern. Don’t forget to share your creations in the Patterns for Pirates Facebook group or tag us on Instagram @patternsforpirates.

Summer PJs easy hack

July 18, 2019

As with all new P4P patterns our blog team has some easy hacks ready for you to take your Summer Pjs up a notch. It is a sizzling summer after all…

Knit and FOE

Let’s start with a simple fabric switch. If you are anything like me you have piles and piles of knit fabric in your stash. Let’s make the Summer Pjs with jersey knit. The other replacement we are making is switching the bias tape for FOE (fold over elastic).

I used 5/8″ FOE for mine but any width bigger would work too. One of my favorite parts of making the Summer PJs with knit is that I can coverstitch the hem.

Sew the PJs as instructed in the tutorial. When adding FOE simply fold it in half and sew it on with a lightning bolt stitch or triple stretch stitch. You can get away with using a straight stitch since the pattern has plenty of positive ease so you won’t really be stretching the binding.

I left the FOE as is for the back strap but you can certainly fold that one over as well.

Use lots of pins when adding the long back strap. It will help if you steam press the FOE fold prior to pinning or clipping it in place.

That’s it! No changes made to the actual pattern pieces just fabric choice…easy peasy!

Lace Insert

If you are looking to make your Summer Pjs just a little more sexy…why not add a lace insert to the front of the top or nightie? Grab your favorite lace or very wide lace trim and let’s get started. Cut the fabric as instructed in the pattern. Using a disappearing pen, like a Frixion , mark on the front piece the “V” you would like to be lace. This is where you choose how “risque” you would like to make your pajamas. Mark another line 1/4″ inside of the first one. This will be your cutting line for the main fabric. Cute along the green line and remove the inside triangle.

Cut down your lace a 1/4″ bigger than the size of the bigger triangle. If you use gallon lace or trim make sure the pretty details (like Judy’s black accent) is at the top. Mark 1/4″ inside the V lace triangle with the disappearing pen or tailor chalk. This will be the stitching line.

Place your lace triangle over the front piece right sides together matching the stitching lines (red). Sew over the marked lines with a straight stitch, pivoting at the center V. Flip the lace piece inside the main fabric and finish the raw edges with a zig zag stitch. Top stitch 1/8″ away from the edge.

If your lace has a raw edge at the top, follow the pattern to add bias binding. If your using lace with a finished edge like Judy’s then simply skip the front bias tape.

All you have left to do now is enjoy your new sexy summer pajamas.

Ruffles

Ruffles can add such a soft, feminine detail and to me, the new Summer PJ’s has so many great places to add a ruffle. One of the first places is the legs. You can add ruffles to either the cheekie or shorts length. For this tutorial, I added ruffles to the shorts length.

To begin, you will want to assemble your shorts as directed by the tutorial, with the exception of hemming.

Once you’ve constructed your shorts, you will need cut your bands that will be used for the ruffles. The band needs to be 3″ x width of fabric. If you would like your ruffle more full, you can always sew two strips together to create a fuller look.

Once the strips are cut, you will want to press them in half, with wrong sides together. Unfold your strips. With right sides together, stitch the ends together, using a 1/2″ seam allowance to create a loop.

Re-fold your band. Using the longest straight stitch on your machine, create your gathering stitches. You will want to use two rows of stitches, one at a 1/4″ from the raw edge and a second 5/8″. Repeat on other band.

Mark the middle of your band with a pin or clip. Pulling the bobbin thread, begin to gather your band. You will then want to match up the seam of the band with the crotch seam and the middle with the outside leg seam.

Evenly distribute your gathers and attach using a 1/2″ seam allowance. To finish, press the seam up and top stitch around the legs if wished!

Another quick and easy way to add ruffles to the Summer PJ’s is to add one to the neckline. I chose to add this to my daughter’s nightgown and we are both in love with the results. Many of the steps will be the same as above. After cutting out your top, stitch your side seams together. For the ruffle, you will want to cut a strip of fabric that is 3″ x double the width of the neckline. Press this strip of fabric in half, wrong sides together.

Using the longest straight stitch, create your gathering stitches by stitching a straight line at both 1/4″ and 5/8″ from the raw edge.

To gather, pull the bobbin thread until the strip is the same width as the neckline (** Leave 1/2″ ungathered on both ends to help reduce bulk when attaching the binding). Baste around the armscyes and neckline to hold ruffle in place.

Continue to finish the top according to the tutorial, attaching the binding to the neckline as instructed, treating the ruffle and neckline as one.

Now that you have your youth and adult Summer PJs, and learned some easy hacks, time to get creative with your own pajamas. Don’t forget to share your pretties in the P4P Facebook group so we can all marvel at their beauty.

Alex and Erinn

Wiggle Dress – easy hacks

October 24, 2017

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Separates

The full-length mermaid-esque dress is gorgeous, but maybe you want to pair it with a different top or choose different fabrics? With this simple hack, you can create a gorgeous set and wear them as separates. For the skirt, cut along the crop cutline. Stitch the center back seam and each side seam. Using the cropped band measurement and instructions, attach to the top edge of the skirt. Easy peasy!

How cute is Katy in this Ariel inspired Haloween outfit!

And seriously, how amazing is this sequin skirt!!

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Color-Block Bodice

Keeping with the concept of separates, but perhaps you still wanted a dress. Doing a color-block bodice gives you a chance to mix up your fabrics. Since there is already a crop cutline on the pattern pieces that hits at the natural waist, we will be using that as a guideline. Re-trace the crop cutline 1/2″ above and below it to create your seam allowance on both the front and back pattern pieces. Cut your new top bodice and bottom skirt from both front and back. For the back, you will have 2 back top bodices (mirror image) and 2 back bottom skirt (mirror image) pieces. For assembly, with right sides together, stitch with a 1/2″ seam allowance the front bodice to the front skirt. Repeat for both back bodice and skirt pieces. Continue construction as provided int he pattern. 🙂

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Decorative Button Back

Adding embellishments to your dress can give it some extra special details that will set it apart from the next. Since the pattern is drafted for stable knits, you do not need a zipper or functional buttons to put it on, so these buttons are purely for decorative reasons. I love the finishing touch it gives the back. Using the center back seam as a guideline, I hand stitched pearl buttons every 1/2″. I used the zipper lengths as mentioned in the tutorial as a guide where to end my button placement. For this version, I used a total of 13 buttons. ”

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Straps for off the shoulder

Love the off the shoulder but hate wearing strapless bras? No problem! Let’s add some cute straps to the Wiggle off the shoulder dress that will cover your bra straps. Print the off the shoulder option of the pattern and sew it up as per the pattern tutorial. Stop at the neckline finishing steps. Cut two pieces of fabric 4″x 9.5″. These will be your straps. The length of your straps may vary slightly based on the size you make.

Fold the straps lengthwise and sew them side with a 1/2″ seam allowance.

Turn the straps inside out and press them with the seam in the center.

For perfect straps placement, try the dress on with your favorite bra. Mark with a pin or a clip where the bra straps will be.

Sew the straps to the dress with the right sides together. Finish the neckline as per the pattern tutorial.

That’s all! You now have yet a new style of the new Wiggle dress!

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Sleeveless

The Wiggle Dress is already packed with soo many options and great for every season but I don’t know about anyone else but summer here is HOT!! I can not handle any type of sleeves at all so a sleeveless version of the Wiggle dress would be what I would want for summer and lucky for me it is a really quick and easy hack. Let’s get started.

First, you are going to cut all your pieces except for your sleeves. You do not need to modify the armscye at all for this hack so just cut your front and back as usual. Sew the shoulder seams and side seams as directed in the pattern, but skip the section for adding a sleeve. Next, you will iron and pin your armscye to the wrong side 1/2″ inch as shown below. Topstitch using your favorite stretch stitch.

Now just finish up the dress or top as instructed in the pattern and you’re done. Quick, right!?

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Full Zipper Back

As soon as I saw the Wiggle dress I knew I had to make a full zipper back! So I took it up a notch and bought a dual zipper. This style zipper opens at the top and bottom. You can add this zipper to the high back, low back or even the off the shoulder option as well as the above, bellow or midi length. Just make sure the zipper you use is long enough! As a point of reference, I used a 48″ zipper for the high back, midi length style.

Start by marking the hem on the center back seam.

Add a strip of 1/4″ Wonder Tape to the center back seam, 1.4″ away from the edge. Start at the point you marked above and stop 1/2″ away from the top.

Repeat with the other back piece.

Remove the paper backing of the Wonder tape and adhere the zipper right sides together. Sew in place with a 1/2″ seam allowance.

Zip up the zipper and place the other side of the back piece, right sides together, making sure that the bottom and top match.

Sew in place and top stitch.

Now that you have your back piece ready, sew the dress as per the tutorial. You will be enclosing the zipper in the bottom hem as shown below.

All done! Now all you have to decide is where the next date night will be! 🙂

I loved the idea of a full-length zipper like Alex showed us above, but when it came to finding one locally, I wasn’t able to get one the length I needed. I did find a chunky zipper that would be perfect to use as an exposed zipper and just so happened to work out that it’s finished length was about knee length. I opted to go with the midi length and do a split hem at the center back. You will install your zipper the same as you would in the tutorial, except place it on the RIGHT side of the fabric with the wrong side of the zipper centered along the back seam.

: Place zipper on top of the center back seam.

: Pin in place and topstitch.

: View from Back

: Fold the remaining center back seam to the wrong side and topstitch.

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Lace Applique

I’ll be honest, Judy created this dress while we were pre-testing and I had to replicate it. Adding a lace applique is super easy but adds a super sexy and classic flair. For this particular version, the lace extends along the entire side seam, so I constructed my bodice first, added the lace to the top, then sewed my sleeves on so that the lace was enclosed in the armscye. You can, of course, add lace wherever you’d prefer, such as the neckline or bottom hem but I love the silhouette the wide stripe gave from the front and back. I used a fairly narrow zig-zag stitch down the center seam and along each edge of the stretch lace trim. Be sure to keep your lace taut as you sew along the waist and hip curves.

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Front Leg Slit

What sexy dress doesn’t include a slit! Show off those legs and add a front slit to your wiggle.

: Try on your dress and mark where and how high you would like your slit. For reference, mine is 24″ from bottom hem (just above the knee) and is about half the distance from the center (1/4 point).

: Cut the slit.

: Cut 2 binding strips 1 1/4″ by the length of your slit.

: With right sides together and using a 1/4″ seam allowance, stitch binding to each side of the slit.

: Fold the binding to the wrong side.

: Fold the raw edge down to the previously sewn stitch line.

: Fold over to the wrong side again, and pin in place.

: Topstitch.

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Sweetheart/Wiggle Mash

We couldn’t end this epic hacks series without a Wiggle dress/Sweetheart mash up. I just had to make myself a black velvet and lace long dress. We all need one in our closets, right?

This mash is super easy. Simply take the front patterns of the wiggle dress and mark the sweetheart color-block lines using the Sweetheart dress top pattern piece. Don’t forget to add the seam allowance!

Sew the two front pieces (lace and velvet) as suggested in the Sweetheart pattern.

Once you do that simply follow the directions in the Wiggle Dress pattern to finish your dress. I used lace for my sleeves too. Since I didn’t have any black elastic and I certainly couldn’t use white elastic for the neckline, I used clear elastic instead. It worked like a charm!

Tadah! Just by adding a sexy sweetheart color block front, you took your Wiggle dress up a notch!

Holy Moly…. I think we covered just about every hack we could come up with to take The Wiggle Dress to the next level (if it wasn’t already on its own)! Make a Wiggle? Hop on over to the Facebook Group, and share your makes, we’d love to see it!

LL – easy hacks

July 20, 2017

In true Pirate fashion we could not have let this double release go by without showing you some easy but fun hacks for the Little Loungers and Linen Loungers. Erinn will start you off with an adorable bias binding hack for the curved hem shorts.

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Bias Binding curved hem

Adding bias bindings to the hemline of the curved shorts is a quick and easy way to create an entirely different look. One of the things that I love most about this look is that it’s a great way to add a pop of contrasting or coordinating fabrics.

To create this look, cut out your pattern pieces as you would per the pattern. The only additional thing you will need are your bindings. For mine, I cut them 2″ wide by a length that was longer than the hemline. As you can see below, I used the curved pattern pieces and marked the top edge. I will connect my bias binding pieces up to this marking.

If you are attaching pockets, you can complete everything through these steps. Before sewing up the inseam and sides, you will want to complete your bindings along the curves. Place your shorts facing down and bias binding pieces face down and then gently ease them along the curves. You will want to pin/clip this in place. As you can see, my pieces are longer than the edges, but these will be trimmed later. Attach with a 1/2″ seam allowance, then clip into seam allowance along curve.

Once you’ve attached your binding, press binding piece and seam up. Press bias binding piece to align with top edge, then press again as you fold binding over (these are the same steps as were completed on pockets). Edge stitch along folded edge and repeat on the other three hemlines.

Once you’ve attached all bias bindings, you will assembly your pattern as directed. When reaching the curved seam and inseam, you will want to make sure to use a straight stitch for the last few inches to create a cleaner finish (With wovens, it is advised to use a straight stitch first and then go back over with a serger if desired. If doing so, end your serged section a few inches before your straight stitch to help create that cleaner look). Trim any bias binding pieces that might be longer than your seam allowance.

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Cuffed capri pants

Next I will show you how easy it is to add cuffs to the capri pants. The patterns include a cuff option for the short so we will use the same tutorial techniques. Start by printing the pattern in your desired size. I made a size 6 Little Loungers with patch pocket and elastic waistband.

There are two changes you will need to do to the original pattern. You must cut the capri length 1 inch shorter than the cut line for both the front and back pieces. We do that because we won’t be hemming anymore, we will be adding the cuffs. That brings me to the second change you’ll need to make. The cuffs in the pattern are drafted to fit 1:1 ratio to the shorts leg opening. The capri leg opening is smaller so we will need to shorten the width of the cuff. How much you shorten the width will vary for each size. The length of the cuff will remain the same.

Don’t forget to cut and attach the button tabs too! They add such a cute touch to the capris!

Sew the pants as per the tutorial. Easy peasy! Don’t be afraid to add some detail stitching to the button tabs or the pockets! I used my coverstitch to add a touch of blue but you can certainly use a twin needle or your preferred decorative stitches.

If you love the look of the cuff but prefer the bermuda length you can certainly apply the same principals and created a cuffed bermuda linen lounger or little lounger…the sky’s the limit! 🙂

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Hemmed and lined shorts

We always like to mix up our finishing options to give you a wide variety that you can apply to any pattern so we went with a cuffed or curved hem facing for the shorts this time. If you’ve been following P4P for awhile, you’ll notice Judy loves some short shorts 😉 but that may not be your preference. I’m going to show you how to lengthen your inseam and do a simple hemmed edge. I also wanted to use this gorgeous embroidered lace so will give some insight on how to line them.

First, decide what you would like your finished inseam length to be. The current inseam finishes at 2.5″. For my finished length I went with 3.5″. Decide the length of your preferred hem (I did 1/2″) and add this to your desired inseam length. Measure and transfer to your pattern. Don’t forget all seam allowances are 1/2″ so your total inseam on the pattern should be 1/2″ longer. Example for my 3.5″ finished inseam: 1/2″ seam allowance at the crotch curve + 3.5″ inseam length + .5″ hem allowance = 4.5″ total inseam.

Now that you have adjusted your inseam length we will make our hem gauge for the hem. You’ll notice these outward notches on other cutlines (bermuda) as well as on sleeves hems. It may look a little funny, but it actually serves a purpose. Cutting the outward notch will allow the hem to lay flat once folded. The angle of the gauge should be a mirror image of the seam just above it so that when its turned under it will lay flush. Again, my hem allowance is 1/2″, if you choose to do a wider hem, you will want to extend your hem gauge to match the same length of your hem allowance.

Proceed to cut your pattern and construct as instructed in the tutorial. To make a lined pair, cut every piece from both your main and lining fabric. Lay your main fabric on top of your lining piece (right sides up) and construct as usual, treating them as one piece.

To hem, I serged both the main and lining fabric together to finish the edge . Then turned and top-stitched. Easy right?

You can also line the shorts by treating your lining and main fabric as separate items. So construct a main short and lining short then slip them inside one another and attach your waistband to both the lining and the main. I chose to it the other way since I would be hemming them together anyway.

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Fully Enclosed Seams on Cuffed Shorts

When it comes to seams on my pants, I tend to gravitate toward wanting to enclose all of them. It gives a nicer, neater look to your pant, and just feels more “handmade” than “homemade” to me. The Loungers tutorial already tells you how to enclose the waistband on your pants, but what if you wanted to enclose the cuff hems too?

Here’s a quick rundown of how to make that happen:

Prepare your cuff as the pattern states. Right sides together, fold piece in half and stitch along unfolded edge.
Working from the wrong side of the fabric, fold and press 1/2″ on one of the long edges of entire cuff piece.
With right sides together, fold and press your cuff piece, leaving 1/2″ seam allowance at the top edge.
Press, press, press.

5. With your pant leg piece right side up, place your cuff piece on top (pinning carefully and aligning all of your seams. Stitch at a 1/2″ seam allowance.

6. Flip your fabric over so you’re looking at the wrong side of your pant leg. Open up your cuff piece and press the raw edges away from the pant leg, toward your cuff.
7. Using those beautifully pressed lines that you created for yourself back in steps 2-4, fold your cuff piece so it encloses all of your raw edges.
8. Press and edge stitch.

You now have a beautifully enclosed hem on your pant leg! Do a small happy dance, pat yourself on the back, and then repeat the steps for your other cuff.

(I didn’t have a chance to grab photos in my new shorts made from the tutorial yet, but I used that same method on the short pictured below and I LOVE them! You will too!)

Use one of these hacks? Be sure to hop on over to the Facebook Group and share your Linen and Little Loungers love. 🙂

Favorite Tee | Easy Pattern Hacks

April 11, 2017

Lace Up V-Neck:

As if the Favorite Tee was not amazing enough, we have a few easy hacks for it that will make you want to sew even more of them. The first time I saw a lace up V-neck shirt on Pinterest I knew I had to make myself one so I will show you how easy it is to get the look by using the Favorite Tee pattern. You will need the pattern printed and cut in your size (use the V neck option), a little bit of interfacing, 10 grommets and some cord.

Favorite Tee dress option (lengthen 1.5″ in the front and unhemmed)

Start by adding some tricot or light weight interfacing to the V neck band. Cut 2 strips of interfacing about 7 inches long by the width of the band. Cut out the V at one end and iron the interfacing to the neckband.

Sew the shirt or dress as per the pattern tutorial. I chose the dress because you know…one can never have too many dresses. You can certainly do this neckline with either one of the shirt length too. You will now need to mark the grommets location.

You can measure about one inch up on each side of the V band starting with the front center seam. Mark that spot. Keep adding a mark every one inch up on each side. I used 5 grommets on each side.

There are different size and color eyelets that you can use. I went with a brown/copper-ish finish for mine because I liked how it looked against the marble fabric.

ohhh the choices 🙂

Follow the manufacture instructions for adding the eyelets. I know there are more expensive devices out there but I am very pleased with my $1.50 Dritz eyelet tool so that’s what I used.

For a more edgy look you can make a faux leather binding and thread it through the eyelets.

You are almost done. All you have to do now is lace up the neckband with a cord. You can use parachute cord, or faux suede cord like I used for my final pics or you can make your own. Tadah! You have just created your very own Pinterest worthy lace up Vneck shirt or dress.

Favorite Tee dress length (1.5″ longer in the front than the pattern and not hemmed)

Curved Hem Lace Insert:

Adding lace to your finished garments is a fun way to add some extra sweet details. You can use a lace applique, or in this instance, I used a scalloped edge mesh lace. I chose the curved hem but you could use the other side split hem options if you’d prefer. Print, cut and assemble your pattern as usual. I wanted the curved hem to start a little higher on my hip so adjusted the length of the side seam. I stopped about 6″ from the bottom of the side seam.

Since I stopped higher than the original side seam, my curve ended up looking a little funky, so I trimmed the edges to make a nice clean curve.

Hem using your fabric stretch stitch. (Need some tips on hemming a curved hem? Check out Alex’s post HERE)

Next, open up your side seam and place your applique right side up to the wrong side of your main fabric. Position as you wish and top-stitch in place. *Note – be sure to measure your pattern piece from the curved hem line to side seam and make the applique at it’s widest point a similar measurement (near the bottom hem). Otherwise, you may loose some ease at the hip.

Trim the applique or fabric if needed.

High Side Split Hem:

The side split hem for both shirt and tunic lengths is a fun detail on it’s own, but we thought we’d take it up a notch (no pun intended 😉 ) and make those slits sky high. Ok, so maybe not that high but we did take them up quite a bit. Using the average 8″ side waist measurement (based on a 5’5″ frame), construct your pattern as instructed but stop your side seam stitch at 8″ below the armpit. Finish the side split as noted in the pattern. Easy Peasy and no added steps or items needed!

This pairs perfectly with our Cross my Heart Cami to show off those layers.

Or, leave it un-layered and open with a high waist Pirate Pencil Skirt or some skinnies. Either way, you’re sure to be on trend.

Convinced you need the pattern yet? The Favorite Tee is loaded with options and these simple hacks/mods give you that little extra to start filling up your closet without the worry of having too many duplicates. I know they’re our new Favorite Tee 😉

P4P Cardi Week :: Cocoon Lace Hems

January 22, 2017

I’m sure by now you’ve all browsed Pinterest for cardigan inspiration, I know I have. When I saw a dolman style cardigan with lace trim I knew right away I needed to make myself one so in today’s blog I’ll show you how easy it is to get the look and I’ll also give you some tip for working with lace.

Start by cutting the Cocoon Cardigan pattern pieces. You will not need to cut the the band, we will be replacing it with trim. I made a tunic length, 3/4 hemmed sleeves with no pockets but you can apply this technique to either one of the styles. The fabric and lace I used are both from Hobby Lobby.

Assemble your pattern pieces as per the instruction. I like to leave the band for the end so you now have your cardigan ready to add the lace trim. The pattern band is shorter than the edge circumference and since most lace trims have no stretch we will have to measure the opening. The trim you will need will be equal to this length.

TIP: If your trim comes in 2 yards or less increments you will need to attach two pieces together. To do that I like to use a zig zag stitch and just slightly overlap the ends. Stitch them together with a narrow zig zag stitch. Don’t forget to place a little piece of water soluble stabilizer under your lace when you stitch it.

Pin (or clip) your lace to the cardigan raw edge, right sides together. Yes, there is a right side to the lace trim too! 🙂 Pin all around the edge, making sure you do not stretch the cardigan. When you get to the curved edge pin even closer since that part is not only stretchy but also on the bias.

Once it’s all pinned in place sew the lace around the opening very slowly. I like to use my sewing machine for this step, instead of the serger. A stitch length of 3.5 with a 3.4-3.6 tension should be all you need. All you have to do now is top stitch around the opening, about 1/4-1/8 inch away from the trim and you are all set. See how easy that was?

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

Saturday, January 21: #P4PCardiWeek Announcement

Sunday, January 22: Cocoon Lace Hems and Butterfly Ruffle

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 + Hem

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!

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)!

Now get out there and sew some cardigans, matey!

FST/LMU Mash Nursing Hack

November 25, 2015

I love the FST and LMU mash for after baby. It makes me feel stylish, put together and comfortable! The loose aline look hides any left over baby belly and the tighter top doesn’t feel you leaving frumpy.

For this hack I essentially did a double layer body. I can lift up the top layer and have the bottom layer covering my back/belly during nursing. And it looks like a perfectly “normal” everyday shirt! 🙂

I made mine completely doubled because we are going into winter here and I didn’t mind the added warmth. If I was making this for spring or summer months I would probably tinker with a faux double layer for the back piece.

I cut 2 front and back pieces.

Then took 1 front piece to modify for the under layer. I measured on myself from the neckline to under my bust (I did happen to have on the same shirt, so I didn’t even need to guess where the neckline hit ;)). Then I transferred that measurement to the front center and curved up to the armpit.

Since the FST flares out under the bust it was a little loose there. So I added a thin elastic to the raw edge. I just held the elastic taute (not tight) on my body from seam to seam (again, I happen to be wearing this shirt, so there was no guessing!). This way the two layers would have the same finish length–without the elastic holding up the center it would droop lower then the top layer. As well as not worry about holding it up while nursing–bonus :).

I choose to put my elastic on the right side of my under layer, because I didn’t want to feel it against my skin. But you can put it on the wrong side so that it is hidden when you nurse– whatever you prefer! You will need to stretch the elastic to fit the curve. I serged mine on, but any stretch stitch will work! It will line up right at the armpit.

I sewed the shoulder seams and sleeves on like normal. Then when going down the side seams I kept the main body layers seperate (so you can lift the top layer freely). It is a bit tricky right at the armpit, but just go slowly and remember you wont be showing anyone the inside of your armpit seam! 😉

Now for hemming, I choose to hem the top layer completely normal with a 1″ allowance.

For the under layer I choose to add a pretty lace trim to stick out longer then the top layer. I wanted the seam hidden, so I trimmed off 1″ from the bottom.

I serged my lace on right sides together trimming off about 1/2″ of both shirt and lace (the top of the lace that was blank).

Then flipped up and top-stitched (I didn’t want that seam flipping and showing through the dainty lace trim!). So, I trimmed 1″ and took off another 1/2″. This means my seam on the under layer should be 1/2″ above the hemmed edge of my top layer and the lace will peek out below.

I attached the neckband normally catching both layers on the back piece and top layer of the front piece.

Tada! I love my new warm winter nursing friendly shirt! It screams fashionable and not I’m nursing! 🙂 When you’re done nursing you can still wear it as is… or cut out the under layer!