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P4P nursing hacks

June 12, 2018

Ahoy, pirates! Throughout the years the P4P team has showed you lots of ways to hack our patterns and make them nursing friendly.  So today I wanted to put them all together in a round up blog. this way you have easy access to them at all times.

 

RELAXED’S RAGLAN Nursing Hack

Nicole is showing us how to modify the Relaxed Raglan (or the Ragdoll, or the Slim Fit Raglan) to make it nursing friendly. You can find the blog here.

 

HENLEY nursing hack

Next up we have a Henley modification that can certainly be applied to the Brunch Blouse as well. The blog can be found here.

 

FST/LMU MASH nursing hack

A lot of us are big fans of the FST/LMU mash so we couldn’t skip this mash in our nursing line up hack. You can find the details here.

 

LAYER ME UP nursing hack

Our Layer Me Up Shirt has a nursing hack on the blog as well. Judy is showing us here how to modify the shirt to achieve a nurse friendly look.

 

BOUNDLESS nursing hack

The Boundless Knit Dress nursing modification can be found here. The same technique can be applied to other dresses like the Sunshine or the Sweetheart dress.

 

BOHO BABYDOLL nursing hack

Our Boho Babydoll hacks includes a split side seam modification is that is great for nursing as well. You can read Erinn’s blog here.

 

CAREFREE CARDIGAN nursing hacks

Our cardigans are already nursing friendly but Judy took it up a notch with the Carefree Cardigan Button Hack. The blog can be found here.

 

 

ESSENTIAL TANK nursing hacks

Last but not least we have an Essential Tank hack that is nursing friendly too. Judy shows us here how to achieve an open back look for the ET.

 

All you have to do now bookmark this blog post so you have easy access to all our nursing hack and get sewing. 🙂

 

 

Filed Under: Frequently Asked Questions, Pattern Hacks Leave a Comment

Women’s Raglan Nursing Mod

January 19, 2016

womens raglan nursing mod

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.  raglan nursing mod under layer

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. raglan nursing top layer

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.

raglan nursing mod both layers

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!

Filed Under: Pattern Hacks, Uncategorized 3 Comments

Layer Me Up Nursing Hack

November 23, 2015

I love wearing my Layer Me Up tanks under cardigans during the fall and long sleeve option during the winter.  I can pull down the neckline to nurse, but I love to have something up and down for nursing in public.  So, this hack was born!

It is quick and easy too, which is a plus if you’re nursing and taking care of baby!

I cut out one layer me up exactly as the pattern calls for.  I added one piece using the front piece.  I measured from my armpit to below my bust and transferred that to the pattern piece.  This will become my lift up piece hidden under my normal pieces.

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Since the layer me up is a tight fit shirt that requires a 50% stretch spandex blend fabric, you don’t necessarily need to add any elastic to keep it from stretching out with wear/pulling throughout the day.  But, you might want to add it to the bottom raw edge of the hidden lift up piece just to add a little weight and to keep it from shifting around at all during wear.  I serged it on, then hemmed under.

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I wanted the under piece hidden, so I trimmed about 1/2″ from the neckline.  You could hem it under if you wanted it to be pretty :).

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Pin your under layer to the wrong side of the front piece and sew up your shirt normal–the only other modification is at the neckline.  You will attach the neckband only to the main shirt and leave your hidden piece loose.  This way it is free to come up when nursing.

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Now you have a shirt that looks perfectly “normal” and can pull down the neckline and hidden piece up to nurse!  You can wear it after just as is, or cut out your hidden piece and wear :).

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I grabbed a lovely colored ribbed knit without thinking (remember I have a tiny newborn 😉 ) and it had HORRIBLE recovery.  No spandex— it grew and grew and grew! So, I will be trying this hack again in the correct material!

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And of course, one with Little Guy photobombing 🙂

Filed Under: Pattern Hacks, Uncategorized Leave a Comment

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