The Well Dressed Pirate

Hi All,

Alright, I know I'm a couple of weeks late, but in honor of Talk Like a Pirate Day (Sept. 19th, awesome day) I have decided to post some pictures of my "infamous" Pirate costume.

Now, let me say that I'm a HUGE Pirate fan (Not the baseball team, more of a Cubbies fan), but I do love the Pirates of the Caribbean movies, and my favorite ride at Disney is Pirates of the Caribbean, so it's only fitting that one of my favorite costumes is the pirate costume that I have been cobbling together for a few years now (OK, about 2 decades).

Now, you will notice that Ms. Matilda and I do not wear the same size.  I'm just $80 short of the money I need to take this workshop to make a shell to put over her that is more my size (reminder, the birthday is coming up at the end of the month... hint, hint).  So the costume will look a wee bit off kilter.  Sorry for that. :(

Alright, I'm going to start with Ms. Matilda with nothing on as a base.

OK, that's a little blurry, but the rest of the pictures should be pretty clear.

Anyway, so you start with Matilda standing in the corner of the sewing room, then you add the first layer.

Chemise and pants, now I'll be pointing out the stuff that I did NOT make.  I didn't make the shirt, but I did make the pants, and if you can't see the fabric (which is awesome) here's a close up.

Yup, if you can't have happy skulls and crossbones, why have skulls and crossbones at all?

Next we have some skirts, I'm a girl Pirate after all....

Don't have a close up of this fabric, but it's a rayon (I KNOW, icky, but I love how it hangs) fabric.  It's like a dupioni, in that it changes color slightly depending on the angle you look at it, and like I said it's very nice and silky feeling with out that silk price. This is also one of the oldest pieces of the costume. I made it back when I was in college, and there are a couple of issues with it in that it's a bit narrow in the hem, and bit tight at the waist (I've gained some weight over the years) and it's a bit long (I trip over it if I'm not careful).  The length though in away adds to the costume, you might notice a notch on the hem of the skirt, well that skirt has been drug through fields and tripped on and caught on boots and everything else and the hem is a bit tore up, but that just makes it look a bit more authentic.

This skirt is one of my favorite skirts (and since I LIVE in jeans and pants that's saying a lot.  This is a plain yellow broadcloth skirt. It has it's own name, the Compass Skirt.  If you notice you can see three knots, one in the middle of the hem and one one each side, there are actually four in all, making the cardinal points of a compass.

And yes, it's a wee bit short, good thing that I have a longer skirt under it.

One last skirt!  This one is a three tier skirt that I did not make.  You can't see on this picture, but there are some rips and tears on this one as well.

Enough with skirts, all proper female pirates have to have a good bodice.  Here's mine.

This is where you can totally tell that Matilda and I are not the same size.  OK, I did not make this bodice.  I don't make corsets or bodices, so this I picked up at... TRF? I think (Texas Renaissance Festival for those of you that are not from Texas).  It's been a few years.  I like it because it's reversible. The other side is blue, but I like the brown when I'm doing the pirate persona.

So, I don't have a cool leather swashbuckling belt (I do have a cool leather belt for my court dress, but not the pirate costume).  I actually couldn't find any of my belts two years ago when I was getting ready to volunteer at the Dallas Zoo's Halloween Nights and my roommate came up with an awesome idea, use an old curtain tie back.  I think it looks very luxurious.

Remember how I mentioned that the red skirt was too long? Well, here's what a good (or bad) Pirate wench does to fix that.  She hikes her skirts up and tucks them into her belt.

And here's that it looks like from the side.

Now for the fun stuff, ACCESSORIES!  So a pirate wouldn't be cool unless they had a way to protect themselves, first off:

Start with a knife tucked up so you won't necessarily see it, especially if you are wearing something over it.



Add a couple of pistols (these are from a costume store, so are totally safe for around the kiddos, you can even see the orange "Safety" tip on the one to your left, Matilda's right).  I want to get some reproductions guns eventually, but I need to plunder a few more ships.

Who says shawls are for fancy ladies? (Please note, I almost forgot this piece, that's why the coat is laying on the floor for a moment, had to go back and put it on).  And the plus side of the hip shawls? It hides the knife at your back for the most part! I didn't make the shawl, not really sure where I picked it up at, but I actually have two of them somehow!

What does the Well Dressed Pirate wear when it's cold out side? A Fabulous coat of course!  This is the newest finished part of this outfit and one of my favorite bits.  Much like Jack Sparrow, my compasses don't work either, but at least I have a map, actually quite a few maps.

Here are some close ups.

This is an awesome Robert Kaufman which I picked up, something like 5 years or more ago, so unfortunately it is no longer available.

And look at these FANCY buttons! Fit for a Captain for sure.  I believe that these are JHB International buttons but I can't find them at this second on the website.

Side note: I did find that JHB has AWESOME Steampunk buttons, I must check these lovely things out soon!

Last couple of things, including a sword and something for those cold nights on watch in the crow's nest.  Picked these up at at costume shop, the sword two years ago, the fingerless mitts last year (for the roommate, but I don't know that she's going to do the pirate thing again this year).

Last but not least, what is a pirate with out an awesome hat?  Jack has his, and Barbarossa's is grand in the extreme.  Here's mine from The Hat People at Scarborough (they don't make this any more in wool).

I usually wear this on top of a head scarf, but since Matilda doesn't have a head......

And here are some detailed shots.

I love cameos, and what could be better than combining that with Pirates!  I got this beauty on EBay.

The hat from the side.

Most of these feathers I got from Milliner Supply Company in Downtown Dallas.  Unfortunately they are no longer in business.

So, there you are, the well dressed pirate.  If you want to see ME in this costume, you'll have to wait.  I might be volunteering again at Halloween Nights at Dallas Zoo (if so I'll be there the 25th and 26th) and I will for sure by at Texas Renaissance Festival on the 28th (going for my birthday). If you can find me, feel free to take a picture, but for right now, I don't have any in costume.  After Halloween.... we'll see.

Oh and by the by, don't forget that I have an Etsy's shop. Drop on by some time and please, buy something.