Lace Pirate Ship

Make a splash with this freestanding lace pirate ship -- complete with a Jolly Roger flag. The perfect addition to your pirate-themed decor, Christmas tree, or a fun gift to your best mate! These quick and easy instructions will get your fleet of menacing ships ready in no time.

Begin by stitching the six pieces of freestanding lace onto water-soluble stabilizer using 40 wt. rayon thread for best results.

Once you're done stitching, rinse and dry each piece completely (here's more on stitching freestanding lace).

Don't let your pieces flop! Use spray starch and an iron to stiffen them up a bit. I sandwiched my pieces in between a piece of scrap fabric while pressing them.

Start by hot gluing your pieces together. I began with the tip of the ship, lining up the flat edges together. Hold until dry.

Set your rear window perpendicular to the base of the ship with the hot glue, hold in place until dry.

Next, glue the hull together, aligning the back window in between the two side pieces.

Glue up the two sides of the base onto the hull and your tiny piece is beginning to look like a real ship.

Next, take your small deckhouse piece and glue both sides to your ship, centered above the three open circles in the hull.

Optional: Use paint or a permanent marker to match your mast stick with the rest of the ship. In this case, I painted mine black.

Finally, for the crowning piece - the Jolly Roger flag. I used a 0.5 inch wide wooden stick, cut to 3.5 inches tall for the mast. Give your flag extra dimension by carefully gluing the edges closer together on the stick.

Insert the base of your mast through the hole in the deckhouse piece, and use a tiny dot of hot glue in the bottom of the ship to hold it in place. Make sure to hold the piece upright until the glue is done setting.

There you have it! A beautiful lace pirate ship, ready to set sail for the high seas.