Pirate Costume Pieces: What Every Part Is Actually Called
A pirate costume is not one garment. It is a shirt plus a small number of named accessories, and almost every one of those accessories has a proper name that is older than the costume industry: the three-cornered hat is a tricorn, the cloth tied round the head is a head scarf or bandana, the cloth tied round the waist is a sash, the strap that crosses the chest or back is a baldric, and the fitting on it that actually holds a blade is a sword frog. This page names each piece, says where it sits on the body, and says which piece it is usually confused with.
The pieces at a glance
| Piece | Also called | Where it sits, and how you tell it | What it is for |
|---|---|---|---|
| Tricorn | three-cornered hat, tricorne, pirate captain hat | On the head. The brim is turned up and fastened to the crown at three points, so the outline is a triangle. | The strongest pirate signal in the outfit. |
| Head scarf | bandana, head wrap, kerchief | On the head, under or instead of a hat. Cloth pulled over the hairline and knotted at the back, tail hanging down. | Covers the hair; reads as pirate without a hat. |
| Waist sash | sash, waist wrap, baldric sash (loosely) | Round the waist, over the shirt. Soft cloth, no buckle. Wrapped and knotted, usually at the hip. | Shapes the waist and hides the shirt hem. |
| Belt | waist belt, buckle belt | Round the waist, over the sash. Leather with a buckle — the whole difference from a sash. | Carries weight: pouches, frog, scabbard. |
| Baldric | shoulder belt, sword belt, bandolier (loosely) | Diagonally across chest or back, shoulder to opposite hip. One wide strap, not a loop round the body. | Takes a blade's weight off the waist. |
| Sword frog | scabbard holder, sheath holster | A short fitting mounted on a belt or baldric. A holder, not a belt itself. | What a scabbard slots into. |
| Pirate shirt | poet shirt, lace-up shirt, blouse | The base layer. Full sleeves gathered into a cuff, open neck closed by a cord, not buttons. | Everything else straps on over it. |
| Wig | costume wig | Long and curled, to the shoulder or past it. | Does what a hat cannot: length and volume. |
Tricorn
A tricorn is defined by its construction, not by its colour or its decoration. Take a round hat with a wide floppy brim, turn that brim up on three sides, and fasten each turned-up section back against the crown: the three fastening points are the three corners, and the hat is now a tricorn. Everything else about it varies. A black tricorn with gold braid running the full length of the brim edge and a dark brown tricorn with a distressed, weathered surface are the same hat shape with two different finishes; so is a brown version with the brim edges curled rather than flat.
Two things to know. The tricorn is not originally a pirate hat — it was ordinary eighteenth-century civilian and military headwear, which is why the same shape is also sold as a colonial or Revolutionary War hat. And crown height and brim width move independently: a tall crown with a wide asymmetrical brim and a shorter crown with an even curved brim are both tricorns and look very different worn.
Head scarf
The cloth tied over the head is a head scarf — also called a bandana, a head wrap or a kerchief. All four words mean the same object here. It is a square folded into a triangle, or, like this one, cut as a triangle already, pulled over the hairline and knotted at the back so a tail hangs behind.
It is the only item here that works alone: a head scarf and a plain white shirt read as pirate with nothing else added, which a sash or belt cannot do. It is also the cheapest way into the look, and is often worn under a tricorn rather than instead of one.
Waist sash
A sash is cloth. That is the whole definition, and the only thing you need to tell it from a belt. It wraps the waist two or three times over the shirt and knots off to one side. On this red sash the loose end is cut deliberately long — that hanging piece is the drape, and it is the feature you are paying for. The alternative is a short knot with no drape.
Sashes are also sold as a pair with a matching head scarf, since the two are usually the same cloth: a black head scarf and waist sash sold together is the standard way to buy both at once.
Baldric and sword frog
These two are constantly used as if they were one thing, and they are not. A baldric is the strap: a single wide band that runs diagonally from one shoulder down to the opposite hip, across the chest or across the back. A sword frog is the short fitting bolted onto a belt or a baldric that a scabbard actually drops into. A baldric with no frog carries nothing. A frog with no belt has nothing to hang from.
Both configurations are sold. A back-mounted shoulder harness puts two frogs high between the shoulder blades, so the hilts sit above the shoulder; a double frog does the same job as a plain leather fitting; a belt-and-pouch set hangs the frog off the waist instead. These are sold as Renaissance and warrior accessories rather than pirate ones — same hardware, which is why the vocabulary crosses over.
Wig
Hair is the piece people skip and then miss. A tricorn on short modern hair reads as a hat on a person; the same hat over shoulder-length curls reads as a period silhouette. A long curled pirate wig is doing a structural job, not a decorative one — it is the only piece here that changes the outline of the head rather than adding to it.
The parts, and what they are called
These are the words product descriptions use for parts of the pieces above.
| Part | What it is |
|---|---|
| Crown | The dome of a hat. Measured in height. |
| Brim | The rim around the crown. On a tricorn it is turned up and fastened. |
| Point / corner | One of the three places a tricorn brim is pinned back. |
| Cockade | A rosette or knot of ribbon pinned at one point of the brim. Decorative only. |
| Trim / braid | The cord running along the brim edge. Usually gold on black. |
| Tail | The loose hanging end of a knotted head scarf, behind the head. |
| Drape | The long loose end of a waist sash, left hanging down the front or side. |
| Scabbard | The sheath a blade sits in. The frog holds the scabbard. |
| Full sleeve | Loose along its length, gathered tight into a cuff. Standard on pirate shirts. |
Pieces that get confused with each other
Sash or belt
Cloth with a knot is a sash. Leather with a buckle is a belt. Most outfits wear both, belt over sash, and a listing saying “sash belt” usually means a cloth sash. If you need to hang anything off your waist, you need the belt — a sash will not hold weight.
Baldric or bandolier
Both cross the chest diagonally. A baldric carries a blade; a bandolier carries ammunition in loops or pockets. Costume listings use the words interchangeably, so judge by what is mounted on the strap.
Tricorn or bicorn
Count the points. Three upturned sections and a triangular outline is a tricorn. Two, giving a crescent, is a bicorn — the Napoleonic shape, not the pirate one.
Head scarf or headband
A head scarf covers the crown of the head. A headband sits around it and leaves the top exposed. The two look similar from the front and completely different from above.
If you are choosing rather than naming
This page is only about what things are called. If you already know which pieces you want and are deciding between specific ones, our pirate costume guide covers that, and the costume hats guide covers crown and brim shapes across every hat type, not just tricorns.
Questions people actually ask
What is a pirate hat called?
A tricorn, sometimes spelled tricorne, also called a three-cornered hat. It is named for the three points where the upturned brim is fastened to the crown.
What is the scarf pirates wear on their head called?
A head scarf, bandana, head wrap or kerchief — all four describe the same piece: cloth pulled over the hairline and knotted at the back.
What is the cloth around a pirate's waist called?
A waist sash: cloth, wrapped two or three times and knotted, with no buckle. The leather buckled strap often worn over it is a belt, a different piece.
What is the strap across a pirate's chest called?
A baldric. It runs diagonally from one shoulder to the opposite hip and carries a blade. The fitting the scabbard slots into is a sword frog.
Is a tricorn actually a pirate hat?
Not originally. The tricorn was ordinary eighteenth-century civilian and military headwear, which is why the same hat is sold both as a pirate hat and as a colonial one.
What is the minimum to look like a pirate?
A head scarf and a loose open-necked shirt. Those two alone read as pirate. A sash, belt and hat each add to it, but none does the job alone the way a head scarf does.
Related guides
- Pirate Costumes: The Hat Does 80% of the Work — the choosing guide, once you know what the pieces are called
- Costume Hats: The Tip Tells You Everything — crown and brim shapes across every hat type, not just tricorns
- Costume Props & Accessories: Hands-Free, or a Hand Gone All Night — belts, frogs and everything else that has to carry weight
- What to Wear to a Ren Faire — where most of these pieces actually get worn
- Cloak and Cape Types: Every Shape, and What Each One Is Called — the same kind of reference page, for outerwear