Hi

Instead of using LPE's you can use the Bezier/Line tool and select a tapered shape as the shape for the line.
The process is described here;

A little "Spiro - Tutorial";


(You can save this SVG file and open in your own Inkscape -
right-click the image (Above) and use "save link as" (Firefox) or
"Save target as" (Internet Explorer).

Good Luck.
RGDS
Ragnar

Once you locate the pattern, simply select all the nodes, and then you can drag it closer to your line, to be able to adjust it more easily. In the videos you watched, they probably already had moved the pattern, in preparation for the video.

Note that if you make a custom pattern, it will always be right where you originally drew it and copied it. But if you use a pre-made pattern, by drawing with the Pen or Pencil in spiro spline mode, the pattern will always be on the top, left corner of the page border. A certain bug could affect it's placement, however, and sometimes it's very hard to find the pattern.