Trends: Off The Shoulder Crop Top

It was only a matter of time when I was going to make one. I thought I was late to the game but judging by Milly, Kaelen, Rosetta Getty, Lemaire, Chloé, Prabal Gurung.. Off the shoulder isn't going anywhere. This is a super easy make, and there are tons of variations you can easily do (leave the hem longer and un-elasticated, even longer hem to form a dress, bell sleeves, button-down front and elasticated sleeves..) 

Tutorials take a lot of time & effort to create, and I choose to make mine available for free. If you enjoy this guide, you can support me with a donation that feels right for you, here.

TOOLS:

Fabric (could be a wide range, cotton if you want more firmness, or crêpe like I used for more drape) 1 m  |  Thread & sewing machine  |  Pins  |  Fabric marker  |  Scissors  |  Elastic (a firm one, enough to wrap around your shoulders where the top will sit, and around your waist, at a comfortable tightness)  |  Safety pin (to insert the elastic)

I. Cut out your pieces, two of each shown below. The measurements make a top sized S/M. If you want the ruffle longer, make the 2 long rectangles wider than the 20 cm I did. If you want the entire top to be longer than crop length, make the lower piece in the image longer. If you want the ruffle to be fuller, make the long rectangular pieces longer. 80 cm results in a moderate amount of ruffling as you can see in the pics. I zig-zagged my raw edges at this point.
II. Take the two top pieces (lower in above pic) and press a fold on the curved arm holes and finish with a straight stitch. If you find your fabric doesn't want to fold nicely along the curve, it helps to cut small slits along the way before you make the fold.

III. Place the top pieces front sides facing and pin the sides. Stitch and press the seam open.
IV. Do the same to the 2 ruffle pieces - Right sides facing, pin the sides, and sew to create a big circle.
V. Make a fold at the upper edges of the top (the fold should be just slightly wider than your elastic) on the reverse side and press..
.. And do the same for the ruffle piece. Mark the center spot of the ruffle, as well as that of the top.
Then insert the fold you did on the top inside the fold on the ruffle, center points meeting. Pin all around, and create the the tunnel for the elastic by sewing the fold in place with a straight stitch. I did mine just about 0.7 cm from the folded edge, 1 mm more than the width of my elastic. You don't want the canal for the elastic to be too wide, as that will leave room for the elastic to turn around. And we all hate when they get twisted). Be sure to leave a small gap in your stitch to insert the elastic from.
VI. Go ahead and push the elastic through its tunnel with the help of a safety pin. Try on to confirm the tightness of the elastic, sew the elastic ends together, and complete the stitch where you left the gap. Repeat the process for the hem of the top. (I used double elastic since I found mine was not firm enough otherwise).
VII. The last step is to finish the hem of the ruffle. I did a small 0,5 cm fold and slipstitched it in place by hand - you could of course sew this with your machine as well.

   xo,

Julia