You might hear ‘crop top’ and think of slouchy tees or cutoff tanks, but it’s not difficult to put a sophisticated spin on them. The crop trend has made its way to the forefront these last couple years, and for good reason. They can be easily dressed up or down, with a midi skirt or high-waisted pants, and they leave the door open for some great accessorizing. For today’s DIY and free pattern, we’ll be adding some beads into the mix.
Fabric & materials used:
- 1 yard Theory Black Thin Stretch Cotton Sateen
- 1.5 yards 1.125″ Black Beaded Sequin Trim
- 15″ Black Invisible Zipper
Since the entire shirt is only made up of a few panels, it goes together fairly easily and is very simple to alter if need be. For example, the front is comprised of a middle panel and two sides. I added two bust darts to reduce a little fabric at the armholes. Other alterations could include tapering the bottom a bit to be more form fitting.
The back panels go together similarly, and attach to the front at the shoulders and sides. The collar gets folded downward, in half, and attached to the neckline with 1″ knife pleats. I made each side go in opposite directions so they meet in the middle with a box pleat.
This is also the point where you can attach your lining. Once the collar is pinned or stay-stitched in place, place the lining over it so it’s sandwiched between the lining and the outer fabric. The armholes and base can also be stitched closed.
For the trim, I kept it simple and only added it to the neckline and hem, however this is where you can truly get creative! Create swirling designs or even add some trim along the seams. Be sure to tie off the ends of the trim though, to avoid losing beads and sequins!
What alterations would you make to this pattern? Would yours be more tapered or have different trim? Tell me your ideas below!
9 comments
I would Love to try this out!
Hi there,
I’d like to know how much seam allowance is on is on the top and what are the printing instructions? I can’t seem to find any.
Hello there!
Thanks for visiting the Mood Sewciety Blog! We’re proud to have released over 350 free sewing patterns, and we hope you’re enjoying them.
Behind the scenes we’re a dedicated team of three, and we want to be able to offer top notch support. We have exciting plans for our patterns on the horizon, and as we continue to grow, we’ve decided to focus our sewist support on patterns from the last 2 years. If this pattern hasn’t been recently reduxed or updated, we won’t be able to respond to technical questions on these older posts.
If you come across any pattern errors, rest assured our team is on it – just let us know!
Don’t miss out on our Mood Sewciety Facebook Group – a fantastic space for fellow sewists to connect, share wins, and tackle challenges together.
Thank you for your understanding and happy sewing!
Best regards,
The Mood Sewciety Blog Team
[…] bodice I went with was actually made from the pattern in my last DIY post! You can find out how to make it there, and you can download the PDF pattern […]
I have to grade it but I’ll make one. Thanks for sharing this pattern
The download link in the email for this pattern is broken. The email arrives as garbage script instead of the download email.
Hi Allison, we’re sorry for the delay in responding to your question! We get dozens of comments and questions each day, and so many questions get buried and, unfortunately, unanswered. We are now focusing user support on patterns 2 years and newer. We hope this will prevent questions on our more current patterns from going unanswered. Although this is late, we wanted to respond in case anyone else has the same question: if you’re still having an issue with downloading this pattern, email info@moodfabrics.com and they’ll send the pattern directly to you!
i love mood and so appreciate the free patterns but this one is not right. i double checked the seam allowance (answered in the comments of the first iteration of this as two-piece prom dress) and it says 1/2 inch but that can’t be right. it was soooooo small! and i’m pretty small myself! i had to add panels to the back and double the length of the collar. if you’re a beginner (like me) i can’t recommend it. or at least recommend a toile/draft garment first. you’ll see….
Hello! We’re sorry you’re unhappy with the fit of this pattern. It’s important to remember that every individual’s body is unique, and a pattern will fit differently on different people. When creating these free patterns, we aim for a standard fit that works for a wide range of body types, but we understand it might not be perfect for everyone.
We always recommend making a muslin (or toile) first. It will allow you to assess fit and make necessary adjustments before cutting into your expensive fashion fabric.