How to Make a Tie Back Crop Top

At least one of your outfits should leave an element of surprise. And what's the surprise, you ask? Sexyness! Yes, you should have an outfit with a feature that says, "Bam!, You weren't expecting that, now were you?!" A tie back shirt is a perfect way to hit "your viewers" with that in your face (but not exactly in your face) effect. So, here goes a tutorial on how to make a tie back crop top for yourself:

Materials:

1/2 a yard of fabric, fabric scissors, measuring tape, pins, fabric marker, and a crop top to trace, sewing machine

Let's Get Started:

The Back of the Shirt...

Fold your fabric in half with the wrong side is facing up. Fold your crop top in half as well. If you don't have a crop top you can use a regular tank top/tshirt, and just estimate where it would be a crop top and fold the bottom under.

Place your crop top down on your fabric and line it up with the edge of your fabric, and not with the fold of your fabric. Make sure that when you lie it down on your fabric you leave space on the side and on the bottom so that you can include your seam allowance line.

Trace the outer edges of the crop top.

Measure the bottom line of your pattern that you just made on your fabric. The bottom line of my pattern is 7 inches.

Draw another line connecting from where the first line (from step 4) ended that's also the same measurement. The total measurement after I added the second line is 14 inches: 7 + 7 =14

Make sure that your line is straight when you're drawing it on your fabric, invest in one of these see-through rulers to always have make straight lines.

Line up your ruler, or your measuring tape, (as straight as you can get it) with where the armpit of your pattern is. Then make a mark, we'll call this, Mark A, about an inch and a half in from where the curve of your pattern is. This step will help you decide how low the back of your shirt will be.

Connect the start of your curve to the mark that you just made in the previous step in order to create a new curve.

From Mark A, draw another line that extends down to the bottom of the pattern.

Pin the folded fabric in place so that when you cut the pattern out you'll have two even pieces.

Leave about a half-inch space (for seam allowance) all around the pattern, then cut it out. You'll need two of these pattern pieces:

The Front of the Shirt

Fold your fabric in half with the wrong side out. Fold the previous pattern in half, you'll know it's in half once the sharp pointy part touches the side of the pattern. It should look something like this:

Place the folded pattern on top of the folded fabric, then trace it.

Draw a neckline on your fabric, you can decide how high/low you want the neckline for the back of your shirt to be. Remember that this line should include seam allowance as well.

Add seam allowance to the arm hole and then cut out the pattern. It should look something like this once you open the pattern.

Hem the neckline for both patterns for the back of the shirt.

Layer the front pattern and the back pattern on top of each other with the right sides facing. Make sure the edges of the shirt are lined up, pin the patterns together at the top of the shoulders and the sides. Then hem the sides, sew the shoulders, hem the bottom of all three layers, and then hem the neckline.

The Sleeves:

Fold the fabric in half, and make sure it's inside out, and trace the curve of your armhole.

Then take a sleeve of a shirt that you already have, line it up with the armhole you previously traced, then trace the sleeve.

Add seam allowance to the left, the right, and the bottom of the pattern, but not at the top of the pattern where the fold is. Cut out the pattern and trace it to make a second sleeve.

Be sure to copy the seam allowance lines on the front and the back of both sleeve patterns, then sew the bottom of both sleeves.

With your shirt inside out and your sleeve right side out put the sleeve inside the arm hole. Match it up with the opening of the armhole. Pin all around the sleeve to the armhole together, start where the seam is because it helps to make sure that everything is in place.

Sew all the way around the sleeve and when you're done do a top stitch, then hem the sleeves and you're done.

Check out the video tutorial if you're not sure what I mean.