Sew a boxy woven top in an afternoon

A boxy woven top is a front and a back cut on the fold with no darts, a dropped shoulder and a neckline wide enough to pass over your head, so there is no zip, no buttons and no keyhole to sew. The work is four seams and three hems: shoulders, a faced or bias-bound neckline, the sleeves sewn in flat, the side seams and the hems. Cut and sewn in about four hours, it is the quickest woven top there is and a good first project in linen, cotton lawn or double gauze.

What do you need to sew a boxy top?

The pieces:

• Front, cut once on the fold.
• Back, cut once on the fold.
• Front and back neck facings, cut once each on the fold, or a bias strip 4 cm (1 5/8 in) wide and as long as the neckline plus 5 cm (2 in).
• Short sleeves, cut twice, or 4 cm wide bias strips to bind the armholes of a sleeveless version.

The notions: 30 cm (12 in) of lightweight fusible interfacing for the facings, matching thread and a universal 70/10 or 80/12 needle. That is all: no zip, no buttons, no elastic.

Fabric on 140 cm (55 in) wide fabric, for a hip-length top in a mid-range size: 1.2 m (1 3/8 yd) with cap sleeves or bias-bound armholes, 1.4 m (1 1/2 yd) with short sleeves, 1.6 m (1 3/4 yd) for a tunic length. Larger sizes and one-way prints need 20 cm (8 in) more. Pre-wash before cutting: linen and double gauze both shrink noticeably.

Why does a boxy top need no opening?

Two things make it possible. First, the neckline is wide: a head measures about 56 to 58 cm (22 to 23 in) around, so a finished neckline of 60 cm (23 1/2 in) or more passes over it without any stretch. A boat neck, a wide scoop or a square neck reaches that easily; a small round neck does not and would need a keyhole at the back.

Second, the fit is relaxed or oversized, with 20 cm (8 in) or more of ease at the bust instead of the 8 to 10 cm (3 to 4 in) of a regular blouse. With that much room the front hangs straight from the shoulders and skims the bust, so the bust dart can be left out. The shoulder seam ends on the upper arm, a drop shoulder, which shortens the armhole curve and makes the sleeve easy to sew in flat.

Which fabric makes the best boxy top?

The fabric decides the silhouette. Linen, cotton poplin and chambray hold the boxy shape away from the body; cotton lawn and double gauze soften it; viscose crepe and Tencel twill turn it into a slouchy top that drapes rather than stands. A medium-weight linen is the most forgiving to sew and presses crisply. Sewing with linen has the needle, stitch length and pressing temperature.

How do you sew a boxy top step by step?

Sew with a 1.5 cm (5/8 in) seam allowance and a 2.5 mm stitch length.

1. Cut and staystitch. Cut the front, back and facings on the fold, snip the notches, then sew a line 1.2 cm (1/2 in) from the raw neckline of both pieces so the wide curve cannot stretch.
2. Join the shoulders right sides together. Press the seam open and finish the allowances with a zigzag or pinking, or sew French seams if the fabric is sheer: how to sew a French seam explains the two passes.
3. Finish the neckline. With facings: fuse the interfacing, join the facing shoulder seams, finish the outer edge, and sew the facing to the neckline right sides together. Trim the allowance to 6 mm (1/4 in), clip the curve, understitch the facing to the allowance and press it to the inside; tack it to the shoulder seams. With bias binding: follow the bias binding necklines guide and stitch the binding down on the inside so it shows only as a line of stitching.
4. Sew the sleeves in flat. With the side seams still open, pin each sleeve to its armhole right sides together, matching the center of the sleeve head to the shoulder seam and the notches. A dropped shoulder armhole is shallow, so there is nothing to ease: sew, press the seam toward the sleeve and finish it. For a sleeveless top, bind the armholes now.
5. Sew the side seams in one pass each, from the sleeve hem through the underarm to the body hem, matching the armhole seams. Press open and finish. For side slits, stop 10 cm (4 in) above the hem, backstitch, and press the open allowances back.
6. Hem the sleeves with a double fold of 1 cm (3/8 in) then 1.5 cm (5/8 in), stitched close to the inner fold.
7. Hem the body with a double fold of 1 cm then 2 cm (3/4 in) on a straight hem, or a 1 cm narrow hem on a curved one. At side slits, miter or fold the hem and the slit allowance into a neat corner.
8. Press every seam and hem once more, with steam on linen and a pressing cloth on anything that shines.

How do you keep a boxy top from looking like a sack?

Proportion does most of the work. A cropped or waist length pairs with high-waisted trousers and skirts; a hip length looks best with a front tuck. Short sleeves that end above the elbow keep the top from widening the shoulders; a sleeve that stops at the elbow does the opposite. Side slits and a back hem 3 cm (1 1/4 in) longer than the front add movement, and a crisp fabric keeps the lines clean. If the top still feels wide, take 2 cm (3/4 in) off each side seam at the hem, tapering to nothing at the underarm.

What are the common mistakes with a boxy top?

• A stretched neckline: the wide curve crosses the bias on both sides. Staystitch before anything else and handle the pieces flat.
• A facing that shows: understitch it, trim the allowance narrower than the facing, and press from the inside with the seam rolled 1 mm toward the facing.
• Puckers at the sleeve seam: the sleeve was eased as if it were a set-in sleeve. On a drop shoulder, sleeve and armhole are the same length; pin them flat and sew without pulling.
• A hem that is too deep: on a curved hem a 3 cm allowance ripples. Keep it to 1 cm or ease it with a row of long stitches first.

Can you draft the boxy top to your own measurements?

Sewly's woven top pattern drafts the boxy version when you choose the oversized fit, which drops the shoulder and leaves out the bust dart, with a boat, scoop or square neckline and no opening. If a neckline you pick would not pass over your head, it adds a back keyhole instead of letting the top fail; the sewing guide then lists the pieces, the interfacing and the fabric quantity for 110, 140 and 150 cm wide fabric.