Who am I?
Hello! My name is Lexi (she/they). I technically learned how to sew from my Nonna when I was 12 years old, but in true Italian grandparent fashion, I mostly just watched her do it and helped pin a seam or two. In my mid 20s, I decided to learn how to sew properly. You can find me on ThreadLoop (primary space where I post) and on Instagram under the name @lexi_makesthings . Follow along for garment sewing, pattern hacking, and talks about scrap busting, repair, and remaking old garments into something new!
The Inspiration
I’ve been seeing these tie front tops everywhere and have been wanting to make a version for myself. And I knew I could easily hack it out of something I already owned. I love pattern hacking. I find it so satisfying to look at a pattern and reimagine what it could be.
I spent some time searching the internet for inspiration photos and decided on a few details that I wanted. The Helen’s Closet Ashton Top made for the perfect base – it had a lot of the design details I was after (e.g, a higher neckline instead of a v-neck).
This hack is a pretty simple one – it just requires drafting some ties, a front facing piece, and a few minor adjustments to the front bodice pieces. I know I am not the first person to complete a hack like this – Chelsea over at Friday Pattern Company has created a similar hack for her Square Neck Top pattern and Helen recently shared how to do this on her Tofino Top pattern!
My Ashton Hack
For my version, I knew I wanted something as lightweight and breezy as possible. I live in Southern Ontario here in Canada, and the humidity in the summer is intense. Any garments that are loose and breezy and made of thin breathable material are in heavy rotation all summer long.
I used a very lightweight cotton woven that I picked up when visiting Empire Make Space, an incredible deadstock fabric store in my hometown of Hamilton Ontario. Any lightweight fabric will work for this hack – if it works for the base Ashton, it will probably work for this. I also made two minor adjustments to the fit of the garment, which I will detail in my hack instructions.
What You Will Need
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All pattern pieces from the Ashton Top (you decide whether you choose to finish with bias binding or facings)
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Extra paper to redraft some pattern pieces and to draft 2 new pieces
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Pen
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Scissors
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Fabric for the Ashton Top (I recommend getting about 0.25-0.5 m more than you usually would buy – you are going to be cutting a few extra pattern pieces)
Prepping the Pattern Pieces
For this hack, you will use the size that you already use for the base pattern. I use a straight size based on my bust measurement (34”/ 86 cm). You can also customize the length of the pattern. I have a longer torso for someone of my height (5’5”), so I opted to add 1” of length to the cropped view of the pattern. But feel free to make it as long or as cropped as you like!
Extend the Front
To alter the pattern, I started with the front bodice piece. First, you will extend the pattern 5/8” from the fold line. You will also add in a grainline that runs parallel to the fold line. This will act as our seam allowance when we add the ties and facing.
This is also an opportunity to make an adjustment to the shape of the bodice. The original Ashton design has more of an A line shape to the bodice. As you can probably see in my photos, mine doesn’t have the same flare that an A line bodice would have. That is because I chose to straighten out my side seams to make them less flared. This is purely optional – the hack will work if you choose to keep the original shape of the garment. If you would like to mimic what I’ve done, simply straighten out the side seam starting right underneath the dart.
If you are keeping the A line shape, cut the back bodice piece as is. If you are opting to straighten the side seams, make the adjustment to your back pattern piece. Straighten the side seams starting right at the underarm.
Adjusting the Bias Binding and Facings
If you are using bias binding, use the arm bias binding pattern piece as is. Lengthen the neckline bias binding piece by 1 1/4:” (approx. 3.25 cm). This will give you a seam allowance for the neck binding.
If you are using the facing pattern pieces to finish the arm and neck, leave the back facing as is. Extend the front facing at the center fold line by 5/8”. Add a grain line.
Since I chose to straighten my side seams, I was able to get away with a simple hem on my top. If you are keeping the A line shape, you will need to adjust the hem facing pieces. Cut the back facing as is from the original pattern. And for the front hem facing, extend the facing at the center fold line by 5/8” and add a grain line.
Drafting New Pattern Pieces
Now it’s time to draft the new pattern pieces you need for this hack!
First is the pieces for the ties. This part is easy. I drafted a rectangle that was 1.5” by 16.5” (3.8 cm by 42 cm). These will be cut with the grainline of your fabric.
I then drafted a facing piece for the front of the top. This is what we will use to finish the front placket and secure the ties to the top. I cut a rectangle that was 2” (approx. 5cm) wide and as long as my top. I then rounded one of the short sides of the rectangle to make it match the curve of my neckline.
Cutting the Fabric
Cut out your back bodice, arm and neck facing back piece (if using), and back hem facing (if using) all on the fold.
Cut your bias bindings (if using), front bodice, front neck and arm facing (if using), hem facing (if using), newly drafted front “placket” facing, and ties, ensuring your grainline is properly lined up.
The number of ties you choose to cut will depend on how many ties you want going down the front of your top. I knew I wanted to be able to tie my top in 3 spots along the front of the top, so I cut 6 ties total (2 for each tie). If you are making yours longer, you may wish to cut more.
Sewing the Hack
Sew your bust darts, shoulder seams, and side seams as per Helen’s instructions.
Now it’s time to make the ties! Fold a tie along the long edge of the rectangle and press. Open the seam. Fold one of the short ends in by ½” (1.25 cm). Now, fold and press the raw edges toward that center fold you just pressed. Fold the tie in half along the first fold line you pressed. Now topstitch along the edge of the tie. Repeat these steps for your remaining ties. Tip: a bias tape maker will make this process much faster.
It's now time to baste the ties to the top. Where precisely you place the ties is going to come down to personal preference. For mine, I chose to place my first set of ties 2 3/4” (7cm) from the top edge of the neckline. I knew I didn’t want the first tie to sit right at the neckline of the finished garment, and this makes it a bit lower. I then placed the lowest set of ties 3” (7.5 cm) from the hem. I split the difference and put the middle tie between the other two. If you have a fuller bust, I recommend placing one of the sets of ties at the fullest part of your bust. This will minimize the potential for gaping.
Baste the ties to your top. Place the right side of your tie with the right side of your front bodice, with the raw edge of your tie lined up with the raw edge of the placket and the finished edge of your tie pointing toward the side seam. Baste with a ¼” seam allowance. I recommend taking a pause at this point to try on the top and ensure you like where you’ve placed the ties.
Time to finish the front bodice with the facing pieces. Fold the long raw edge of your facing toward the bodice using a 5/8” seam allowance. Pin your front “placket” facing piece along the front edge of your bodice piece, right sides together. Sew the facing to the bodice using a 5/8” seam allowance. Grade the seam to reduce bulk.
Press the facing piece away from the bodice. Understitch the seam allowance to the facing. Turn your garment to the wrong side.
Now fold the facing over, so the wrong side of the facing is laying against the wrong side of the garment and press. Pin the facing in place.
Now it’s time to edge stitch the facing down. Be careful in this step! Make sure you have pushed the ties out of the way while you are edge stitching so you don’t accidentally sew any of the ties to the garment. Repeat the process of attaching the facing to the other side of the bodice.
If Using Bias Binding to Finish the Neck and Arms
Finish the arms as per Helen’s instructions.
For the neckline, prep your bias binding as per Helen’s instructions. You will not join the two ends of the binding before attaching it to the neckline – you are going to leave it in one long piece. When you go to pin the bias binding to the neckline, you will still pin it as you would in the regular steps (open the bias binding, pin the right side of the binding to the right side of the neckline). However, you are going to leave a 5/8” tail of binding that extends beyond each edge of the front placket (this is why we lengthened this piece when we adjusted our pattern pieces). Stitch the binding, grade, press, and understitch as per Helen’s instructions. Before you press the binding to the wrong side of the garment, press the tails you left toward the bodice. This will enclose and finish the garment. Press the rest of the bias binding down and sew.
If Using Facing to Finish the Neck and Arms
Attach the front and back arm and neck facing pieces at the shoulder and side seams as per Helen’s instructions.
The process of pinning the facing in place is similar to Helen’s original instructions: right sides together, pin the facing along the armholes. When you pin the facing along the neck, you will leave a 5/8” tail that extends beyond each edge of the front placket (this is why we lengthened this piece when we adjusted our pattern pieces). Sew the facing in place as per Helen’s instructions. When you press the facing to the wrong side of the pattern, you’ll fold that extra tail in toward the garment and pin it down. Topstitch that part of the facing in place.
Finishing the Hem
If you straightened out the side seams, you can get away with a regular hem! I chose to fold mine under ½” twice and press. I then edgestitched along the hem.
If you’ve kept the A line shape, you will need to use facing. Start by attaching the facing pieces together: right sides together stitch the left side of the front hem facing to the left edge of the back hem facing and the right side of the front hem facing to the right edge of the back hem facing. Press seams open.
Right sides together, follow Helen’s instructions to attach the hem facing to the hem of the garment. Grade the seam and press the facing away from the garment. Understitch.
On the wrong side of the garment, follow Helen’s instructions to press the long raw edge of the facing. Just like we did with the front neckline facing/bias binding, press each short edge of the front hem facings toward the garment 5/8”. Press the facing toward the garment and pin in place. Edgestitch.
And voila! You’ve completed your front tie hack of the Ashton Top! I think there is a lot of potential to get creative with this hack. For example, you could replace the fabric ties with some beautiful ribbon (maybe even in a contrast colour?). I hope everyone has fun with this one!
