I’m Nigerian, so heat and I are very familiar with each other. It’s a country with a tropical monsoon climate, meaning on average, the temperature stays above 18 °C (64 °F). But for some reason, since I moved to the US and experienced winter, I can’t stand the heat 🥵. Plus I’m not a “lady-like” sweater. It just pours out of me. Pours!!! 😂 So, summers for me are always about skirts and dresses. Mostly in breathable fabric, ‘cos sweat and clammy skin ain’t cute. Last summer, this skirt was a dream, and I wore the hell out of it. I found it at an Indian store and the cotton fabric was so lightweight, I couldn’t resist. So this summer, I decided to make it into a two-piece crop top and skirt. After all, who doesn’t love a two-piece!

The outfit is easy to make, it’s pretty, and you’ll be getting some much needed cross ventilation at the same time. I hope you like it. Enjoy!

What You’ll Need

A high-waist skirt
Scissors
Elastic band
Color thread
Sewing machine

Tutorial: Two-Piece Crop Top & Skirt

1. Measure how long you want your top to be, enough to cover your bust from top to bottom. Cut this amount away from the bottom of your skirt. Leave an allowance for your elastic.

2. From your cut-out top piece, cut out 3 parts (2 arm pieces and 1 body piece). Sew your seams together.

3. Measure the circumference around your upper bust. Do the same for your upper arm. Cut one length of elastic to your bust measurement and two lengths of elastic to your arm measurement.

4. Fold and pin down the raw edges. Make sure they are wide enough to fit the elastic through. My elastic was ½” wide, so I made the elastic tunnel ¾” wide with ¼” seam allowance.

5. Sew the elastic tunnel down with the ¼” seam allowance away from the raw edge. Be sure to leave a gap about 4cm wide to thread the elastic through later on. Run the elastic through the tunnel through the gap and sew the elastic ends together to create a circle. Then sew the tunnel gap closed.