Our newest Barbelle Collection pattern is here, and I’m so excited to introduce Whitney! The Whitney Pattern is a faux wrap knit top designed to layer effortlessly over your favorite sports bra, longline, or cami. Choose between a curved or straight front hem, three sleeve options—tank, short sleeve, or long sleeve with a thumb hole—and multiple tie styles including normal ties, wide ties, or no ties at all. While Whitney was designed with athletic wear in mind, it’s incredibly versatile and can easily be styled up or down to fit your everyday wardrobe.

Plus, I’m sharing three fantastic hacks below to help you get even more wear from your Whitney top: a plain long sleeve (no thumb hole), center waist ties, and a true wrap hack.

Whether you’re sewing for yourself or your little ones, we have you covered with Youth & Adult sizing, plus a Bundle if you want to create matching outfits.

Getting Started

Before you purchase your patterns, there is a ton of helpful beginner information here on the blog, in case you are new to knits or new to PDF patterns in general:

• New to PDF patterns? Check out our helpful tips here
• New to sewing with knits? Brittany has some great info here
• Not quite sure how to measure yourself accurately? Don’t worry; check out the post here!
• Having issues printing? Most issues can be resolved by using our FAQs/troubleshooting tips
• Join our Facebook group here.
• We also have a new Height Adjustment 101 post for you! Check it out here.

Choosing Your Options

We have lots of tester photos in our FB group and on the site if you want to see a variety of photos of each option before you decide! Here is a quick snapshot of the different options:

Plain Long Sleeve (no thumb hole) Hack:

I love a sleeve with thumb holes, but I know that detail leans more toward athletic wear. If you’d like to make your Whitney top without them, it’s a very simple adjustment.

Measure and mark 1/2″ above the lower sleeve marking, then cut along that line to create a plain long sleeve.

That’s it—quick, easy, and no other changes needed.

Center Waist Tie Hack:

I saw some RTW wrap tops with the ties meeting at the center and loved that look! To achieve this version, simply cut two long ties so they’re long enough to wrap around your back and tie at the center instead of the side.

True Wrap Hack:

Good news — turning Whitney into a true wrap top is super simple and doesn’t require any pattern piece modifications. The only cutting change is for the ties: you’ll cut one short tie and one long tie (ties cannot be omitted like in the faux wrap version).

Construction follows the regular pattern instructions with just a few small changes along the way.

Sew Whitney as written through Step 3, attaching the sleeves. If you chose the curved front hem, skip Step 4 and do not hem the curved front bodice — you’ll finish that at the very end once the wrap is constructed.

Next, sew the ties and press them right side out as instructed in Step 5, but do not attach them to the bodice yet. Set them aside until after the side seams are sewn.

Now you’ll sew the side seams. On one side seam, leave the seam unsewn from notch to notch to create the opening for the wrap tie. Use your sewing machine for this seam, or at least stitch a few inches away from each notch, leaving the section between the notches open. The other side seam is sewn normally, following the original instructions.

Trim notches off the side seam. Clip to, but not through, the seam allowance above and below the unsewn portion of the side seam. Press the seam open, then topstitch around the opening. If desired, add interfacing to the unsewn seam area prior to topstitching for extra durability and structure.

To attach the ties, place one tie on each bodice piece at the neckline seam. The long tie attaches to the bodice without the side seam opening. The short tie attaches to the bodice with the side seam opening. This allows the long tie to wrap through the opening and secure properly.
Note: If you’re using the wide ties with the curved front hem, you’ll need to pleat the tie down to 1″ wide so it fits correctly into the seam, as shown below.

To finish, hem along the front side (with the tie) and the bottom hem. For a clean corner finish, flip the bottom corner ½” toward the right side, then stitch a vertical seam ½” from the edge. Flip the hem right sides out — the corner will turn cleanly and neatly.

Then continue to press ½” toward the wrong side, continuing that same fold into the bottom hem. Edgestitch hem in place.

To wear, thread the long tie through the side seam opening. Wrap the tie around the back and front, then tie it at the side seam.

The short tie is wrapped around the back and tied at the side seam.

And that’s it — you now have a true wrap version of Whitney that layers beautifully over sports bras, tanks, and activewear, while keeping the clean, flattering look of the original design.

Looking at the Options

Front Hem Option

Curved hem front:

Straight hem front:

Sleeves

Tank:

Short sleeve:

 

Long sleeve with thumb hole:

 

Ties

Normal ties:

Wide ties:

No ties:

 

Fabric + Notions

Whitney is drafted for light to medium weight knits with at least 50% horizontal stretch, 40% vertical stretch, and good recovery. Something with a softer drape and more vertical stretch, like a very light rayon spandex and some waffle knits tend to ‘grow’ with wear and feel looser/longer than the intended fit. You want something with good recovery for the neckband and tank bands. Something thicker with more spandex (10% spandex, thicker athletic knit or custom cotton lycra) will feel tighter.

You may also need:

• Optional- 1/2″ knit interfacing or knit hem tape for stabilizing and hemming.
  

  

  

  
  

 

We hope you love the Whitney pattern, no matter who you sew for! We can’t wait to see how you style yours.

#whitneypattern #madeformermaidspatterns #m4mbarbellecollection