Victims of Hotlanta humidity: raise your white flags and grab your scissors! The crop top is loud, proud, and perfect for the late summer heat without sacrificing sartorial intelligence. Cropped styles are cute and easy to incorporate into your wardrobe, but take heed: done incorrectly, crop tops can be your backstabbing frenemy, quick to draw snide attention to the unflattering fit of a poorly planned outfit. Naturally, cropped tops accentuate the midsection and unless you’ve been graced with abdominals that rival Brandi Chastain’s (a la 1999 World Cup goal celebration), the idea of traipsing around campus with half your belly exposed is worse than realizing you drunk-Snapchatted 50 people last night.
The trick is to pair our miniature friends with complementarily proportioned bottoms that result in a visually arresting and comprehensible fashion risk. For example, a flowy cotton tank in a cropped style pairs effortlessly with high waisted cut offs; show a sliver of tanned abs between a tight cropped tee and an A-line skater skirt. Proportions, ladies! Any cropped style that shows too much tummy, or makes you (or your audience) uncomfortable will be rendered that one shirt you always put on, but change out of at the last minute.
Cropped tops, blouses, and jackets have already established themselves as a wardrobe mainstay. Urban Outfitters features a crop top + short skirt trend: effortless and simple style for the girl on the go. This morning, Lucky Magazine editor-in-chief Eva Chen, instagrammed a picture from designer Peter Som’s NYFW show: “I loved absolutely everything @peter_som. Absolutely everything. Especially the midriffs. You can run but you can’t hide, abs!”
Even with cooler weather approaching, New York shows us the crop top isn’t ready to die with the rest of this summer’s trends. Come fall, those hacked-at-the-waist, whisper-knit sweaters will be great over longer silk button downs, or consider pairing your favorite cropped cotton tank with some high-waisted coated denim and a great pair of boots. Most importantly, make sure you’re comfortable and confident in your crop. The point isn’t to make people notice your crop top, but instead turn heads with that awesome outfit. Happy cropping!