Construction is where these eight lace tops actually differ: matched rectangle panels on some, seamless top down shaping on others, a one piece flat panel on at least one. Stated yarn weight and size range are called out for each, so fit is easier to judge before you start.
Lace shows mistakes more readily than solid stitches do, so a hook you’re genuinely comfortable with matters more here than it would for a plainer project.
Summer lace top patterns to explore
1. Daisy Tee
Yay for Yarn’s Daisy Tee is plus size inclusive, with identical front and back panels that are each a modified rectangle. It is made in a floral lace, and the cropped version (shown on a petite model in size XS) is designed to fall a few inches below the waist. The sample uses WeCrochet Hawthorne Fingering Kettle Dye, chosen because summer garments need a smooth yarn with little fuzz. It calls for a US F (3.75 mm) hook, and the page has a video tutorial and a section on how to choose your size.
2. Circle Leaf Lace Summer Top
Briana Kepner’s Circle Leaf top is worked seamlessly from the top down, with no seaming, in sizes XS to 5X. It is rated advanced beginner. The yarn amounts are given by size (2 to 4 hanks of Malabrigo, or 5 to 10 skeins of Comfy Sport), and Cascade 220 and cotton options are listed as substitutes, with a warning to check gauge since cotton can run larger than wool at the same hook size. It uses a 3.5 mm hook for the neck ribbing and 4 mm for the lace.
3. Easy One Piece Lace Top
Michelle Moore’s Easy One Piece Lace Top is rated easy and is written in standard American terms for XS to 5XL. It is worked as one flat piece from front to back in DK weight CotLin, with a US 6/G (4 mm) hook for the bands and a US 7/G+ (4.5 mm) hook for the lace stitch. A step-by-step video for size medium is on YouTube, and the page has a size chart, yarn requirements and yarn substitutes. The free written pattern is for blog subscribers.
4. Canyonlands Boho Crochet Top
Jess Coppom’s Canyonlands is a loose, slightly cropped boho tee made from two matching panels in an Open Fan stitch repeat, with sizes from S/M to 2XL/3XL. It uses Lion Brand LB Collection Cotton Bamboo (a light weight yarn, 245 yards per ball) with 4 mm and 5 mm hooks. She says the bamboo makes it smooth and flexible and the cotton makes it durable, and she suggests making a swatch first. Lion Brand also offers a kit with the yarn and a printed pattern.
5. Saratoga Poncho Top
The Saratoga poncho-style top was designed by Jess Coppom and her mother, made from two identical rectangles and seamed to form the neckline and armholes. It combines Iris stitch and Boxed Shell stitch sections and comes in S to 3X. It uses the same Lion Brand Cotton Bamboo as the Canyonlands top on a G (4 mm) hook, and the page describes the blend as a supple mix that gives the boho shirt a floppy drape. A Lion Brand collaboration.
6. Crochet Lace Top for Summer
Susanna of Fosbas Designs made this one reversible, so either panel can face out depending on the look you want. It’s part of the same family as her sleeveless cardigan and cocoon cardi, and the PDF is tested in three yarn weights (sport, DK, and worsted), so you can substitute based on what’s in your stash. Her own sample used Hobbii Dahlia Mixo, a fingering weight cotton, worked in a crossed double crochet and V-puff stitch combination. The front panel is worked flat first as a gauge reference for roughly half your bust measurement, then the back panel is built to match before the shoulder and side seams are sewn.
7. Marley Lace Top
Nicole Chase’s Marley Lace Top is a free pattern in sizes XS to 5X, worked as one piece with only minimal seaming, and the designer says it was her first time working with fingering weight yarn. She used WeCrochet Hawthorne Kettle Dye (super fine/fingering, #1) with a 3.5 mm (E) hook, and asks that you check your gauge first because sizing depends on it. She recommends a yarn with minimal stretch, and sizing is by bust measurement.
8. Gina Crochet Lace Top
Elena’s Gina lace top is built from rectangular panels worked in Bernat Softee Cotton (DK) on a 3.5 mm hook, alternating rows of solid double crochet and a shell and chain-space lace pattern. The page gives starting chain counts for each size from XS through 3XL (for example, 120 plus 3 for XS and 136 plus 3 for M) and row numbers where the pattern combination changes. A 3.5 to 4 mm hook works well for lace, and a downloadable PDF is sold separately.
