Tucked, Untucked, Half-Tucked

The same top can look tailored or sloppy depending on what you do with the last ten centimetres of it. There's no mystery here. The cut of the top tells you what it wants — you just have to read it.

When to tuck a top in

Tuck when the top is fitted and the hem is straight. Darts, a defined waist and a plain hem mean the designer expected the bottom to disappear into a waistband. The Oat Linen Tie-Neck Top is the clearest case on the rail — fitted, bust darts, small mandarin collar, cap sleeves. Left out, it looks unfinished. Tucked into trousers or a skirt, it looks like a decision.

The Indigo Pintuck Linen Top goes either way, but tucked into a skirt is its best version — the vertical pintucks run straight into the waistband and lengthen the whole line.

When to leave it out

Leave it out when the hem is a feature. Wrap tops have asymmetric hems — the Washed Linen Wrap Top and the Dusk Linen Wrap Vest both do — and tucking one in bunches the wrap and hides the line you paid for.

Same with anything that swings. The Butter Linen Pleated Top has box pleats falling from the neckline into an A-line. Tuck it and the pleats have nowhere to go. It's cut longer on purpose.

When the top has already decided for you

Cropped tops end at the waist, so the question never comes up. The Ink Linen Camp Shirt has a cropped hem that sits at the waist; pair it with high-waist trousers and you get the clean line of a tuck with none of the fabric bunching. The Slate Linen Wrap Top and the colour-block tanks work the same way. If you dislike tucking, buy cropped.

The half-tuck, and when it isn't silly

The half-tuck — front in, back out — exists for relaxed shirts that are too long to leave fully out and too roomy to tuck fully in. The Chartreuse Linen Ruffle Shirt is a good candidate: relaxed fit, button-front, full sleeves. Tuck just the front few centimetres into high-waisted denim. It shows the waistband, keeps the ease at the back, and stops the shirt from swallowing you.

Where it doesn't work: on fitted tops (pointless), on cropped tops (impossible), and on anything with a shaped hem (it fights the shape).

A quick rule for linen specifically

Linen has body. A full tuck of a roomy linen shirt puts a lot of fabric inside your waistband, and you'll feel it. If the top is relaxed, half-tuck or leave it. If it's fitted, tuck. If it's cropped, do nothing.

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Frequently asked questions

Does tucking make you look shorter?
The opposite. A tuck into a high waist lengthens the leg line. What shortens you is a long, loose top ending at the widest part of the hip.

How do I stop a tucked linen top from riding up?
Tuck it, then raise both arms once and let it settle. The small amount of blousing that results is what keeps it in place.