The thing nobody tells you about a green top is that it doesn't fade the way other colours do. It goes a bit flat and a bit grey around the collar first, long before the rest of it gives up, so you end up with a top that still looks fine from a distance in a photo but looks tired the second you're close enough to see the neckline properly. That's the tell I check for now before anything else.
Some greens are just easier to live with than others. A deep bottle or forest shade behaves itself near every skin tone and doesn't date the way a bright emerald or a khaki with too much yellow in it can, those two go in and out of looking right within a couple of years. Olive is the safest starting point if green feels like a risk, it sits closer to neutral than people expect and it won't fight with navy, camel or black, which is most of what's already hanging up. The difference between a good one and a disappointing one usually comes down to the fabric doing what it's told. Cheap green tops are often dyed on a thinner cotton or a viscose blend that goes see through under shop lighting that's doing it favours, then looks completely different once you're stood under a normal bulb at home. Press the fabric between your fingers before you buy it. If you can see daylight through it stretched over your hand, it'll be worse after a wash, not better. Check the stitching at the shoulder seams too, that's where a cheap top gives itself away first, puckering after one wash even if the colour holds. Hardware matters less here than with other tops, but if there's a button placket or a tie at the neck, give it a proper tug, flimsy green cotton with a loose button is a top you'll be sewing back together by week three.
A plain crew neck or round neck in a mid to deep green is the one to buy first if you've got nothing in the colour at all, it layers under jumpers in fit autumn and works on its own come warmer weather without ever looking like it's trying too hard. In the shop, hold it up against your own skin rather than trusting the model, green is one of those colours that can look completely different ten centimetres from your face than it does on a hanger three feet away under fluorescent light.
I didn't wear green for years because one bad khaki top convinced me the whole colour was against me, and that was just a bad khaki.
The Tall Green Tops Worth Your Wardrobe Space
Easy Plus Size Green Tops for Everyday Wear
The Petite Green Tops We Keep Going Back To
Maternity Green Tops: What We’d Buy Now
Wrap TopsGreen Wrap Tops: Our Honest Shortlist
Zip TopsThe Best Looking Green Zip Tops Out There
Zip TopsGreen Waterproof Zip Tops to See You Through Winter
Green Tops That Go With Everything
Our Pick of the Best Green Velvet TopsAlso worth a lookShirtsYou can spot a good shirt from across a room by the collar.See the collections →
Green Vests for Off Duty Days
Green Vest Tops Picked by Us
Green Sweat Tops for Off Duty Days
The Best Looking Green Tank Tops Out There
Sleeveless TopsOur Edit of the Best Green Sleeveless Zip Tops
Sleeveless TopsGreen Sleeveless Tank Tops That Work Hard in Your Wardrobe
Sleeveless TopsGreen Sleeveless Tops We Think You’ll Love
Sleeveless TopsThe Green Sleeveless Vest Tops We Keep Going Back To
Satin TopsGreen Satin Tops for Off Duty DaysAlso worth a lookT-ShirtsThe one I reach for is the morning I can't decide what I'm doing with my day, meeting…See the collections →
Sequin TopsGreen Sequin Tops Made for Party Season
Sheer TopsEveryday Green Sheer Tops We Love
Our Go To Green Short Sleeve Tops
Everyday Green Silk Tops We Love
Sleeveless TopsGreen Sleeveless Cami Tops: The Edit
Zip TopsThe Green Recycled Zip Tops Shortlist
Knitted TopsGreen Ribbed Knitted Tops We Can’t Stop Looking At
Ribbed TopsGreen Ribbed Long Sleeve Tops That Have Caught Our Eye
Ribbed TopsGreen Ribbed Tank Tops We Love Right NowAlso worth a lookBlack TopsA black top is the thing you reach for when you can't decide what else to wear, or…See the collections →
Ribbed TopsEasy Green Ribbed Tops for Everyday Wear
Ribbed TopsGreen Ribbed Vest Tops That Work Hard in Your Wardrobe
Zip TopsThe Prettiest Green Ribbed Zip Tops Around Right Now
Green Printed Vests That Work Hard in Your Wardrobe
Green Puff Sleeve Tops We Rate
Green Recycled Sweat Tops We Love Right Now
Zip TopsGreen Oversized Zip Tops: The Edit
Zip TopsGreen Padded Zip Tops That Feel Special
