Fenix Sweatshirt

I finished my Fenix sweatshirt just in time for our first stretch of moist, chilly weather. Most welcome, because any rain is good rain here on the Central Coast. We're hoping it signals the end of fire season.

I first noticed this Style Arc pattern on Thorneberry's blog and thought it looked like the sweatshirt of my dreams. Slouchy fit, loose sleeves that can be pushed up when necessary, cute pockets: check, check and check. And that side panel just asks for color blocking. 

A word of caution; these pockets are for hand warming, not carrying stuff. The opening goes from top to bottom, so your car keys or cell phone are likely to slip out at an inopportune moment. They do a mighty fine job of hand warming though. They feel like the traditional sweatshirt kangaroo pocket, but IMO they look classier.

 I decided to use a black sweat shirting from Cali Fabrics, my favorite cut-rate fabric store. I wanted some traditional, 100% cotton sweatshirt fleece, which was surprisingly hard to locate. This was $5.99 a yard, which delighted my fabric miser's soul. It was described as heavyweight, but it didn't seem especially heavy to me. Just as well, because you're stitching through four layers of fabric at lots of points, so heavyweight would not be your friend.

I decided on black, even though I have a Great Pyrenees. I was hoping the public side of the sweatshirt fleece would be smooth enough that the dog hair would kind of slide off, but no such luck. Sadly, I'm a Winter and I look like hell in Great Pyrenees colored clothing so I'm learning to live with a constant light coating of white hair.

Here's a closeup of the pocket, complete with stubborn Pyrenees fuzz.

The pockets are the only tricksy part of the construction, and I didn't do the best job. I think they're very cute though. 

Here's s side shot that shows the slight high-low hem. It's subtle, but it makes this oversize sweatshirt look a bit sleeker than it otherwise might.

And here's a back shot. I like that the band in back curves right under the butt. It conceals the most problematic aspect of a leggings-and-sweatshirt outfit.

I finished this top yesterday and I've been wearing it since, which makes it seem like I could do with another. If I can find the right fabric, I'll get right on that. 

My pattern review is on PatternReview.com here.