I wanted to make a fleece loungewear set similar to what I’ve been seeing from retailers lately. I started with the fleece wide-leg pants, and then debated about what top to make. I knew I wanted a sweatshirt-style top, but I wanted it to be a bit oversized, but not too long, and I wanted it to have a kangaroo pocket. I liked the fit of the Greenstyle Surge top I just made, although I didn’t want it to be quite that oversized and I wanted a different neck. So I took a look at the other Greenstyle top patterns and decided to try the Bianca Pullover. There’s a nice blog post with lots of Biancas on the Greenstyle website.

The Bianca pattern uses a different odd size scheme than Surge. This time my measurements suggested I was somewhere between D and E. Given the bulky nature of my fabric and the fact that the kangaroo pocket looked too small in the D size, I went with E. The only changes I made were shortening both the sleeves and the bodice by 1 inch.

Bianca was pretty easy and quick to sew, but the instructions were rather minimal. For an experienced sewist, this was fine, but the pattern might be more intimidating than it needs to be for beginners because it doesn’t explain what type of stitch to use where, when you should top stitch, etc. I decided to use a shallow zigzag (1.8 length, 1.1 width) for all my top stitching since this is a pretty stretchy fabric and I don’t want my seams to pop. The pattern specifies a 3/8-inch seam allowance, so I trimmed 1/8-inch as I serged most of the seams. This works, but I prefer knit patterns with 1/4-inch seam allowances so trimming isn’t necessary. I ended up sewing the neckband on with 1/4-inch seam allowance and not trimming because I didn’t want to make the neck band any narrower than it was already.

I’m very pleased with how the top came out, and I love how the complete lounge set works together. It is super comfy and cozy, and I even went outside in the snow for a photo shoot (we got over a foot of snow the day before). I will probably make more Biancas. It’s a great drop shoulder top that looks and feels roomy, but not enormous. For less bulky fabric I might go down to size D (but might keep the size E kangaroo pocket). It has options for a hood, side pockets, and for sewing with and without bands. Most commercial sweatshirts with kangaroo pockets also have hoods and I love the fact that when I sew my own clothes I can make it the way I want it with a kangaroo pocket and no hood.

Here’s a photo of a fleece lounge set from a retailer and some more photos of my lounge set.