The Soft Turtleneck That Looks Quietly Designer

A soft knit turtleneck with a fine contrast piping — tailored and elegant, cozy and warm to the chin, and soft enough that even your neck won't mind.

I've always admired those women who look effortlessly polished in the cooler months — a beautiful soft sweater, something quietly expensive, that looks like it came from a lovely boutique. I'd assumed it took money I don't have, and I'd settled for the same plain jumpers year after year.

What I really wanted was one sweater that looked quietly designer — elegant and considered, with a bit of detail to it — but that was still soft, warm, and something my sensitive skin could actually bear against my neck. But the special ones were dear and scratchy, and the soft ones were plain. Nothing was both.

It was my daughter Sarah, up in Boston, who told me to stop settling for plain and try one from a small family boutique here in South Carolina — a soft piped turtleneck she thought I'd never take off. Before I tell you what it did, I think you should read the Clarke family's letter first.

The Clarke family runs a small boutique here in South Carolina, family-run since 1986 — three generations, mother to daughter. The sweater is called the Eva, and their letter walks through the handful of things they refused to compromise on. I am going to let their words carry it, because they say it better than I could.

1The soft turtleneck that looks quietly designer

We made the Eva as a soft turtleneck with a fine contrast piping tracing the seams — the kind of considered detail that gives it a real designer look, as if it came from a boutique twice the price. It looks tailored and quietly expensive, yet it's the softest, easiest thing to pull on. You put it on and look like you spent a fortune you didn't.

2The contrast piping that lifts it

Tracing the shoulder and sleeve seams is a fine contrast piping — a smart, subtle detail that turns a simple turtleneck into something that looks tailored and designer, without a scrap of fuss. It's the touch that lifts the whole sweater, the sort of thing people notice and ask about, and it does all the work so you don't have to.

3A cozy roll neck that keeps your neck warm

Its cozy roll neck keeps your neck and shoulders beautifully warm — the very places the cold gets in first — with no scarf to wind, slip or lose. Warmth right up to the chin, built in, the moment you pull it on. A scarf's worth of warmth, without the fuss of a scarf.

4Soft and warm, never itchy — even at the neck

The knit is wonderfully soft and fine — warm and cozy without a hint of scratch, even right against your neck, where a scratchy turtleneck is unbearable — and it's knit light enough to keep the chill off without any bulk. The kind of sweater you put on first thing and never want to take off.

5A rich neutral that goes with everything

It comes in a soft, warm mocha brown — the kind of rich neutral that goes with everything you own: cream trousers, jeans, black, a camel coat, any scarf. One elegant sweater that quietly works with half your wardrobe and always looks smart, so you reach for it more than anything else you have.

6Five colours, and a size for you, from S to XL

It comes in five easy shades — a warm mocha, a soft cream, a deep charcoal and two lovely taupes — and it runs from S to XL, cut relaxed and easy to flatter a real range of bodies. A sweater made to fit the woman, not to make the woman fit the sweater.

The Eva, against the sweaters in your drawer

	The usual sweater	The Eva
The look	Plain, flat, forgettable	Piped and tailored — quietly designer
The detail	Nothing to it	A fine contrast piping that lifts it
Your neck	A draught, and a scarf to wind	A cozy roll neck, warm to the chin
The feel	Scratchy, worst at the neck	Wonderfully soft, no scratch at all
The colour	A shade that goes with nothing	A rich neutral that goes with everything

Why they're clearing it now

They priced the Eva at $159.95 when it launched, and it sold at that price all season. But for America's 250th, the Clarke family wanted to give something back to the women who have kept their doors open since 1986 — so every sweater is going out for a little over a third of that.

Mine arrived folded in tissue with a little handwritten note on top. I pulled it on that same cool morning, snug into the soft roll neck, and looked like I'd spent a fortune I hadn't.

I don't usually write things like this. But the Eva gave me the quietly-designer look I'd always admired — tailored and elegant, yet soft, warm, and finally a turtleneck my neck can bear. People assume it cost a fortune; it's the softest thing I own. If you've settled for plain the way I had, this is the one I'd tell you to try, while the sale is still on.

— Margaret Ellison · Mount Pleasant, SC

See the Eva — $59.95 →

This is a personal account from a Clarke Family customer. Margaret was not paid to write it. · The Clarke Family · Family Fashion · South Carolina, since 1986 · Free UPS shipping · 30-day money-back guarantee.