The one jacket I grab instead of a coat, fall right through spring.

On the quilted jacket that's warm without the weight, zips up over the throat, covers the arms, and has deep pockets your hands live in — in thirteen colors. Why a small South Carolina family made it this way, and why they're clearing it now.

By Sandra Thompson · Mount Pleasant, South Carolina

Posted September 2026 · 6 min read

I am 63 years old, and most of the year I do not want a coat. A coat is heavy, it is a production to put on, and half the time the morning does not really call for it. What I wanted was the layer in between — warm enough for a cool morning, light enough to forget I have it on.

For years I did not have one. I was either cold in a cardigan or swamped in a coat, with nothing sensible in between.

Then a woman in my church group here in Mount Pleasant kept turning up in a quilted jacket that looked easy and warm at once. I finally asked her. She laughed and told me to 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 jacket is called the Kelowna, 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.

1A cut that skims, never clings

We cut the Kelowna roomy and relaxed, so it drapes over whatever you have on instead of pinching anywhere. Wear it open for two easy lines down the front, or zip it up — either way it skims you rather than clinging.

2A stand collar that zips over the throat

We gave it a soft stand collar that zips right up over the throat, so the wind stays out of the one place a jacket usually leaves open. Zip it to the chin on a cold walk, or fold it down when the sun comes out.

3Sleeves that cover the arms — to the wrist

We made the sleeves full-length to cover the arms all the way to the wrist, with enough room that nothing grips the upper arm. Covered and easy, with space to layer a sweater underneath.

4Deep pockets your hands live in

We set deep pockets into the sides, the kind your hands actually live in on a cold morning and that swallow a phone and keys without a thought. Not the shallow slits so many jackets sew on for show.

5Quilted warmth, thirteen colors

We quilted it in a soft box pattern for real warmth without the weight of a heavy coat, and made it in thirteen colors so there is one to go with everything you own. It is the light layer you reach for from fall right through spring.

6It fits the body you have

We make the Kelowna from a size S all the way to 2XL and cut it relaxed on purpose. It is meant to fit the woman — not make the woman fit the jacket.

The Kelowna, against the jackets you've been buying

Why they're clearing it now

They priced the Kelowna at $199.95 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 one is going out at little over a third of that.

I ordered mine that evening. It arrived a few days later in a kraft-paper parcel with a short handwritten note from the family. I have reached for it more than anything else in my closet since.

I do not usually write things like this. But I spent too many years cold in a cardigan or swamped in a coat, with nothing sensible in between — and this is the jacket that filled the gap. If that sounds like you, I hope you find your color before it clears.

— Sandra Thompson · Mount Pleasant, SC

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