The Warmth of a Coat, Without the Weight

A long, cozy quilted vest — sleeveless and light, with a hood and deep pockets — that keeps you warm all the way down, without the weight of a heavy coat.

Every winter it's the same battle. My warm coat is so heavy it tires my shoulders and I can barely lift my arms in it, but the lighter things don't keep the cold out. So I'm forever too weighed-down or too cold, and I'd started to dread going out at all.

What I really wanted was proper warmth that didn't feel like carrying a sack of coal on my back — something that covered more of me, that I could throw straight on over a jumper, and that kept the wind off. But the warm things were heavy and the light things were useless. Nothing was both.

It was my daughter Sarah, up in Boston, who told me to stop bundling up and try one from a small family boutique here in South Carolina — a long hooded vest she thought would keep me warm without the weight. 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 vest is called the Mira, 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 warmth of a coat, without the weight

We made the Mira long and quilted for real, cozy warmth — but sleeveless and light, so it keeps you beautifully warm without the weight of a heavy coat dragging on your shoulders. You put it on and feel warm and free at once: no bulk, no tired arms, just softly padded warmth you can move in. Warm as a coat, light as a cardigan.

2Extra-long — warm all the way down

Most coats and gilets stop at the hips — and the cold gets straight to your back and your legs. The Mira falls all the way to mid-calf, wrapping you warm right down over your back, hips and thighs, the very places every other coat leaves out in the cold. Proper, top-to-toe warmth, so you're warm all over, not just from the waist up.

3A cozy hood for when the wind picks up

It has a soft, cozy hood attached, so the moment the wind picks up you simply pull it up and you're wrapped warm — no scarf to slip, no hat to hunt for and flatten your hair. Warmth and shelter in one, right when you need it, for the wind round your neck and ears that gets you the most.

4Sleeveless, so it layers over everything

Because it's sleeveless, it slips straight on over any jumper or cardigan — no wrestling sleeves down sleeves, no bulk on the arms, no whole performance to put it on and take it off. It layers easily over everything you already own, warm where you need it and easy on and off all day.

5Deep pockets to warm your hands

It has deep pockets set into the front — snug and warm, just right for burying cold hands into and out of the wind. Somewhere to warm your hands and rest them, and to keep your phone and glasses close. Such a simple thing, and it's where your hands live all winter.

6Four colours, and a size for you, from S to 4XL

It comes in four easy colours — army green, black, warm rust and cream — and it runs from S to 4XL, cut generous and easy to layer over your knits and flatter a real range of bodies. A vest made to fit the woman, not to make the woman fit the vest.

The Mira, against your usual winter layer

	Your usual layer	The Mira
The weight	Heavy, tires your shoulders	Cozy and quilted, but light
The coverage	Stops at the hips, cold legs	Extra-long — warm to mid-calf
The wind	A scarf that slips, a hat to hunt	A cozy hood, up in a moment
Putting it on	Wrestling sleeves, a performance	Sleeveless — slips over a jumper
Cold hands	Shallow, useless pockets	Deep pockets to bury your hands in

Why they're clearing it now

They priced the Mira at $150.00 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 vest is going out for a little under half of that.

Mine arrived folded in tissue with a little handwritten note on top. I threw it on over my jumper that same cold morning, buried my hands in the pockets, and was warm all the way down for the first time in years.

I don't usually write things like this. But the Mira has changed how I feel about the cold — warm all over without the weight, the hood up when the wind bites, and my hands cozy in the pockets. It's the first thing I reach for now. If you dread the winter chill 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 Mira — $69.95 →

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.