The sweater that makes people stop you on the street.

On the Monice — a hand-crochet-look floral knit that covers beautifully from shoulder to wrist, feels gentle against the skin, and has women asking "where did you get that?" the moment you walk in.

I am 63 years old, and getting dressed had quietly become a game of compromise. Everything warm enough for a cool morning felt dowdy; everything cheerful enough to lift my spirits was too thin to be useful. So most days I reached for the same safe, forgettable layers and told myself it was fine.

It wore on me more than I let on. I had started to feel a little invisible in my own clothes.

Then a woman in my church group here in Mount Pleasant kept turning up looking comfortable and quietly put-together at the same time. I finally asked her. She laughed and told me to read the Clarke family's letter first, so I am going to let their words carry it, because they say it better than I could.

1A print that gets you noticed — for all the right reasons

We covered the Monice in a hand-crochet-look floral — hundreds of small blooms in yellow, orange, teal, purple, red, white and navy, each one distinct, all of them sitting together on a warm hot-pink ground. It is bold the way a garden in June is bold: cheerful and alive, never garish. Women tell us they get stopped — on the way into church, in the grocery store, in a parking lot — and asked where it's from. At our age, that is not nothing.

2Soft against the skin — never itches, never scratches

We knit the Monice from a soft yarn chosen to feel gentle at every point it touches you — the back of the neck, the inner upper arm, the cuffs at the wrist. There is none of the scratch or prickle that puts women off sweaters as they get older. You forget you have it on, which is the highest thing we can say about any piece we make.

3A wide neckline that opens up instead of closing in

We cut the Monice with a wide, relaxed boat neckline and a dropped shoulder that sits easy — no pulling, no pinching, no collar pressing against the throat. The neck opens up toward the face rather than closing in around it. There is room for a necklace, room to breathe, and a line that draws the eye upward. No wrestling it over your head, either — it slips on and off without a struggle.

4Sleeves that cover from shoulder all the way to the wrist

We cut the sleeves long and roomy — they fall from the dropped shoulder all the way down to the wrist without straining or riding up. The cuff finishes neatly so nothing gaps when you reach. It covers the upper arm, the elbow, the forearm, all of it — the parts most of us would rather keep to ourselves — in a fabric with enough give that it never feels tight or constricting.

5It keeps its shape — all season, wash after wash

We built the ribbing at the cuffs and the hem to spring back, so the Monice holds its shape the way a good sweater should — no drooping elbows, no sagging hem after a few wears. The floral texture helps too: the structure of the knit keeps everything in place. It looks as cheerful and fresh in February as it did the first time you put it on.

6Works with everything already in your closet

A print this cheerful earns its keep by working hard. The Monice pairs as naturally with the dark jeans you already own as it does with a simple black skirt — the colors in the floral pick up almost anything. You do not need to buy around it. One sweater, a dozen outfits.

The Monice, against the sweaters you've been buying

	The usual sweater	The Monice
Print	Plain, or a tired stripe	✓ Vibrant hand-crochet floral, noticed everywhere
Feel	Scratchy at the neck and cuffs	✓ Soft against the skin all day
Neckline	Tight, bunches at the throat	✓ Wide boat neck, slips on easily
Sleeves	Too short, or strain at the arm	✓ Long, roomy, shoulder to wrist
Shape	Sags at the elbows after a season	✓ Holds its shape, wash after wash

Why they're clearing it now

They priced the Monice at $113.00 when it launched, and it sold at that price all season. But for America's 250th, the Clarke family wanted to give something back — so every sweater is going out at well below half of what it was.

I ordered mine that same evening. It arrived a few days later in a kraft-paper parcel, and when I opened the tissue paper and saw that riot of color — all those little flowers — I felt something I had not felt about a piece of clothing in a long time. 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 mornings reaching for the same dull layers, feeling a little invisible, and telling myself it was fine. This one sweater changed that — every single time I put it on, someone notices. If you have felt that same quiet invisibility, I hope you find your size before it clears.

— Sandra Thompson · Mount Pleasant, SC

See the Monice | Vintage Floral Art Print Sweater — $49.95 →

This is a personal account from a Clarke Family customer. Sandra was not paid to write it. · The Clarke Family · Family Fashion · 24/7 Customer Service · Free UPS shipping · Easy 30-Day Returns.