The blouse that gets noticed — and keeps you comfortable doing it.

On the color-block shirt blouse that covers the arms, opens at the throat, wears out over the hips, and turns heads at the same time.

I am 63 years old, and for years I had been reaching past the cheerful things in my closet and pulling out something safe and forgettable — the plain navy top, the same gray cardigan. Everything lively either showed too much or sat too tight, so I quietly gave up and reached for the same tired things.

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 color that lifts your whole face.

We chose a color-block in warm rose-pink, soft slate-blue and white — three shades that sit close to the face and throw light upward. Together they make a print that reads as bold from across a room but easy and calm when you are wearing it. The waffle-weave texture catches the light in a way a flat print never does. People will tell you that you look well.

2Wear it out. That is how it is cut.

We cut the Nora to fall loose and easy over the middle — the hem lands just below the hip, with a gentle curved finish that looks deliberate whether you leave it out or tuck the front in slightly. There is no awkward decision every morning, no checking the mirror and changing your mind. You put it on and it simply looks right.

3Open at the throat, covered where it counts.

We gave the Nora a pointed shirt collar that opens in a clean V at the throat — enough room for a necklace, and no fabric pressed up against your neck on a warm afternoon. Nothing stifles; nothing gapes. The top button sits far enough down that it opens the face and the throat without showing anything you would rather keep to yourself.

4Covered to the wrist — and it still breathes.

The Nora has long sleeves that come all the way down to a buttoned cuff — covering the tops and the full length of the arms in a soft waffle-weave that still lets the air move through. We cut the sleeve roomy through the upper arm, so it never strains or pulls. Covered without reaching for a cardigan, and comfortable even when the room is warm.

5Nothing shows. Nothing clings.

The color-block pattern and the textured weave together mean that nothing telegraphs through — not a line, not a damp patch, nothing. The fabric has enough body to hold its shape and drape away from the body at the same time. You move; it moves with you. You stay comfortable; nobody knows but you.

6It fits the body you actually have.

We make the Nora from a size S all the way to 5XL, and we cut it relaxed on purpose. The shirt-style shape is forgiving without being shapeless — there is structure at the collar and cuffs, and ease everywhere else. It is meant to fit the woman, not the other way around.

The Nora, against the blouses you've been buying.

	The usual blouse	The Nora
Color	Plain, fades into the background	Bold color-block that lifts the face
Arms	Bare, or strained at the upper arm	Long roomy sleeves, covered to the cuff
Collar	Closed tight, or too low-cut	Shirt collar open at the throat, comfortable
Hem	Too short to wear out, too long to tuck	Curved hem cut to wear loose, no fussing
Fabric	Clingy, shows everything	Textured waffle-weave, holds its shape

Why they're clearing it now

They priced the Nora | Diligent Hoodie Blouse at $123.00 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 blouse is going out at well below half of what it was.

I ordered mine the evening my church friend told me about it. It arrived a few days later in a kraft-paper parcel — tucked in cream tissue, with a little printed card from the family inside. 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 putting back the things I actually wanted to wear and settling for something plain and safe — and this blouse quietly put an end to that. The color alone makes me feel like myself again, and the long sleeves mean I do not think twice before I put it on. If any of that sounds familiar, I hope you find your size before it clears.

— Sandra Thompson · Mount Pleasant, SC

See the Nora | Diligent Hoodie Blouse — $54.95 →

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.