I look slimmer in this than in anything else I own.

On the painted knits that skim instead of clinging, cover the neck, and have sleeves cut wide the whole way down — why a small South Carolina family made them this way, and why they're clearing them now.

By Sandra Thompson · Mount Pleasant, South Carolina

Posted September 2026 · 6 min read

I am 63 years old, and every sweater I have owned in the last ten years has made exactly one of three mistakes. It gripped me across the middle, or the sleeve was cut so close that you could see the whole arm through it, or it stopped at my collarbone and left my neck out in the open.

Usually all three at once. 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 in sweaters that looked 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.

The Clarke family runs a small boutique here in South Carolina, family-run since 1986 — three generations, mother to daughter. They call these the Painted Lattice knits, 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 these straight and roomy through the body and dropped the shoulder seam well down the arm, so nothing pulls across the top of you. It hangs from the widest part of you instead of gripping it, which is the whole reason it reads slimmer.

2Sleeves that cover the arms — to the wrist

We kept the sleeve full from the shoulder to the wrist rather than narrowing it, and only then gathered it into a slim rib. There is room around your arm the entire length of it, so nothing shows through and nothing grips.

3A high neck that covers the throat

We finished every one of these with a soft high neck that stands up on its own and covers the throat completely. It is the part almost every sweater leaves out, and it is the part most of us would rather not think about.

4Ribbed cuffs and hem — so nothing shifts

We ribbed the cuffs and the hem so all that room stays where it belongs. The sleeve does not slide down over your hand and the body does not ride up when you reach for something, which is what usually ruins a loose sweater.

5A painted knit — and no two the same

Each one is painted over the knit rather than printed from a repeating square, so the color pools and fades where it wants and the texture underneath shows straight through it. Hold two of them up and you will not find the same sweater twice.

6It fits the body you have

We cut these relaxed on purpose and carry them across the full range of sizes, which varies a little from design to design. It is meant to fit the woman — not make the woman fit the sweater.

These, against the sweaters you've been buying

Why they're clearing them now

They priced these at $199.95 when they launched, and they 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 of them is going out at less than 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 in sweaters that gripped me, showed my arms and left my neck bare — and these quietly fixed all three at once. If that sounds like you, I hope you find your size before they clear.

— 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.