The Easy Kaftan That Looks Quietly Expensive

A simple, solid linen kaftan you just pull over your head — a soft cocoon that skims everything, cool in the heat, with big pockets. Effortlessly elegant.

I've always admired those women who look effortlessly elegant — the ones in simple, beautiful linen who seem to have thrown something on and yet look like they've stepped from a magazine. I'd assumed it took money, or a figure I no longer have, and I'd quietly stopped trying for it.

What I really wanted was to look quietly elegant like that — expensive, even — without the price tag, the fuss, or a single thing clinging to the bits I'm conscious of. But the elegant things were fitted and dear, and the comfortable things were shapeless and dull. Nothing was both.

It was my daughter Sarah, up in Boston, who told me to stop admiring it from afar and try one from a small family boutique here in South Carolina — a simple linen kaftan she thought would do exactly that. 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 dress is called the Elena, 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 effortless kaftan that looks quietly expensive

We made the Elena as a simple, solid linen kaftan you just pull over your head — no print, no fuss, nothing to fasten — the kind of understated piece that looks quietly expensive and considered. The beautiful natural linen and the easy, elegant cut do all the work, so you don't have to. Ten seconds to put on, and you look like you made an effort you didn't.

2A soft cocoon cut that skims everything

It's cut in a soft, roomy cocoon shape that falls away from the body — skimming the middle, the hips, everything you'd rather not think about, and clinging to none of it. No waistband, no fitted seams; just comfort and a clean, elegant line. You feel covered and put-together at once, and never once think about what's underneath.

3Cool, breathable linen through the heat

It's made of a soft, natural linen that lets the breeze pass right through it — light and airy, so the heat lifts away instead of clinging to you — yet it looks understated and elegant, not shapeless. A dress you can actually wear through the hottest afternoon and still feel lovely in, rather than wilted.

4Big pockets you'll actually use

It has two big front pockets you can actually use — phone, reading glasses, keys, or just a hand or two on a breezy evening — sewn right into the front of the dress. Not the useless little slits so many dresses pretend are pockets, but proper, roomy ones. Such a simple thing, and it changes how you wear it.

5Dressed up or down, for any occasion

Because it's a simple, solid linen, it takes its cue from you: bare with flat sandals it's easy for the market or a morning by the water; add a little silver jewellery and it's elegant enough for dinner or a gallery. One dress that quietly does the work of several, so you're never caught out with nothing to wear.

6Three colours, and a size for you, from S to 3XL

It comes in three timeless shades — a soft blue, a warm cream and a classic black — and it runs from S to 3XL, cut roomy and easy to flatter a real range of bodies. A dress made to fit the woman, not to make the woman fit the dress.

The Elena, against the dresses you've been buying

	Typical dress	The Elena
The look	Fussy and dear, or plain and cheap	Simple linen that looks quietly expensive
The fit	Clings to the middle and hips	A soft cocoon that skims, never clings
In the heat	Heavy, clingy, wilting	Cool linen — the breeze passes right through
Pockets	None, or useless little slits	Two big front pockets you actually use
The occasion	Right for one thing only	Dressed up or down, for anything

Why they're clearing it now

They priced the Elena at $198.95 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 dress is going out for under a third of that.

Mine arrived folded in tissue with a little handwritten note on top. I pulled it over my head that same morning, added my old silver necklace, and looked like I'd spent a fortune I hadn't.

I don't usually write things like this. But the Elena gave me the effortless elegance I'd always admired from afar — quietly expensive-looking, cool and comfortable, and covering everything I'd rather it did. If you've assumed that kind of easy elegance wasn't for you 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 Elena — $59.95 →

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.