A letter from a reader

At 62, my comfy clothes were not fit to answer the door in

I have never written to a shop before, and I did not expect my first letter to be about a hoodie.

At home I like to be comfortable, and I make no apology for it. But my comfortable clothes had got very tired. A bobbly old fleece, a sweatshirt that had seen better days, the sort of things you would only wear with the curtains closed. And of course that is exactly when the doorbell goes. The neighbour with a parcel, the man about the boiler, my daughter-in-law popping in unannounced. I would open the door about six inches and talk round the edge of it, wishing the floor would swallow me up.

I could be comfortable at home, or I could look presentable at the door. I had decided that at my age I could not have both.

So I kept a cardigan on the banister to throw over the top, and hoped nobody looked too closely.

Then I saw one on my sister-in-law Maureen

Maureen popped round on a Sunday afternoon in the nicest soft blue striped hoodie, with jeans and her good boots. She looked smart and relaxed at the same time, and I told her so. She laughed and said it was the comfiest thing she owned, she had been in it since breakfast. She told me it was from Nottingham Boutique, a little boutique that has been quietly dressing women our age for a few years now. It is called the Stellana. I ordered mine that evening.

What happened at the school gates

I wore it to pick my granddaughter up from school on the Friday, with my jeans and boots, and I did not give a thought to how I looked, which is a lovely feeling. Three different women asked me about it while we waited at the gates, and my friend Sue told me I looked like I had made an effort, which I have decided to take as a compliment.

It is a small thing, a hoodie. But not having to hide behind my own front door has made me feel a good deal more like myself.

Three things I have learned since

One. Comfortable does not have to mean scruffy. The Stellana is soft and easy to wear, with a little stretch, but the fine stripes make it look fresh and put together. It is the first thing I have owned that I can sit on the sofa in and then answer the door in without a second thought.

Two. The details make it look smart. The stripes run in different directions across the front panels, which you notice the minute you see it, and the white drawstrings and ribbed cuffs and hem keep it all looking neat rather than slouchy.

Three. Get one with a proper pocket and a hood. The big front pocket is perfect for cold hands on a November walk, and the hood keeps the chill off when the wind gets up. It is relaxed through the body without looking oversized, and it finishes at the hip, so it looks lovely with jeans or trousers.

About the price

I had expected something this nice to cost a good deal more.

The Stellana is £32.95. It was £66.

There is no catch. They have their autumn sale on and delivery is free. It comes in the light blue I chose, plus pink, black, yellow, red, taupe, green and lilac, from a UK 6 up to a UK 22.

I did go and read the reviews before I ordered. Just over three hundred of them, sitting at 4.2 stars. Not the suspiciously perfect five you see on some sites, which if I am honest made me trust it more. One woman had written, "I live in it at weekends and I still look respectable when someone knocks. My husband says it is the smartest hoodie he has ever seen." That was the one that decided it for me.

What I would tell you if we were friends

If you came round and we sat out on the porch with a cup of tea, this is what I would tell you.

If you dread the doorbell because of what you are wearing, you do not have to choose between comfy and presentable any more. Find yourself one soft, smart top that you would happily open the door in, and wear it.

It does not look like it was made for somebody half my age, and it does not look like I have given up either.

Caroline