Real stories · Five pieces, every night covered

After 8pm my standards used to fall off a cliff — this five-piece set caught them

Five pieces, one drawer, and suddenly my evenings are better dressed than some of my mornings — that's what this set did. I'm 67, and I'll confess what every woman knows and nobody says: after 8pm, standards used to fall off a cliff. The daytime clothes came off and a rotation of ancient, shapeless things went on — things no visitor was ever meant to witness, though the doorbell has never respected that.

What I wanted was to be as decently dressed at 9pm as I am at 9am.

Then I found the Noctivelle from a British label called York Boutique — a five-piece nightwear set in a deep wine red with a soft, gentle sheen and delicate trim: a long robe, a nightdress, a camisole, shorts and long trousers. Mine is the red; there are five other colours.

Five pieces is the quiet genius. Warm night: camisole and shorts. Cold night: nightdress, trousers, robe over the lot. Unexpected knock at 8.30: the robe ties shut and I am, technically, dressed — which is why the doorbell has lost its evening powers. Everything is soft against the skin, light and breathable, and it drapes rather than clings.

Five soft pieces with a gentle sheen — robe, nightdress, camisole, shorts and trousers — which is why there's a right combination for every season, every radiator setting, and every surprise knock at the door.

It was £39.95, which is exactly the price where I pause — so I did the arithmetic: five pieces, eight pounds apiece, replacing a drawer full of things I'd be mortified to be seen in. Half the usual £80, a fortnight to send it back, free delivery. The pause lost.

It has since done a fortnight of evenings, one cold snap in full five-piece formation, and one 8.30pm parcel delivery answered with composure, and when my daughter stayed the weekend she inspected the robe and said 'this is nicer than my actual clothes'. I've since ordered a second set for my sister's birthday.

If your evenings also have a wardrobe cliff, do have a look. The Noctivelle is rated 4.7 out of 5 by more than 220 women, it comes in six colours, in UK sizes 10/12 to 16/18 — and at half price the red goes first.