Real stories · The grown-up hoodie

I'm 67 and I wanted a hoodie — this one let me have it with my dignity intact

A hoodie that doesn't look like a hoodie — that's the entire trick. I'm 67, and I'll admit something: I have always been quietly jealous of hoodies. The zip, the hood, the general air of being permanently wrapped in a blanket. But every one I tried made me look like I was borrowing clothes from a grandson, and I'd put it back on the rack.

What I wanted was that comfort, in something I could answer the door in.

Then I found the Tharvellanor from a British label called York Boutique — a zip-up hoodie in soft beige-grey where the outside is a proper textured knit, like a good cardigan, and the inside — hood included — is lined with a deep plush pile. I chose the beige; there's grey, brown and black as well.

The disguise is the whole idea. From the outside it's a smart knitted jacket — the texture reads as knitwear, not sportswear — which is why I can wear it to the bakery, the school gate and the garden centre without a second thought. And from the inside it's pure hoodie: the plush lining is warm the moment the zip goes up, the hood is there for the wind on the river path, and the whole thing is double-layered so it works as a light jacket or a big soft jumper, whichever the day needs.

A textured knit on the outside that reads as a cardigan, a deep plush lining on the inside that feels like a dressing gown — hoodie comfort, entirely in disguise.

It was £49.95 — half the usual £100 — and I'd already stopped reaching for anything else between the sofa and the shops: one garment doing the work of a cardigan, a fleece and a light jacket. A fortnight to send it back and free delivery settled it.

It has since done a week of school runs, two river walks with Winnie and every single evening in between, and at the bakery Sandra felt the lining, went quiet, and then said 'that's not fair' — which is Sandra for 'where do I get one'. Malcolm has attempted to borrow it twice. It is not for borrowing.

If you've also been quietly jealous of hoodies for a decade, do have a look. The Tharvellanor is rated 4.6 out of 5 by more than 220 women, it comes in beige, grey, brown and black, in UK sizes 8/10 to 16/18 — and at half price the beige goes first.