Fashion Terms You Might Hear A-Z

A IS FOR ...

Arm Party

No, not a real party — but rather an arm adorned with several ornate bracelets (big, chunky styles, as seen on the Marni catwalk). There are now web pages devoted to styling your arm with the correct bangles. This is a trend that is possible for all of us to carry off — just if your job doesn’t involve typing or driving.

AOP

Pronounced like the Yorkshire ‘eh up, love’, this means All Over Print. Think a very patterned Diane von Furstenberg wrap dress, or a clashing, patterned blazer and pair of trousers.

B IS FOR ...

Basic

No, not your M&S staples, but the ultimate hackle-raising insult. In fashion lingo, basic means to be utterly predictable. Kate Middleton’s Sloaney style is often given as an example of this. The term applies to women who still wear jeans ripped at the knee (very last year) and those who think Ugg boots are still super cool. So how does one use this term? Try saying: ‘She’s so basic’ about a member of your rambling group whose waterproof is from Boden rather than a proper outdoor brand.

Belfie

A term coined by Kim Kardashian, the reality star with the unfeasibly famous bottom. A belfie is a picture of your rear, taken from behind then posted on social media — the word being a cheeky amalgamation of ‘bottom’ and ‘selfie’.

B.O.T.

That’s Bang On Trend! Say each letter individually, rather than saying ‘bot’, when looking at something truly fabulous.

Bumbag

Yes, really. The bumbag made an unlikely return to high fashion last year (hence the 2.0), strapped to those sashaying down the catwalks of Stella McCartney, Kenzo and Gucci. The trend shows no sign of waning this season — they’re available everywhere, from Topshop to Chloe. Can be worn in the traditional way or — 2018 update! — slung over the shoulder.

C IS FOR ...

Chandel-Ears

Wearing an enormous pair of statement — or chandelier — earrings. ‘She’s so bold pairing that dress with those fabulous chandelears.’

Civilian 

A person who is not part of the fashion world — i.e. normal. An overused insult. ‘Why’s she at fashion week? You can tell that she’s just a civilian . . .’

D IS FOR...

Duck face

The deliberate pouty face to make lips look fuller and cheekbones more prominent during a selfie. Popular with celebrities such as Cheryl Tweedy (right).

DRAZER

A ‘blazer dress’ — this looks like an Eighties double-breasted coat but is worn as a dress. Often bum-skimmingly short — and so popular with celebrities.

E IS FOR ...

Ear jacket

Not a sweet way of keeping the extremities warm, the ear jacket and its little sister, the ear crawler, is an earring style.

The jacket has a stud in front, a middle piece you attach at the back that hangs below and hugs your earlobe, and a fastener. The crawler runs up your ear like a silvery worm. Try Claire’s Accessories, Argos, and Stella and Dot.

Eye gloss

Fashionistas roll their eyes at the very thought of lip gloss (very early 2000s). Eye gloss is the way forward — a Vaseline-like oily cream you rub over the eyelid to give eyes a sheen. Keen? Try NYX Professional Makeup Lid Lacquer.

Everything 

The ultimate compliment. ‘Darling, that outfit is everything.’

Extra

So over-the-top as to be ridiculous. ‘Goodness, Sharon looks a little extra today in those heels.’

F IS FOR ...

Frow

The ‘front row’ of seats closest to the catwalk and considered to be the most desirable place to sit at the shows. Frequented by A-listers, Vogue editors — and now the Queen.

Fierce

Not scary — this means deeply cool (it’s supermodel Tyra Banks’s catchphrase). Keep up.

FRILL-SEEKER

A wearer of over-the-top ruffles and frills . . . just like Naomi Campbell at London Fashion Week.

Findikoglu

Fashion is having a middle Eastern moment. Last year it was Israeli designer Dodo Bar Or whom everyone was wearing. Now it’s Dilara Findikoglu, a Turkish designer who hit the headlines last year when she put on a catwalk show which included occult imagery in a Roman Catholic church.

G IS FOR ...

Glove Shoes

A soft ballet pump (which fits like a glove) on a block heel. The phrase was coined in 2011 by designer Martiniano Lopez Crozet, and versions were subsequently released by such designers as Phoebe Philo for Celine.

Groutfit

The all grey outfit. Groutfit was originally used to describe someone’s miserable personality as well as their miserable clothes. Such is the capricious nature of fashion that Groutfit has most recently been celebrated as now being chic, liberating and comfortable.

H IS FOR…

Hair Director

Don’t you dare call them a hairdresser! Today’s backstage crimpers are known as hair directors (possibly as they have the reputation for being fearsome divas).

HAIRMERICANO

The glossy coffee-coloured brunette shade that was this winter’s must-have hair colour. Replaced ‘Bronde’ (a messy brunette-blonde that was huge last summer). Be warned, though, before you visit your hair director: this year is all about the ‘blondeshell’ — a sun-kissed Hollywood blonde. You heard it here first.

I IS FOR ...

Investment piece

Yes, it is possible to buy some items of high fashion that increase in value (classic designer handbags, pieces of rare haute couture) — which is what this once referred to. However, for the snowflake generation, the meaning has altered to become clothing that makes you feel ‘invested’ in yourself. In other words, it’s justification for buying an item you believe will score you a job or a partner. Vogue has just released a list of the 30 investment pieces you ought to buy before you’re 30.

J IS FOR ...

Jagged edges

Jeans need to be distressed or frayed at the hem to be on trend. Look at labels such as MiH or go High Street at Top Shop and Zara. Or take sandpaper to your own.

K is for ...

Kicks

Never call a spade a spade (or a shoe a shoe) in fashion. Kicks is a street culture word for trainers. Some say that it derives from over a century of slang; it was apparently first used to mean shoes in 1897.

L IS FOR ...

Lamp shading

Sounds like a sinister dating term but is used to describe someone dressed in the manner of a floor lamp. Your legs, in thigh-high boots, are the base and your baggy jumper the lampshade.

M IS FOR ...

Mullet

Not a hairstyle which was fashionable in the Eighties, but an asymmetrical hemline where the hem is higher at the front or side than the back (left).

MVP

Most Valuable Polish, as referred to in Vogue late last year about Helmut Lang’s pink manicures at New York Fashion Week.

N IS FOR ...

Nodel

An insult used in the fashion world to mean ‘Not Models’. Women who aren’t models, but model. Often social media stars or bloggers. Boden isn’t exactly high fashion, but they exemplified the nodel trend for years by using real (but good-looking) people.

O IS FOR ...

On Fleek

On trend. Try it at book club. ‘Girl in the Window is so On Fleek.’ See?

P is for …

Pelvage

Pelvis cleavage (above on reality star Kendall Jenner). This happens when a dress is slit so high it shows off a bony pelvis. Yes, this is a real red-carpet trend.

PRgument

The rows fashion editors have with PRs when they realise they haven’t been seated in the front row next to Anna Wintour — because the Queen bagged their place.

PPW: Price Per Wear

Take the price of an item and divide it by the number of times you wear it to work out how much you really paid for it. That £1,000 bag you have worn 1,000 times has a PPW of just £1.

Q is for …

Quilted

Someone wearing an enormous puffy jacket that makes it look as if they’ve left home in a duvet has been quilted.

R is for …

Raglan

A sleeve style, where one single piece of fabric runs from the wrist to the neck without a shoulder seam. Think bomber jackets and T-shirts.

S is for …

Smize

Smile with your eyes, not your mouth (more fashionable).

It’s recommended that you practise this in front of a mirrors as it’s surprisingly hard to pull off.

Sliders

A type of backless, open toed shoe which slips onto the foot and sounds ideal for pottering from beach to cocktail bar on exotic holidays, but it is also probably not great on sand.

T IS FOR...

Toe cleavage

When the edge of your toes show when you’re wearing heels - Louboutins are particularly low-cut. Fashionable a few years ago — so you can just imagine how the fashion insiders feel about it now.

U IS FOR ...

Unitard

Skin-tight garment which covers the body from neck to ankle — as seen on the Acne catwalk. Hard to wear if you have any body fat.

V IS FOR ...

Vent

Not an expression of anger, but a split in a garment which allows you to move — for example, at the back of a pencil skirt.

W IS FOR ...

Wristlet

Go hands-free! A small clutch bag with an attached loop of fabric which can be worn around the wrist. A major accessory trend for this year.

Woke

Are you woke? That’s not poor grammar — it’s the fashion way of asking whether you’re fashionably right-on. Meghan and her vegan leather and eco-friendly outfits is very woke.

X IS FOR ...

X-ray fabrics

Sheer fabrics with a translucent effect. Look great on girls in their 20s. Less great in your 40s, though if you want to wear see-through chiffon, go for it.

Y IS FOR ...

Yolo

Stands for ‘you only live once’. ‘Should I really wear these rainbow-coloured sequins to Tesco?’ ‘Yes, obviously. Yolo.’

You

As in ‘it’s very you’ when describing someone’s outfit. Almost certainly an insult.

Z IS FOR...

Zori

A traditional Japanese sandal, which is said to be the direct ancestor of the flip-flop. World War II soldiers brought them back to the U.S. and they were re-designed in bright colours in the Fifties.