The slipper index

As sales of pyjamas soar, retailers are referring to “the slipper index.”

It’s the time of year when thoughts usually turn to buying a cocktail dress and heels as the party season hits full swing. But this year it seems our priorities are a little different. Rather than splurging on clothes for going out, many of us are spending money on luxurious pieces for staying in. Certainly that’s the message from shop floors and online retailers. …

Wheeler attributed the term “slipper index” to popular UK department store John Lewis, and explained:

The theory is that sales of slippers and pyjamas increase in a downturn. There’s also the cold snap – not only are we going out less, we’re also investing in cosy clothes in a bid to stay toasty. As we’re spending more time on our sofas, we’re willing to spend more on staying-in wear – and splashing out on pieces in luxe fabrics, such as cashmere and silk.

published on: Schott's Vocab

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Made to measure, limited edition, one-off

Made-to-measure: is when an existing garment or pattern is adjusted for you.

A one-off: describes garments of which only one exists.

A limited edition: describes a garment of which there are more than one but not so many the girl next door will also have one.

UGG

The word may have derived from fug boots that were worn by aviators in rural Australia during World War I. The term is believed to be a shortened version of “flying ugg boots.”

The unisex sheepskin and fleece footware called UGG boots, or simply uggs, gained popularity in the 1960s when competitive surfers began wearing them. They were the perfect remedy for cold, numb, wet feet.

Now, everyone seems to be sporting the boots, from Hollywood celebrities and their tween followers to suburban moms. Originally of simple design, Uggs now sport glamorous embellishments such as brass grommets, fringe, and animal skin patterns.

So, what does the word mean?

The history of the term ― and the trademark — are highly disputed. Australia and New Zealand both claim to be the original home of Uggs and in these countries the term “ugg” can be used to market any fleece and sheepskin boot. That is, it is considered a generic term. However, in more than 100 other countries, UGG is a registered trademark.

Source: HotDictionary

Speckbarbie

A deeply pejorative term that may be translated as "bacon Barbie",a young woman dressed to the nines in clothing that's much tootight.

source: Word Wide Words

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Langensheid

On symbolic power of of fashion lingo

Fashion lingo has a property of "written" garment

In his book The Fashion System (1983), Barthes focuses on descriptive texts of women's magazines. He argues that the language here has a property of "written garment"and assumes that the forms of fashion are trasformed in verbal forms. So, the headlines in fashion magazines play a role of written garments and describe the photographs in linguistic forms.

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