The language of fashion is spoken by a multitude of people ranging from teenagers to industry experts. This has led to many different ways of speaking about fashion, and emphasizes the widening gap between the people reporting on fashion and the people consuming fashion. When fashion is being discussed on the street, trendy terms are heard more often than professional terms, likely due to the difference in research and general knowledge of the way it is spoken about officially by the specialists.<\/p>\n
Common words to hear on the street include \u201cCanadian tuxedo,\u201d \u201crelaxed,\u201d and \u201coversized,\u201d two of which are common styles among teenagers and one of which is despised by teenagers. Relaxed and oversized are simply used to describe clothing that hangs off the body when being worn, with relaxed being \u201cone size too big\u201d and oversized being \u201ctwo sizes too big\u201d (Wasilak). This is a common occurrence in many teens\u2019 closets right now. A Canadian tuxedo is wearing \u201cdenim-on-denim\u201d (Wasilak), most often seen as jeans with a jean jacket. The vocabulary common to the streets represent the fashion common to the streets, which is rarely a direct reflection of the runway styles.<\/p>\n
The industry uses more complex terms, such as \u201capplique\u201d and \u201ccovert couture,\u201d both of which come from the French language. Applique is a method of layering materials to create detail and texture (Danishwar). When translated to English, applique is simply applied, a simple term that could be used and possibly integrated to the street but likely will not be. Covert couture is ordering personalized haute couture (Danishwar), which is not something the average person can afford to do, emphasizing the difference in class levels between those in the industry and those simply following fashion. The vocabulary used in the industry is suited to the needs of those speaking about luxury items, but does not have the ability to flow into street-speak as well.<\/p>\n
The divide between fashion industry expert and consumer languages will continue to exist until the people using the language casually require the terms of the professionals. As long as fashion remains a difficult industry to explore without money, the two languages can never combine to become a single widely-spoken one.<\/p>\n
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Works Cited<\/p>\n
\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0\u00a0 Danishwar, Dessy. \u201cSpeak Fashion-Ese: The A To Zs Of Fashion Lingo.\u201d\u00a0HuffPost Canada<\/em>, HuffPost, 25 Feb. 2017, www.huffingtonpost.ca\/dessy-danishwar\/speak-fashionese-the-a-to_b_9308306.html.<\/p>\n