Fashion A-Z

From applique to zippers, a comprehensive dictionary with definitions and
meanings of key fashion vocabulary, written by Camilla Morton.

Sheath Line

Sheath Line, or a sheath dress, is designed to fit closely to the body. Unlike other cocktail dresses, it also stops at the knee — or just below. Think Jackie Kennedy Onassis or Audrey Hepburn in ‘Breakfast at Tiffanys’. This style is demure, often created in a block colour and unadorned — the perfect ingredients for a classic Little Black Dress.

Shell Hems

Shell Hems are a dainty finishing option to edge hems, tucks or trims. This technique is essentially hemming an edge in an evenly spaced and decorative manner. It should not be confused with Shell suits, however; the casual, front-zipped tracksuits made from nylon or polyester ‘shell’ that were popular in the late 1980s.

Stiletto Heels

Stiletto heels are high and slender, tapering to a sharp point on women’s shoes and boots. Their creation was tied to the advent of technology that allowed designers to use metal-reinforced shafts that would support a thinner heel. The phrase was first associated with shoes in the 1930s (they were named after the stiletto dagger), and conjures up an image of the femme fatale, a cocktail of fetish and feminine.