Luxury Lexicon 48 terms
French terms
French terms used in English-language luxury work across fashion, fragrance and craft.
A
- Anglage
- Bevelling and polishing the edges of watch movement components to create smooth, reflective borders.
- Appliqué
- Decoration made by attaching pieces of fabric to a larger fabric surface.
- Atelier
- French for a workshop or studio, including a workroom where garments, accessories or other objects are made.
- Avant-garde
- Experimental or unconventional design that challenges established styles or ways of making things.
B
- Batiste
- A fine, lightweight fabric with a plain weave and a soft, often semi-sheer appearance.
- Bouclé
- Yarn with loops that give it a textured surface, or fabric made with that yarn.
- Boutique
- A specialist shop, often selling clothing, accessories or products from a particular brand.
- Brocade
- A woven fabric whose raised decorative pattern is formed with additional patterning threads.
C
- Cabochon
- A cabochon is a gemstone cut with a smoothly rounded face rather than a pattern of flat facets.
- Chambray
- A plain-weave fabric, usually made with a coloured warp and a white or undyed weft.
- Charmeuse
- A lightweight satin-weave fabric with a lustrous face and a duller back.
- Chef de partie
- A cook in charge of one section of a kitchen, such as sauces, fish or pastry, usually supervising a small team under the sous-chef or head chef.
- Chenille
- A yarn with short fibres projecting around its core, or a soft, pile-textured fabric made with it.
- Chiffon
- A lightweight, sheer fabric with a slightly grainy surface and a flowing drape.
- Concierge
- A hotel employee who books restaurants, tickets and transport for guests and advises them; luxury stores use the title for client hosts.
- Côtes de Genève
- A decorative finish of regular bands applied with an abrasive tool to watch movement surfaces, often plates and bridges.
- Couture
- French for sewing or dressmaking; in fashion, often used for specially made, carefully constructed clothing.
- Cravat
- A length of fabric worn around the neck and tied or arranged as neckwear.
- Crêpe
- Fabric with a crinkled or grainy surface, produced through its yarns, construction or finishing.
- Crepe de chine
- A lightweight fabric with a subtle crepe texture and a soft drape, often made from silk or polyester.
D
E
- Eau de parfum
- A fragrance concentration stronger than eau de toilette and lighter than extrait, at a percentage of perfume oil each house sets.
F
- Faille
- A plain-woven fabric with slight, flat ribs running across its width.
G
H
- Haute couture
- A controlled French designation for fashion houses meeting specific requirements for made-to-order clothing and its presentation.
- Haute horlogerie
- French for fine watchmaking: the upper end of the trade, judged by how movements are made and finished, by design and by service.
J
- Jacquard
- A weaving system that controls individual warp threads to create patterns, and a name for fabrics made with it.
L
- Lamé
- Fabric made with metallic or metallic-looking yarns that give it a reflective surface.
M
- Matelassé
- Fabric with a raised, quilted-looking surface created by its construction rather than by a separate layer of padding.
- Métiers d’art
- French for skilled artistic crafts, including disciplines such as embroidery, engraving and decorative metalwork.
- Moiré
- A rippled, water-like surface effect on fabric, commonly produced by finishing a ribbed cloth.
O
- Organdy
- A lightweight, sheer, plain-weave cotton fabric with a crisp finish.
P
R
- Ready-to-wear
- Ready-to-wear is clothing made in standard sizes and offered for sale as finished garments.
- Rhabilleur
- French for a watch repairer who diagnoses faults and restores watches to working order.
S
- Savoir-faire
- Practical knowledge and skill developed through experience, especially in making or doing something.
- Sillage
- The trail of scent a wearer leaves in the air while moving, distinct from how far a fragrance projects or how long it lasts.
- Sommelier
- A wine specialist who advises guests and serves wine, and may also manage a restaurant’s wine list or cellar.
T
- Taffeta
- A crisp, smooth, plain-weave fabric with a slight sheen, often made from silk or synthetic fibres.
- Tailleur
- French for a tailored suit, commonly a jacket worn with a matching skirt or trousers.
- Tourbillon
- A mechanism that rotates the balance and escapement in a cage to average out gravity-related timing errors in vertical positions.
- Tulle
- A fine, lightweight net fabric used in garments, veils and decoration.