Glossary of terms used on this site

Winged sandals, a symbol of the Greek messenger god Hermes. The name is from the Latin tālāria, "of the ankle".

Tam o'Shanter - A Scottish beret named after a character in a poem written by Robert Burns in 1790, now traditionally worn by Rastafarians to hold their dreadslocks.

Tana lawn - Liberty of London made famous their Tana lawn which began manufacture in the 1920s. It is named after Lake Tana in Sudan where the raw cotton was grown.

Tartan - a pattern consisting of criss-crossed horizontal and vertical bands in multiple colours. Tartans originated in woven cloth, but are now used in many other materials. Tartan is particularly associated with Scotland. Scottish kilts almost always have tartan patterns.

Tattersal - Tat-ter-sol - A window pane type check mostly commonly found on shirts worn by farmers. Having a pattern of dark lines forming squares on a light background

Terry Towelling - Terrycloth, terry cloth, terry towelling, terry, or simply towelling is a fabric with loops that can absorb large amounts of water. Was popular in the 1970s and is very Riviera chic!

Tonic - A fabric that changes colour as it moves, very popular with suiting in the sixties and seventies.

Toscana Shearling - Toscana shearling is a variety of lambskin usually characterized by a suede finish on the exterior and long fur (about 1”) on the interior of the pelt.

Trilby - A soft felt hat with a deeply creased crown and snap brim. Named after the George du Maurier novel ‘Trilby’ (1894) because one was worn in the original London production.

Trouser Break - Break is where the trouser meets the shoe. The proper length for trousers is a full break or slight break in the crease. A full break means trousers are hemmed to reach the top of the heel of a standard dress shoe, naturally breaking over the front of the shoe.

Trouser Rise - How much the trousers will rise up your legs when you sit down, generally anything from 5-10cm.

Tszuj - A fashion word which means to tweak your outfit, be it rolling up the sleeves or turning up your jeans. Pronounce 'zhuj'.

Tuxedo - American term for a dinner jacket named after the Tuxedo Park Club in New York in 1886 after one of the members was seen wearing a short smoking jacket he’d had made for him by Henry Poole & Co in London and soon the informal dinner jacket caught on.

Tweed - The name comes from a mistake. According to the Duke of Windsor, a clerk in around 1830 wrote “tweed” instead of “tweels” which meant twills to the Scots. “Scottish tweeds” were ordered and the name stuck.

Twill - A weave which forms diagonal lines running to right or left across the fabric.