Do you like high-visibility fashion? 6 Minute English

Neil: Hello. Welcome to 6 Minute English,

I'm Neil.

Rob: And I'm Rob.

Neil: Rob, it's good to see you keeping up

with fashion by wearing

the high-vis jacket

- although I have to say it is a bit dazzling.

Rob: Neil, I'm no fashion victim - this high-vis

or high-visibility jacket is for safety. I

wear it when I'm cycling around London

and I've just forgotten to take it off.

Neil: And a fashion victim, by the way, is

someone who always wears

what's thought to

be fashionable, even if it doesn't actually

look good on them. But wearing

high-vis clothing

has become the latest fashion statement

- that's something you wear to attract

attention and people who

know something about fashion.

Rob: Well, I can assure you, I don't wear

my bright jacket to look cool but in today's

programme we'll be discussing why some

people do. But first Neil, have you got

a question for us to think about?

Neil: OK, we know that fashions come

and go but in which decade were leg

warmers worn as a popular

fashion accessory? Was it... a) the 1970s,

b) the 1980s or c) the 1990s?

Rob: I do remember these so I'll say

b) the 1980s.

Neil: Well, we'll reveal the answer at the

end of the programme. Now let's talk more

about the oddest item of clothing to hit

the catwalk this year - the

humble hi-vis jacket.

Rob: Yes, they were designed to be worn for

safety by people like cyclists and

pedestrians and by workers

who need to be seen if, for example,

they're working in the road or directing

traffic. So it's strange to think that now

people choose to wear them to be on-trend

- that's following the latest fashion.

Neil: Hannah Marriott is the Fashion Editor

of the Guardian newspaper. She told the

BBC Radio 4 programme You and Yours,

why she thought people were turning to

bright, luminous clothing.

What was the reason?

Hannah Marriott: There's also just a trend

at the moment for people wearing very

bright things, very eye-catching things, it

feels that with social media, you know,

everyone's scrolling down their Instagram

screens at such speed and anything that

sort of catches the eye, that seems yeah,

like a bit of a talking point, something

that's going to get a bit of attention -

those kind of trends are getting a bit more

traction at the moment - than the sort of

understated cashmere jumper kind of fashion.

Rob: So her reason is social media. In our

fast-paced lives, we're quickly scrolling

through our social media feeds and

people want to stand out, attract our

attention and be noticed.

Neil: And these attention-seekers need to

wear some eye-catching - something that will

catch your eye and be noticed. High-vis

clothing certainly does that!

Rob: Hannah mentioned that wearing

something different creates a talking

point - something that you or I may

discuss at work or on social media - even

if it is to say "that guys looks ridiculous"!

And she also mentions that people are

becoming interested in and accepting

these kinds of trends - the word

she used was traction.

Neil: Traction here means this fashion

trend is starting to stick. Of course

fashion comes at a price. While an

ordinary high-vis vest used for workwear

is normally affordable, when they're sold

as a fashion item they can go for much

higher prices, particularly if they have a

designer label showing on the front.

Rob: This raises an important question.

We know that many people wearing high-vis

jackets are doing important jobs, so does

this fashion devalue what they're doing?

Neil: Yes, it's something Hannah Marriott

talked about. Let's hear from her again.

What word does she use to describe

a difficult issue?

Hannah Marriott: Every time fashion

borrows from workwear, there're always

some sort of thorny issues around it -

particularly when you're charging £2000

for something that is actually very similar

to, you know, a uniform that somebody

might be wearing who doesn't actually

make that much money, you know, there's

obviously some thorny class issues there.

Neil: So she used the word thorny to

describe the issue of things worn at work

becoming expensive fashion items.

Thorny issues are subjects that are

difficult deal with. Here she

particularly mentioned the issue of class

- so different groups of people in society

in different economic positions - some

can afford clothing for fashion, others can

only afford clothing for work.

Rob: And the other issue is that if

everyone starts wearing high-vis clothing,

then the people who need to stand out for

their own safety may not stand out as easily.

Neil: And we wouldn't want to miss you

when you're out cycling on your bike, Rob.

But would we miss you if you were

wearing a pair of leg warmers? Earlier I

asked in which decade were leg warmers

worn as a popular fashion accessory.

Was it... a) the 1970s, b) the

1980s or c) the 1990s?

Rob: Yes, and I said b) the 1980s.

It's got to be right!

Neil: Well, you know your fashion, Rob - it

was indeed the 1980s. Leg warmers were

originally worn by dancers to keep

their muscles from cramping after

stretching, but in the early 1980s

they became fashionable

for teenage girls to wear.

Rob: OK, let's move on and recap on some

of the vocabulary we've mentioned today.

Starting with fashion victim - that's

someone who always wears what's

thought to be fashionable, even

if it doesn't actually look good on them. Like

that pair of red jeans you used to wear, Neil.

Neil: They, Rob, were on-trend - that

means 'in keeping up with the latest

fashion'. Of course wearing something

red is very eye-catching which means

attracting attention and being noticed.

Rob: Next we mentioned traction.

If something gains traction it

becomes accepted and popular.

And then we had understated. In fashion,

this describes something that does not

attract attention and

is not that impressive.

Neil: And then we discussed the word

thorny. A tree or bush with thorns is

difficult to touch and handle and similarly

a thorny issue is a subject that is difficult

to deal with and discuss.

Rob: Well, we've covered some thorny and

less thorny issues today but we know that

fashions change and maybe high-vis

fashion won't be here forever.

Neil: That's it for now but please join us

next time for 6 Minute English.

See you soon. Goodbye.

Rob: Bye bye!