Fashion week (or month, should I say) is right around the corner. Prepare your thumbs for lots of scrolling through somewhat blurry but oh-so-chic runway shots and perfectly captured street style snippets. This would also be a great time to buff up on your fashion literacy. Fashion truly has it's own language, and it can be quite daunting and confusing at times. From those hard to pronounce french terms to slang that changes just as frequently as the collections themselves, it's hard to know it all.

When I first began attending fashion events I was terrified of mispronouncing a word or being lost in the jargon. There have been many times when I've had to Youtube a designer's name to make sure I'm pronouncing it correctly or quickly Urban Dictionary a term. No shame! I've found that learning this new language is all in all quite fun. Here are a few terms to test your knowledge.

Bespoke - Bespoke is just a fancy way of saying "custom-made". The term usually refers to custom mens suits, but all you have to know is that the customer gets to personalize everything down to the stitching and hardware.

Capsule Collection - You'll hear this phrase quite often. Brands like Tommy Hilfiger and Calvin Klein have come out with capsule collections that are in theory, wardrobe essentials. The pieces are often quite timeless and can easily be mixed and matched with one another.

Frow - This one's simple. Fashion insider lingo for "front row". Example: "Did you see Anna Wintour sitting next to Beyonce in the frow last night?"

Haute Couture - Most of us know that haute couture translates to "really, really fancy and out of our price range", which is pretty much correct. But what does it actually mean? Haute couture means "high sewing". Haute couture shows happen mostly in Paris and for a collection to be considered haute couture it must meet the standards of the Chambre Syndicale, a Parisian regulating commission. Requirements include that the ateliers have a full time staff of 15+ people, design custom-made garments for clients, and present collections twice a year showing at least 35 looks ranging from day to night.

Lamé - Lamé is a particularly shiny fabric made of woven metallic threads. Most commonly found in silver and gold, you will see this fabric used in lots of dresses and skirts.

Minaudière - You know those darling little evening clutches which look like little acrylic boxes? Usually adorned with jewels or the like... well, that's a minaudière! The perfect accessory for your next soiree.

For more fashion terms, download the Fashion Dictionary app from this blog post.

Photos by Nick Duplesis; Styling by Alex Evjen, AVE Styles