Alessandra Rich Glossary: 26 Terms From Boucle to Volant

The vocabulary of Alessandra Rich is half fabric, half detail, and most of it is French and Italian: bouclé, crêpe de chine, Chantilly, capretto, volant, jabot. This glossary defines the 26 terms that appear on the house’s product pages and on Luxury Shoes ’s, in the order a customer meets them, each with the pieces it applies to. Definitions are the standard textile and tailoring ones; the house-specific notes come from its own product pages.

Key facts

• Three signature fabrics: silk crêpe de chine, wool tweed bouclé and Chantilly lace, named by the house itself.
• The romantic details: lace-trimmed collars, puff sleeves, bows, jabots, volants and peplums.
• The codes: FABX for ready-to-wear, FABS for shoes, then a fabric code and a colour code.
• The sizing: Italian, IT 36 to 46, converted to the UK ladder at Luxury Shoes .

Glossary

Bouclé

From the French for curled: a yarn spun with loops standing off the surface, and the springy, nubbed tweed woven from it. Alessandra Rich names wool tweed bouclé as one of its three signature fabrics and cuts it as jackets, skirts, dresses and coats, plain and with sequins.

Cady

A smooth, heavy, matte-faced fabric with a slight crosswise rib, here in silk and wool blends, used by the house for sharp evening dresses with volants, bows and splits.

Capretto

Italian for kid goatskin: a fine-grained leather, lighter and more supple than calf, used for the house’s Fall Winter 2026 slingback pumps and mules, upper and lining.

Chantilly lace

A fine lace on a net ground with the motifs outlined in a heavier corded thread, named for the French town. The house names it as a signature fabric and cuts it into its black evening gowns and dresses.

Contrast collar

A separate collar in a different colour, usually white and lace-trimmed, set into the polka-dot and floral silk dresses and the silk tops/blouse/" class="cvx-al cvx-al--category">blouses. It replaces a necklace in the house’s styling.

Crêpe de chine

A lightweight silk with a slightly pebbled, matte surface and a soft drape, made with tightly twisted yarns. The polka-dot and most printed Alessandra Rich dresses are silk crêpe de chine with a polyester lining.

Envers satin

A satin used with its matte reverse as the face, giving a soft, low-shine surface; the house cuts a dress and a bustier dress in it.

FABX and FABS

The prefixes of the house’s style numbers: FABX for ready-to-wear, FABS for shoes, followed by four digits, then a fabric code and a four-digit colour code (0900 is black). Luxury Handbags lists the code as the SKU.

Hotfix

Small crystals heat-set onto a fabric rather than sewn; used on the stretch lace tops and skirts and the lurex knits.

Jabot

A cascade of ruffles at the front of a blouse, from the eighteenth-century neck frill; on the tartan and cream silk short-sleeve blouses and as a silk jabot on a black mini.

Jacquard

A fabric with its pattern woven in rather than printed, on a jacquard loom; the house’s silk jacquard carries a star and small flowers and is tonal, so a navy star-jacquard reads as a navy dress.

Laminated

A jersey and a silk given a metallic film on the surface, used for the house’s gold, grey and metallic evening dresses.

Lurex

A metallic-coated yarn knitted and woven into the house’s lurex tweed and lurex knits for a low glitter.

Merino lace knit

A merino wool knit worked in an open, lace-like stitch, made by the house as a cardigan, a polo and skirts in bordeaux and navy for Fall Winter 2026.

Moiré

A ribbed silk pressed to give a watered, wavy sheen; the house cuts a black moiré mini with a lace-up.

Peplum

A short flared extension below the waist seam of a dress, widening the hip so the defined waist reads smaller; on the polka-dot and silk peplum midis.

Polka dot

A regular pattern of round dots on a plain ground. The house prints it small on silk crêpe de chine, with the ground colour dominant; its designer has named Princess Diana, who wore the print through the 1980s, as a muse.

Puff sleeve

A short sleeve gathered at the shoulder and the hem to stand away from the arm, one of the romantic details the house names as its own; on the taffeta blouse and the silk midis.

Ruche

Fabric gathered into a soft, irregular band, used on the velvet dresses with ruches and at the waist of the black and white polka-dot midi worn by the Princess of Wales in 2025.

Slingback

A pump with an open back closed by a strap around the heel; the house’s Fall Winter 2026 pointed-toe slingback closes with an adjustable strap and a gold-tone buckle.

Stiletto

A narrow, high heel, here 10.5 cm on all four Fall Winter 2026 shoe styles, written into the product code as 10.5 CM.

Taffeta

A crisp, smooth, slightly stiff silk with a soft rustle, used for the Fall Winter 2026 floral-print midi, blouse and skirt and for the taffeta evening dresses.

Tartan

A pattern of crossing coloured bands; the house prints it on silk crêpe de chine for a midi dress with a kilt skirt, a blouse with a jabot and a knee-length skirt, and has cut it in wool for a mini.

Volant

French for a flounce: a wide ruffle set into a neckline, collar and hem, on the house’s cady and lace evening dresses and the polka-dot dress with volant.

Italian sizing

The house’s size ladder, IT 36 to 46, where IT 38 is a UK 6 and a US 2. Luxury Handbags converts every piece to the UK ladder; the model on the house site is 175 to 176 cm in an IT 38.

Delivered Duty Unpaid

The shipping basis for most Luxury Handbags regions: import duties and taxes are payable by the customer on delivery, not at checkout. The house’s own site likewise states that duties paid on international orders are non-refundable.

How to use the glossary

The product page is the primary text: it names the fabric by component (main material, lining, trims), the origin and the code. Read the composition first, then the detail words in the name, then the size on the house’s Italian ladder. Materials and care says what each fabric needs once it is home; the size guide carries the conversion table and body chart; real vs fake explains the product code in full.

Frequently asked questions

What is boucle?

A looped yarn and the springy tweed woven from it, from the French for curled. Alessandra Rich names wool tweed boucle as one of its three signature fabrics.

What is crepe de chine?

A lightweight silk with a pebbled, matte surface and a soft drape, made with tightly twisted yarns. The house prints its polka dots on it.

What does FABX mean on an Alessandra Rich label?

The prefix of the house’s ready-to-wear style numbers (FABS for shoes), followed by four digits, a fabric code and a four-digit colour code. Luxury Handbags lists it as the SKU.

What is a volant?

French for a flounce: a wide ruffle set into a neckline, collar and hem, used on the house’s cady and lace evening dresses.

What is Chantilly lace?

A fine lace on a net ground with the motifs outlined in a corded thread, named for the French town, and the lace of the house’s black evening gowns.

What is capretto?

Italian for kid goatskin, the fine-grained leather of the house’s Fall Winter 2026 slingbacks and mules.

Read next

materials and care | real vs fake | the size guide | the tweed guide

All the Alessandra Rich guides at Luxury Shoes

Who is Alessandra Rich | How to style the polka-dot dress | Brands like Alessandra Rich | Fall Winter 2026 edit | Polka-dot dresses | The Princess of Wales dresses | Is Alessandra Rich a luxury brand | Price guide | Size guide | Sale guide | Where to buy | Real vs fake | Shoes | Alessandra Rich vs Zimmermann | Alessandra Rich vs Rasario | Wedding guest dresses | Dresses | Midi dresses | Mini dresses | Evening gowns | Skirts | Tops and blouses | Jackets and coats | Knitwear | Black dresses | White and ivory | Blue dresses | Tweed and boucle | Lace dresses | Sequins and crystal | Bows and collars | Floral and printed silk | History and timeline | Materials and care. Shop the full Alessandra Rich collection at Luxury Shoes .

Sources and method

Checked on 18 September 2026. Facts about the house come from the sources below; prices, counts and stock come from the live Luxury Handbags catalogue on that date and change with the season.

• Alessandra Rich, About the brand
• alessandrarich.com, Fall Winter 2026 collection pages (product details, size guide, model measurements)
• Luxury Handbags product data for the 306 Alessandra Rich pieces on sale on 18 September 2026 (prices in USD, compositions, sizes, seasons)

Gemma Deeks is Fashion Editor at Luxury Shoes . Prices, stock and counts on this page were checked against coveti.com and alessandrarich.com on 18 September 2026.