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Respected Contributor
Posts: 2,941
Registered: ‎03-30-2010

It seems some vendors and hosts are saying "span" instead of spandex.  Does it really take that much more time and energy to add the "dex" at the end of the word?  What's next?  Cot for cotton, ny for nylon, wo for wool, ray for rayon?  I just don't get it. 

Valued Contributor
Posts: 686
Registered: ‎03-10-2010
Neither do I. I suppose they think they sound cool, or trendy; but IMO they sound juvenile.
Esteemed Contributor
Posts: 7,980
Registered: ‎03-30-2014

Dare I mention the host who does this the most?  Nope, not in the rules anymore.

Trusted Contributor
Posts: 1,789
Registered: ‎06-26-2014

I used to buy Spandex by the bundle to make skating costumes. Never once did I ever just call it "span."

I hate that term.

Honored Contributor
Posts: 20,664
Registered: ‎03-13-2010

Is it possible they are not using the patented material, so can't call it by that name?   

♥Surface of the Sun♥
Esteemed Contributor
Posts: 5,899
Registered: ‎03-10-2010

@Desertdi wrote:

Is it possible they are not using the patented material, so can't call it by that name?   


 

Isn't Lycra the brand name for spandex?

 

I also notice that it's the QVC hosts that use the term "span", it's the regular P.M Style host that does that quite a bit. I'm not sure why "span" instead of "spandex" but how hard can it be to say "spandex" which is the proper term?

 

Honored Contributor
Posts: 14,324
Registered: ‎10-09-2012

I don't presume to know what abbreviations, truncated words or catchphrases are used all over the fashion industry.  But I would bet if you had 100 real fashion designers, stylists, models, fashion editors, and fashion sales representatives in a room, there would be words none of us would ever use to describe clothing.  Span, fabrication, scuba, etc.  Every industry has its own lexicon. As long as I know what they're talking about, it doesn't bother me a bit.

Honored Contributor
Posts: 10,746
Registered: ‎01-19-2015
For fast-talking salespeople, it saves time, lol. Maybe there's also an attempted "cool" factor, ie. a more "modern" vernacular for an old fabric that used to have a negative, "cheap" connotation.
~~Be careful when you follow the masses. Sometimes the 'm' is silent.~~
Valued Contributor
Posts: 733
Registered: ‎04-24-2010

You just gotta love the junk that people get upset about, huh???