When fashion wants to distance itself from a memory it would rather forget, it just thinks of a new term, and this time round, it's “ombre”. Nope, I had no idea what it meant, either. But fashion students across the country are being urged never to utter the words “dip” and “dye” consecutively in a sentence e'er again. Instead, lecturers and analysts are backing this new name for an identical trend; a term with a French ring to it (et voilà, your injection of class) and a moodiness dissociated with a bucket of dye, an elastic band and a white T-shirt crying out for a personality.

Ombre, French for shadow, is clearly a darker way of depicting what used to be one of the Eighties' most seminal Acid House styles. The mere utterance of the words Eighties, Acid and House in the same breath is cause for a huge alarm bell to ring (now do you see the need for rebranding?). However, dip dye - sorry London College of Fashion, I mean ombre - is now more subtle, less D.I.Y., and wholeheartedly unkaleidoscopic.

And then, of course, there's Prada. If ever there was a woman who could pull a trend from the doldrums, hurl it back into the retail stratosphere, convince us that beige bleeding into grass green was outré, and therefore to die for (or dye for) - then it's dear old Miuccia. And that was last year. Cue the rabid pack hot on her heels, including Alexander McQueen, Diane von Furstenberg and Matthew Williamson.

Blurring the colour parameters, dipping plum into taupe, white into citrus yellow, and watching the intermediate shades come out in the wash (literally), the dip-dye bar has been effectively raised. There's nothing like imitation for bolstering the credibility of a trend.

The fashion for the term ombre can also be linked to the new set of colours, i.e, muted ones. Prada's ombre accessories are a useful linchpin for developing the look - and Zara, plus other high street stores, have taken the hint. The bags have black as their principal shade, with a lighter one (white, taupe, a molten gold) bleeding through into the base. Prada's shoes, meanwhile, are one colour at the heel and another, darker shade at the toe; the most sumptuous are those that take their inspiration from raspberry ripple ice-cream. As it is a tricky trend to pull off, accessories are often the easiest way of, excuse the pun, dipping into it.

The strongest indication yet of dip dye's transmogrification from Woodstock to Hollywood is its appearance on the red carpet. Claire Danes and Thandie Newton have recently opted for black dresses with a difference. The flash of colour dripping through the fibres at the hem indicates an arty, intellectual subplot. By ensuring that accessories are kept minimal - too many dips in acidic paint and you'll be mistaken for a Jackson Pollock print - the dress becomes the main focus.

As long as the colours are suitable for your skin tone (plum shades work with medium to fair skin; darker skins pull off acidics best) ombre, ironically, could be the trend to bring you out of the shade.

Times recommends

• Are eldest children really a cut above?
• Peaches Geldof: censored
• Top 10 style-setting films of all time