Clothes Horse

[jack]

If you hear someone described as a "clothes horse", does that mean "well dressed"? Or "expensively dressed"? Or "expensively but badly dressed"? Or "badly dressed"?

It's the sort of usage I normally pick up from reading books, but I've often found the usage ambiguous, and I can see the metaphor both ways round, so it's not obvious to me, even though I feel it should be self-evident!

Comments

[evilsusan]

I always thought it meant someone very fashionable, and possibly with too many such clothes.

[fluffymormegil]

That's about what I thought, too.

[azurelunatic]

I'd thought deeply invested in clothes and fashion as a hobby, but neutral as to their actual skill.