mob wives

Noun

mob wife (plural mob wives)

1. (neologism) A person exemplifying a fashion aesthetic characterized by gaudy and ostentatious clothing, such as fur coats, designer bags, platform heels, and animal print.
   • As Trivieri, who is of Italian descent, points out in her video, the mob wife aesthetic is a welcome pendulum swing away from what she calls the "clean girl aesthetic"—a minimal, Sofia Richie–esque beauty look and stealth wealth style. It also follows the rise in popularity of girlish aesthetics in...2024 January 23, “What Does the "Mob Wife Aesthetic" Actually Mean?”, in Harper's Bazaar, New York, N.Y.: Hearst Magazine Media, Inc., →ISSN, →OCLC, archived from the original on 28 Feb 2024
2. Used other than figuratively or idiomatically: see mob, wife (i.e., the wife of a Mafia boss).
   • Apart from a few rare exceptions, the mafiosa exists only in relation to her man. Without him, she's like an inanimate being—only half a person. That's why mob wives appear so unkempt and disheveled when accompanying their men to court—it's a cultivated look meant to underscore their fidelity.2015 February 20, Roberto Saviano, “The Complex Role of Women in the Italian Mob”, in VICE, archived from the original on 24 Feb 2024