The most common and most likely answer to this crossword clue is the 5 plus 1 plus 7 letter word AFTER A FASHION
I've seen this crossword clue in The Guardian
A
F
T
E
R
A
F
A
S
H
I
O
N
More clues leading to the result AFTER A FASHION
- In search of a style, to a certain extent
- Sort of visiting boutiques?
- A paper given time has info processed somehow
- In search of stylish clothes, in a way
- Only sort of aspiring to the latest style?
- Chasing some latest style? Sort of
- Sort of affair one has when playing around close to nest
- Sort of seeking stylish clothes
- Following a trend, but not very well
- To some extent heat’s on affair — like this?
Buddy explains!
The straight part
We know that "Following a trend/not very well" is the straight/definition part of the clue. The straight part is often a synonym or definition, in this case following a trend/not very well = after a fashion.The cryptic/wordplay part
In cryptic crossword there's often an wordplay/cryptic part as well.This part involves a more complex hint, such as an anagram, homophone, hidden word, etc.
Sadly, We don't have an explanation for this specific crossword clue yet.