And thanks to Eileen for the fashion link (which I just happened to click on as my boss sidled past!).

Scarpia: I’m sure that the difference between the yuppie and Sloane tribes were important at the time, but you’re probably right to consign them both to the same compartment of the dustbin of history by now.

On the point in 14d, I was using “fringe/line” in the sense of “the ground is fringed by a row of trees”. The OED would support the use of line in that context.

Gaufrid – the only other French connection was bias, from biais (angle).

Thanks to Gaufrid and Hamilton.

I hadn’t understood FEY/FAIT in 21a, so thanks for the learning experience, and having got A-LIST I struggled with inserted CHEM in 26a until I saw your explanations, in which I concur with Eileen in using hem and trim as verbs and synonyms.

Still unsure of 14d’s intended wordplay and hadn’t really checked it thoroughly. I just thought LINE = fringe, but maybe it’s about A-LINE dresses.

28a TRESSES from French ‘tresse’ = a braid of hair (Chambers), a slight French link.
24d BALSA tree named from Spanish word meaning raft or light fishing boat (Chambers).

Favourite clues: 17a (loved the high-finance surface reading, esp in context of FT), 19d, 16d, 12a, 6d (Okay-Yah!).

Plenty to make me smile, and a nice mixture of taxing and accessible clues.

23ac: I, too, remember those ‘Skeggie’ posters on railway platforms. To me, as a child, ‘bracing’ meant ‘cold’, because that’s how it was when we went! Collins gives ‘freshen’ for ‘brace’ and ‘refreshing’ for bracing’ – both OK by me as anagram indicators.

26ac: when dressmaking, to trim ['to make tidy or neat' - Chambers] the raw edge of the bottom of a skirt, I would hem it.

Hi Smiffy

A Line dresses are so called from the shape:

http://fashion.about.com/cs/glossary/g/bldefaline.htm

I didn’t really think about this when solving: Chambers has fringe = border, so I suppose if you think of crossing the border / line but I don’t particularly like it. Perhaps it’s a leap too far.

[I didn't even notice the French 'theme'! ]

In 25d, if you remove ‘arts’ in the same order you are left with BISA which doen’t fit the definition or the grid. The altenative way of looking at this clue is that ‘influence’ is doing double duty as both the definition and an anagram indicator for *(BARISTAS-ARTS) and then either of the As and the Ss could be removed.

I share your sentiments almost entirely. But here are few sundry braindroppings:

23A I thought that ‘bracing’ was ok as an angrind – as in the infamous Skegness poster of yesteryear. Chambers seems to concur (=”stimulating”). Still a but of a clunky clue though.

26A ‘Trim’/hem just about pass muster as a verb I think. But then I’m certainly no fashionista (see below).

6D I take issue with “Yah” as Yuppie-speak. I have it pegged as a kind of bray that’s exclusiveto Sloane Rangers.

14D I wondered whether A LINE was a reference to fringes on A-Line dresses. However, Chambers suggests not, so my dress-sense remains minuscule.

25D Somewhat pedantic, but you have the wrong “S” removed. It should be ARTS in the same order.