Fabric seen on recent model (8)
I believe the answer is:
cretonne
'fabric' is the definition.
(I know that cretonne is a type of fabric)
'on recent model' is the wordplay.
'model' indicates an anagram.
'on'+'recent'='onrecent'
'onrecent' is an anagram of 'CRETONNE'.
'seen' is the link.
(Other definitions for cretonne that I've seen before include "Heavy fabric used for furniture covers and curtains" , "Heavy fabric used for slipcovers and draperies" , "Heavy (floral) cotton fabric" , "Type of cotton fabric" , "heavy material" .)