Fashion’s historic season, which has been amply covered, came to an end last week after several major brands had new designers show debut lines that set the tone for the labels’ next chapters.
Hundreds of outfits were shown on the spring 2026 runways. Beyond the reviews, which clothes captured our hearts or sparked that need-to-own desire? Some Styles staff members selected 25 standout looks that appealed to their tastes, and might resonate with yours — or not! That’s the beauty of fashion.
Vanessa Friedman, fashion director and chief fashion critic
Fashion should solve problems, and what better solution to the stuffiness of black tie than a perfectly tailored shirt left untucked over a giant ball skirt? I’ll be borrowing that idea.
The ultimate tribute dress, from one designer to another. One side of this Yohji frock had the invitation to Giorgio Armani’s 50th anniversary celebration (which was sent before his death), and the other, a photo of a classic Armani look.
Upcycling materials not normally used in fashion to create fashion isn’t a new idea, but nobody did it more gracefully this season than Junya Watanabe. Case in point: This lace dress with a voluminously ruffled neckline made from … scrunched-up straw hats.
When all you need is the perfect pantsuit.
Reinterpreting Gianni Versace’s famous Marilyn print by giving anonymous faces the Warhol treatment and splashing them on silk separates was the update Versace needed: democratic, pointed and very modern.
Jacob Gallagher, men’s fashion critic
The swish of the pants, the hourglass pinch of the jacket, the Dodger blue hue. Your meek navy suit could never!
I love when an outfit is so classic, so distilled and so pure that it starts to feel futuristic.
Dick Tracy meets the “paninaro.” In gray times, some much needed color. The look of the season if you ask me.
There’s something about these pants — razor straight with a whisper of a flare — that I haven’t been able to shake. Add the warped, not-quite-a-cable-knit sweater and the celebrity-trying-to-duck-paparazzi hat and you get a look that’s just out-and-out cool.
The swoop, the slope, the shimmer. I only wish I had been at the show to hear that belt clang as the model walked past.
Stella Bugbee, Styles editor
An evening look elegant enough for the Oscars that doesn’t require shapewear? And it has pockets? Please, designers, give us more of this!
The contrasts were what hooked me here. A stiff trench in puke-brown, thrown over a flowy, primary-color dress, paired with shiny Yves Klein blue leather loafers. It’s all wrong, but somehow so right.
Other looks in the Celine collection were better, but I saw myself in the slightly chaotic mash-up of red boots, structured overcoat and dress hem fluttering around the ankles. (I’d keep the bag, but skip the earrings.)
The motion blur on this dress is mesmerizing. Maybe I should undergo fashion therapy to find out why I am so drawn to looks with a rogue bit of skirt spilling from underneath something more contained.
It’s girlish, without being cloying. Slinky, but not clingy. It’s about to come undone, but it’s totally in control.
If the phrase “I hate to see you go, but I love to watch you leave,” were a dress, for me it would be this gown.
Anita Leclerc, fashion editor
What’s cool about the Dior cotton shirts with the high-neck stock collars is that they are a way into the collection. So smart. I settled on the dark green checks.
I can’t say why I have an urge to dress as if I’ve come to paint your bedroom, but the plainness and precision of Prada’s short-sleeve military shirts and trousers makes me want to adopt a uniform. I’m thinking gray, or maybe army green.
Julian Klausner’s blobby geometric prints for Dries Van Noten were defiantly happy-making. They make me think of the 1960s.
Much has been written about bringing sexy back to the runway. This is sexy for the minimalist.
Yola Mzizi, reporting fellow
The beauty was in the details. Subtle bunching enhanced the dress’s movement, two-toned sleeves played well with the cap-toe heels and orange earrings offered a flash of visual interest.
This feather-trimmed gown made me look twice. It’s for someone who doesn’t only dress up for big moments, and it telegraphs an innate confidence, the kind that’s magnetic.
The coat radiated comfort. The blue fringe cascading down the leg was playful. But the red bag paired with those shoes sealed the deal for me.
A good pencil skirt is powerful and timeless. This one, styled with the marvelous gold top, channels Versace’s signature maximalism. The pink heels were a treat.
This look reminded me of a style TV show that once declared that wearing pink and red is a cardinal sin. I’m so glad Rachel Scott did not heed that advice.
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