Not only does costume design reveal a character’s personality but it can also evolve, reflecting their development throughout the story. Just as people are shaped by the experiences they go through, fictional characters are transformed by the events they endure. Their costumes often evolve alongside them, reflecting those changes (even if it’s in the most subtle ways).

With Spider-Man’s return this summer and Spider-Man: Brand New Day marking nine years since Tom Holland first stepped into the role, we’ve watched Peter Parker grow from a high school freshman into a young adult going through a 20s crisis — and with him, the costume design has evolved from the clothes of a nerdy high school student to those of a superhero in his twenties.

As a Spider-man fan, I’ve grown up with these movies. Just like Peter Parker, I’ve gone from being fifteen years old and watching Spider-Man: Homecoming during my school break to getting dressed up for the latest Marvel release this summer. Watching this era unfold made me think about costume design and how growing up is portrayed in cinema.

Throughout Tom Holland’s Spider-Man era, the costume designers changed from film to film. Louise Frogley designed Spider-Man: Homecoming, Anna B. Sheppard was responsible for Spider-Man: Far From Home, and Sanja Milkovic Hays designed both Spider-Man: No Way Home and Spider-Man: Brand New Day. Even though we’ve seen Peter Parker develop as a person, the three costume designers behind the films focused primarily on his superhero suits during their interviews. While working on Spider-Man: Homecoming, Louise Frogley’s goal was to “make it fresh but very classic because it’s the beginning of Spider-Man as a young man.” She later explained that she did not return for the sequel, believing Peter Parker’s next chapter would portray him more as a young man than as a teenager. The suits made by Frogley included the character’s homemade one, his first official Spider-Man suit and the one made by Tony Stark that would be seen later in Avengers: Infinity War.

For Spider-Man: Far From Home, Anna B. Sheppard mentioned, in an interview with EW, that her biggest challenge was putting together a costume that looked high-tech and yet was comfortable for the actor. The third film’s black-and-gold suit, designed by Sanja Milkovic Hays, features elements from Peter Parker’s previous suits but was designed to resemble thousands of nanobots wrapping around the character’s body. By Spider-Man: Brand New Day, however, the suit is gone. Peter Parker is once again the friendly neighborhood Spider-Man, and his costumes — although they still retain many high-tech elements — are much simpler than those designed by Tony Stark.

Besides the evolution of Spider-Man’s suits throughout the films, what stood out to me the most was Peter Parker’s wardrobe development — and also Ned’s and MJ’s. Costume design often expresses personality, social class or the social group a character belongs to by symbols. For instance, a teenage girl wearing high fashion and preppy clothes while a teenage boy is wearing a band t-shirt and jeans — we can easily, even stereotypically, infer which group they belong to. In the first two Tom Holland Spider-Man films, the main teenage characters are often portrayed wearing fun graphic T-shirts featuring math and science symbols. In the last two films, however, their costumes become noticeably more mature, with Parker wearing a full suit and tie to sway an MIT Assistant Vice Chancellor in Spider-Man: No Way Home and the characters frequently wearing college sweatshirts throughout the story (emphasizing the transition into a new stage of their lives). Even though the characters haven’t completely lost their personalities or changed radically, their life phase has changed, and so have their clothes.

To me, the biggest shift happened in MJ’s costume design. Zendaya’s character went from being the outsider who’s very sarcastic, seen as unconventional and an outspoken activist to a college student who, even though she still has a strong personality, moved beyond her rebellious teenage years. On the first three movies, MJ is frequently wearing t-shirts with famous historical and literary women, including Sylvia Plath and Joan of Arc. Spider-Man: Brand New Day brought a new look to the character, who is this time portrayed wearing darker, more neutral tones and plain tops. While MJ replaces her graphic T-shirts with button-up shirts, her activist spirit is still present, particularly in the scene where she states that she refuses to work for a “soulless corporation”. Her wardrobe no longer relies on obvious graphic statements to communicate her beliefs. Instead, her personality is expressed through her actions, suggesting that growing up does not necessarily mean letting go of one’s values.

As for Peter’s best friend, Ned Leeds, even though the graphic t-shirts, hoodies and school uniforms are also gone, his updated wardrobe perfectly captures his outgoing personality through stylish and bold looks, featuring floral shirts, leather jackets and plaid shirts. By the fourth movie, he had established himself as a true style icon.

The transition from teenage years to adulthood is confusing. It can be subtle or drastic, it can make you want to throw away all your clothes (and you’ll probably regret doing it later) to embrace a new version of yourself. Coming of age movies are capable of communicating this messy period of life through costume design and character development — and that’s exactly what Spider-Man: Brand New Day beautifully captures while still being a superhero action movie.

Haute Couture season took place this week and it opened with Jonathan Anderson’s second Haute Couture collection for Dior. So far, the Irish designer has transformed the runway into a blooming garden and written a love letter to Paris through fashion. This time, Anderson explores sculpture as a celebration of the human body.

Dior’s Fall/Winter 2026-2027 Haute Couture collection was inspired by the artist Lynda Benglis. Known for redefining sculpture in the 1960s, Benglis is an American artist and sculptor who challenges conventions through her use of exotic materials such as beeswax, latex, metal and polyurethane. Through knots and abstract shapes, the artist defies form while dealing with feminist politics and self-image.

Lynda has a long term relationship with nature, with it being the main inspiration behind many of her artworks and a big part of her life. As Anderson is a lover of flowers himself, the intersection between the designer and Benglis resulted in a collection presented in a wooden pavilion built in the gardens of the Rodin Museum, where artificial trees evoked the atmosphere of a rainforest. The scenography was inspired by the places where the artist lived and worked — Gujarat, India, and Santa Fe, New Mexico — creating a setting that feels like an immersion into Benglis’s artistic universe. Lynda’s background was also seen in the clothing, as cactus and eucalyptus flowers from Santa Fe became shoes and bags while Indian chintz was transformed into Lady Dior and Petit Dîner bags.

Dior’s Haute Couture was all about defying form and, according to Anderson, “the collection explores materiality and form from a new angle”. The designer transformed the models bodies into sculptures, drawing inspiration from Benglis works — a silver dress draped into a bow that referenced “Goliath”, knots and pleats seen in the artist’s series “Eridanus” and “Pleated”, while silk dresses with a fan-like piece referred to Benglis’s “Peacock” series.

Just like in Lynda’s artworks, the collection also used eccentric materials to create clothing and accessories — such as chicken wire incorporated into hats and skirts.

Following the Haute Couture tradition, the collection’s final look was the bridal gown. With fern appliqué flowers, the dress has an almost fairytale-like appearance, crafted in white organza and with a lace train. As we all know, Anderson was the one responsible for Taylor Swift’s wedding dress, and although the designer didn’t reveal any details about the pop queen’s wedding gown, the bridal look that closed the Haute Couture season left plenty of room for the imagination, allowing us to picture Swift marrying as a fairytale princess.

Between love and anxiety, being so deeply involved with someone and yet fearing for every unstable feeling it brings, you seem pretty sad for a girl so in love was born. With 13 original tracks, including a feature with the one and only Robert Smith, Olivia Rodrigo’s third album brings highs and lows of love in your twenties — from “drop dead” and the exciting feeling of going on a first date with the guy of your dreams to “cigarette smoke” being the last goodbye in a relationship. In the midst of this hurricane of emotions, the 23-year-old singer built an entire visual era to capture the love story at the heart of the album.

After two albums exploring heartbreak, jealousy and the confusing experience of teenage years through shades of purple, our favorite pop-punk princess was experiencing love — and what better way to express that feeling than through pink? you seem pretty sad for a girl so in love embraces a Rococo-inspired romantic aesthetic (the cover itself being a reference to the Rococo painting The Swing by Jean-Honoré Fragonard) with baby pink being the predominant color mixed with touches of baby blue and green seen in the background. The album seems as though it belongs in a Sofia Coppola film, with the photoshoot featuring direct references to The Virgin Suicides (1999), while the music video for “drop dead” could easily exist within the world of Marie Antoinette (2006).

While Rodrigo’s new album centers around romance, love, and a dreamy romantic aura, it also has a spark of melancholy that often comes with a relationship. The album is divided into two sides, girl so in love and you seem pretty sad. The singer herself said in an interview with Dazed “…all of the best love songs or poems have an element of sadness or longing or fear in them”. Written as a real-time love story, the songs explore both joy and doom, and so does their aesthetic — shifting from hyper-feminine romantic imagery to darker, more unsettling undertones.

you seem pretty sad for a girl so stylish

In contrast to her previous eras, Olivia Rodrigo’s style for her third album embraces a softer, more romantic direction, defined by pastel colors, bows, florals, lace details and vintage-inspired silhouettes. In a recent interview with British Vogue, the pop star revealed that her Pinterest “is all babydoll dresses and ’70s necklines. I want it all to feel fun and laid-back.” The interview also noted that Rodrigo’s stylists sought to modernize these vintage references, creating a wardrobe that feels “effortless, feminine, with a slightly undone feel.”

The softer wardrobe reflects you seem pretty sad for a girl so in love romantic narrative while its slightly undone styling echoes the tension between love and melancholy that runs throughout the record — and brings out the punk-rock side of the 23-year-old girl. Through the combination of pastel colors, delicate details and Doc Martens boots, it becomes clear that despite embracing a more romantic aesthetic, Rodrigo remains connected to her roots.

The 1970s are definitely a key influence on the Filipino American singer’s new aesthetic. Through vintage-inspired looks, Rodrigo has referenced style icons of the decade such as Jane Birkin and Peggy Moffitt. Mini dresses, thigh-high socks, 1970s collars and Mary Janes have become recurring elements of her wardrobe, establishing the decade as one of the defining influences of this era.

In her recent surprise performance during Primavera Sound in Barcelona, Olivia showed her commitment to the 1970s aesthetic — this time putting softness in the back seat and embracing a darker, punkier energy. Wearing hot pants, fishnet stockings, knee-high Doc Martens and a bateau neck Breton striped top, she performed her new song “what’s wrong with me” alongside The Cure icon Robert Smith. The look was finished with a pink floral corsage brooch (perhaps a subtle nod to the whole you seem pretty sad for a girl so in love era).

Leaning more toward the girl so in love side of the album, Olivia Rodrigo is also defining this era through the babydoll dresses. The silhouette was born in the United States during World War II and it has remained a recurring presence in fashion ever since — worn by fashion icons such as Jane Birkin, Brigitte Bardot and Twiggy during the 1960s and Courtney Love and Kim Gordon in the 1990s. The Spring/Summer 2026 season also marked the return of babydoll dresses with Loewe, Chloé, Prada and Alberta Ferretti making their own versions of the silhouette. Besides the controversy surrounding it, the dresses evoke a youthful femininity that feels both nostalgic and contemporary, translating the dreamy spirit of the record into fashion.

The highly anticipated OR3 is finally out, and its aesthetic has already won our heart — with many concert looks, street style and photoshoots yet to come. In the meantime, we wait, crying (or dancing) while listening to you seem pretty sad for a girl so in love.

From ballet, tennis and skateboarding to basketball, soccer and Formula 1, the world of sports has flirted with the fashion industry for a long time — at this point, they are probably in a very stable relationship. With Dior bringing archery to the runway, Miu Miu Ballerina Shoes becoming a worldwide phenomenon, Simone Rocha collaborating with Adidas, athletes being the ambassadors for luxury brands, the connection between the two industries has never felt more intertwined. But where did it all begin — and how will this romance evolve in the next few months?

Going back to the late 19th century, the practice of sports became increasingly common — especially after the revival of the Olympic Games in 1896, which marked the first international Olympic Games of the modern era. As sports grew in popularity, so did the need for more comfortable clothing, giving rise to a new category of fashion (as we all know now as sportswear).

In the 1920s, it was Gabrielle “Coco” Chanel who introduced the comfort, simplicity and practically to ready-to-wear fashion, inspired by sailors in Deauville. Chanel was also inspired by the equestrianism — riding boots, breeches and jackets with basque being the foundation for many of her designs. In many ways, this laid the groundwork for what we now recognise as modern athleisure as fashion began shifting away from corsets and rigid silhouettes, embracing comfort, movement and practicality like never before.

By 1970, the lines between athletic performance clothing and streetwear were blurred — the decade being officially the beginning of the athleisure. At this point, brands like Adidas and Nike were growing concerned about making more stylish clothing while designers — like Calvin Klein, Tommy Hilfiger and Ralph Lauren — were increasingly drawn to the comfort and practicality of sportswear (the best of both worlds merging into one).

In the 1980s athleisure was at its peak — with the growing popularity of aerobics and fitness culture making leg warmers, leotards, leggings, sports accessories, and polyester fabrics common elements of everyday streetwear. The decade was also the golden age of hip-hop and basketball. In this context, Nike’s Air Jordan, introduced in 1984, revolutionized the sneaker industry and would eventually become both a streetwear symbol and a highly coveted fashion item.

From Michael Jordan becoming the face of one of Nike’s most iconic creations to Princess Diana’s casual outfits looking like she had just stepped out of the gym, the end of the 20th century revealed the intrinsic relationship between the worlds of sports and fashion (and tbh, it was just the beginning)

Nowadays, sports inspired pieces are among the main attractions of fashion weeks while sports events have become global runways. Athletes are style icons and the sports industry has become an increasingly important source of partnerships and sponsorships for fashion brands. The 2024 Paris Olympics perfectly illustrated the union of these two worlds, with national uniforms designed by luxury and designer brands, athlete collaborations, and an Opening Ceremony that even featured a fashion show on the Seine.

The Summer of Football

With the World Cup coming up in June 2026, the summer fashion trends will be all about jersey shirts, sneakers and wearing your country’s flag like wearing logomania, while designers are embracing the sports season like never before.

Before the games begin, we are all here for the collabs. Making the jerseys trend official, Miaou is collaborating with Adidas for a World Cup Capsule Collection. Partnering for the second time, the collection brings the football aesthetic with an early 2000s approach — Megaride silhouette sneakers in two different colorways, baby blue with silver accents and silver with orange accents, a baby blue corset, a graphic jersey and nylon track pants inspired by the classic football tracksuit. The campaign stars football player Riccardo Calafiori and model Alyson Dubey (and personally, it’s a work of art)

Still in the nostalgia mood, Adidas and Nike are also bringing a vintage aesthetic to this World Cup — Nike’s most recent campaign brings together a series of Polaroids featuring football superstars, including Cristiano Ronaldo, Ronaldinho, Vini Jr., as well as non-football athletes such as Serena Williams and LeBron James and pop culture figures like Lisa of Blackpink, Kim Kardashian, Central Cee and Travis Scott. Nike also announced a partnership with Palace and England, releasing a World Cup campaign film starring Wayne Rooney and Jill Scott and promising a full collection drop date soon.

Earlier this May, Adidas led the World Cup campaigns releasing its own campaign film, Backyard Legends. Starring Timothée Chalamet, Lionel Messi, Bad Bunny, Lamine Yamal, Jude Bellingham and Trinity Rodman, it portrays the collision of streetwear fashion and sports and — besides its more cinematic approach than Nike’s campaign — it also evokes a sense of nostalgia through its soundtrack and 90s-inspired visuals. The sportswear brand has also launched its Bringback collection of jerseys with designs from the 80s, 90s and 2000s. You can watch the campaign here.

High fashion hasn’t escaped the football fever either, partnering with teams and releasing collections for this season — Burberry, for instance, is diving deep into the World Cup with its new Autumn 2026 collection “A Good Sport”. The collection brings trench coats and Harrington jackets in tropical gabardine and silk, polo shirts and accessories such as cashmere scarves, the curved Primrose bag and the Knight Runner sneaker — all presented with the iconic House Check. Much like Adidas and Nike, Burberry taps into nostalgia, blending it with the energy and competitiveness of football while casting a mix of Hollywood personalities and athletes — including names like Stephen Graham, Jason Sudeikis, Romeo Beckham, Rosie Huntington-Whiteley, Declan Rice, Eberechi Eze, Leah Williamson, Naomi Girma and Son Heung-min.

Meanwhile, other luxury brands are partnering with national football teams — Jacquemus for the French national team and Loewe for Spain — officially transforming football fields into fashion week runways. As one of the biggest events in the sports world gets underway, more collabs and campaigns are expected. One thing is certain: as the tournament draws closer, fashion’s love affair with football shows no signs of slowing down, and hopefully we’ll be styling jerseys in every way imaginable this summer.

Whether you’re a fashion enthusiast or just scrolling through social media, you’ve probably already heard about the Met Gala — one of the most important events in the fashion industry. But what exactly does it mean?

The event — known as the “fashion Super Bowl” or “fashion’s biggest night out” — takes place every year on the first Monday of May, and serves as a fundraiser for the Metropolitan Museum of Art’s Costume Institute, which houses more than 33,000 objects tracing over 700 years of fashion history.

How did it all start?

In the 1920s, Irene Lewinsohn and Aline Bernstein started a costume collection used for theatrical productions and research. In 1937, it became an independent entity named The Costume Institute, merging with and becoming a department of the Metropolitan Museum of Art only in 1946, after Lewinsohn’s death.

Despite its undeniable importance, the department operated with insufficient resources to sustain its operations. That was when the american publicist Eleanor Lambert (also responsible for the creation of NYFW) envisioned a fundraising gala for the Costume Institute. In 1948, happened the first ever Met Gala — back then, referred as “The Party of The Year”.

The event envisioned by Eleanor Lambert in the late forties was a bit different from the notorious night as we know today. The shindig happened in December 1948, with a $50 entry fee and was held in different locations each year. It was only in 1972, when Diana Vreeland became a consultant for the Met, that the “Party of The Year” gained the extravagance it has today, being not only a fundraising event but also a fashion exhibition — now happening at the Met every year and with a dress code followed by an annual theme. By 1973 the changes were already implemented and the theme “The World of Balenciaga” received significant attention from both the public and the fashion industry.

Vreeland was responsible for the shindig from 1972 until her death, in 1989. According to Vogue, the Met Gala themes during Vreeland years were the following:

• 1972: “Untailored Garments”

• 1973: “The World of Balenciaga”

• 1974: “Romantic and Glamorous Hollywood Design”

• 1975: “American Women of Style”

• 1976: “The Glory of Russian Costume”

• 1977: “Vanity Fair: A Treasure Trove”

• 1978: “Diaghilev: Costumes and Designs of the Ballets Russes”

• 1979: “Fashions of the Habsburg Era: Austria-Hungary”

• 1980: “The Manchu Dragon: Costumes of China, the Chi’ng Dynasty”

• 1981: “The Eighteenth-Century Woman”

• 1982: “Le Belle Époque”

• 1983: “Yves Saint Laurent: 25 Years of Design”

• 1984: “Man and the Horse”

• 1985: “Costumes of Royal India”

• 1986: “Dance”

• 1987: “In Style: Celebrating Fifty Years of the Costume Institute”

After Diana Vreeland’s death, socialite Pat Buckley became involved with the gala, serving as a co-chair from 1979 to 1994. It was only in 1995 that Anna Wintour assumed leadership of the event, marking the beginning of a Vogue era — bringing the magazine into close dialogue with the gala and uniting the biggest names in fashion, film, and art, both as guests and through the looks themselves. Still according to Vogue, from 1988 until last year, the themes were:

• 1988: “From Queen to Empress: Victorian Dress 1837–1877”

• 1989: “The Age of Napoleon: Costume From Revolution to Empire, 1789–1815”

• 1990: “Théâtre de la Mode – Fashion Dolls: The Survival of Haute Couture”

• 1991: Gala held, but no exhibition

• 1992: “Fashion and History: A Dialogue”

• 1993: “Diana Vreeland: Immoderate Style”

• 1994: “Orientalism: Visions of the East in Western dress”

• 1995: “Haute Couture”

• 1996: “Christian Dior”

• 1997: “Gianni Versace”

• 1998: “Cubism and Fashion”

• 1999: “Rock Style”

• 2000: No costume exhibition presented

• 2001: “Jacqueline Kennedy: The White House Years”

• 2002: No costume exhibition gala presented

• 2003: “Goddess: The Classical Mode”

• 2004: “Dangerous Liaisons: Fashion and Furniture in the 18th Century”

• 2005: “The House of Chanel”

• 2006: “AngloMania: Tradition and Transgression in British Fashion”

• 2007: “Poiret: King of Fashion”

• 2008: “Superheroes: Fashion and Fantasy”

• 2009: “The Model as Muse: Embodying Fashion”

• 2010: “American Woman: Fashioning a National Identity”

• 2011: “Alexander McQueen: Savage Beauty”

• 2012: “Schiaparelli and Prada: Impossible Conversations”

• 2013: “Punk: Chaos to Couture”

• 2014: “Charles James: Beyond Fashion”

• 2015: “China: Through the Looking Glass”

• 2016: “Manus x Machina: Fashion In an Age of Technology”

• 2017: “Rei Kawakubo/Comme des Garçons: Art of the In-Between”

• 2018: “Heavenly Bodies: Fashion and the Catholic Imagination”

• 2019: “Camp: Notes on Fashion”

• 2020: “About Time: Fashion and Duration” and no gala presented

• 2021: “In America: A Lexicon of Fashion”

• 2022: “In America: An Anthology of Fashion”

• 2023: “Karl Lagerfeld: A Line of Beauty”

• 2024: “Sleeping Beauties: Reawakening Fashion”

• 2025: “Superfine: Tailoring Black Style”

  

Stepping Into the 2026 Met Gala

To this day, Wintour still serving as co-chair of the Met Gala — this time alongside Beyoncé, Nicole Kidman and Venus Williams. The 2026 event will take place this Monday (May 4) and the theme is “Costume Art” — celebrating the Costume Institute’s exhibition, which explores the relationship between fashion and the human body.

The museum’s exhibition will be on view from May 10 to January 10, 2027, and will feature nearly 400 items categorized into thematic body types, ranging from the “Naked Body” and the “Classical Body” to the “Pregnant Body” and the “Aging Body”.

For guests, the 2026 dress code is “Fashion is Art” — inviting each attendee to see the body as a canvas, a living sculpture, and fashion as a form of artistic expression.

According to Russh, some of the 2026 confirmed guests are the Blackpink singer Lisa, Paloma Elsesser, Lena Dunham, Misty Copeland, Elizabeth Debicki, Gwendoline Christie, Sabrina Carpenter, Rebecca Hall, Alex Consani, Teyana Taylor, Doja Cat, Adut Akech, Angela Bassett, Sinéad Burke, Zoë Kravitz, Chase Sui Wonders, Anna Weyant, Lauren Wasser, Sam Smith, Anthony Vaccarello, Amy Sherald, Aimee Mullins, A’ja Wilson, Tschabalala Self and the french singer Yseult — all serving as members of the Met Gala Host Committee. The confirmed Honorary Chairs are the couple Jeff Bezos and Lauren Sánchez.

Even though cameras and cellphones are not allowed in the event, the red carpet livestream is transmitted on Vogue’s digital platforms, starting at 6:00 pm EDT / 3:00 pm PST.

We all know now that flowers for spring aren’t groundbreaking, but perhaps that’s what we have for spring 2026 — and this time, with a 18th century aura to it. Among all the fashion trends, the designers, the pop culture and the movie industry are screaming Rococo.

The artistic style that originated in early 18th-century is now being revived not only by fashion, but by the whole entertainment industry. With the recent release of Wuthering Heights, the 4th Bridgerton season — and the upcoming season 5 — and The Gilded Age and Pride and Prejudice series coming up later this year, we are living a very period drama era. Bows, pastel colors, laces, a corseted silhouette and flowers are everywhere — if you’re into fashion or not, you’ll be seeing them.

Besides the movie industry, we can see the Rococo style seeping into the music industry as well — from Olivia Rodrigo’s most recent photoshoot for British Vogue (in which she’s wearing Jonathan Anderson’s Dior 18th-century bicorne hat) to Charli XCX most recent album Wuthering Heights where theatrical romanticism and historical references are reimagined through a contemporary, pop-driven lens.

In fashion, the runway dictates the trends itself. For Spring 2026, designers like Jonathan Anderson, Erdem, Sandy Liang, Anthony Vaccarello, Nicolas Ghesquière and Simone Rocha are keeping the pastel colors, a 18th century silhouette, flowers and lace alive. Ballet flats and bows are also the center of the show — perhaps we are not tired of bows yet (or ballet, right, Chalamet?)

We all know that Haute Couture is designed for an ultra-wealthy, exclusive elite — celebrities, royalty and high-profile figures only. But what do these people actually look like, and who are they? At this PFW, Hannah Rose Dalton and Steven Raj Bhaskaran shocked the fashion industry once again with the Matières Fécales AW26 collection, bringing forward a sharp criticism of the world’s richest 1%

Dalton and Bhaskaran are known for their unconventional designs, disturbing styling and breathtaking looks that usually carry some sort of criticism and challenges social norms. The brand name itself — that literally means “fecal matter” — gives a spoiler about the brand’s concept. According to the designers, it “captures the beauty and grotesque of the human experience while challenging the glossy facade of a luxury driven culture”.

The brand debuted at PFW in March 2025, with the AW26 season marking their third consecutive show — just as impressive and scandalous as the two before. This new collection, titled as “The One Percent” criticizes contemporary capitalist society and portrays the richest 1% in the world, exhibiting the dirty truth behind money, power and glory. The show was also a reference to the distinct designers backgrounds, Dalton being raised in a privileged environment while Bhaskaran had a modest childhood.

Wealth was represented everywhere — money covering the models eyes, clothes knotted from cash, a lady choking on her own pearls while another had her hands tied in a pearl necklace, “I love power” graphic tees and hoodies made the message of the collection clear. Subtle symbolism, such as the “Guilt Gloves” — white with red palms, a collaboration with Christian Louboutin representing bloody hands — the “Fecalised” Dior New Look and pieces that seemed to be out of a Couture show were also presented in the collection.

The models casting was also part of the storytelling — with figures as Daphne Guinness, heiress of the Guiness family, the transformative makeup artist Alexis Stone, Bryan Johnson, American entrepreneur known for spending money on a longevity project to enable him to beat death contrasting with Michèle Lamy, who embraces her aging.

Behind this casting and the eccentric beautiful designs, there was the message of “beauty is pain”. The styling and makeup referring to surgical obsession, skin shoes moulded to toes and models wearing long fake nails were a sign of the “price of beauty” represented by the collection.

This Matières Fécales show had more of a gothic approach, bringing more dark pieces and a more macabre atmosphere than last season’s. Yet, the duo presented astonishing designs, being able to embody the ugly side of the richness in exquisite looks and styling.

“Whether it’s two distinct jewel toned hats, a meticulously crafted headdress, a simple pair of semi-rimless eyeglasses, complex and dramatic pieces that bring to life a gothic classic or watching red turn rust in 16th century England. A character’s costume is key to telling a story”. That was how Anne Hathaway started her speech to present one of the most important moments of the Oscars night, especially for the fashion community: the Academy Award for Best Costume Design.

Between all the nominees — Malgosia Turzanska for Hamnet, Kate Hawley for Frankenstein, Milyako Bellizzi for Marty Supreme, Deborah L. Scott for Avatar: Fire and Ash, and Ruth E. Carter for Sinners — Kate Hawley won the award for her breathtaking work on Frankenstein. Carrying a magical aura and a precision of the Victorian Era, Guillermo del Toro’s version of the classic was beautifully produced, and the costumes were certainly one of the most important elements in establishing the film’s perfect backdrop. In addition to the Oscar for Best Costume Design, the 2025 film also took home the Academy Awards for Production Design and Makeup and Hairstyling.

Kate Hawley had previously worked with del Toro on Pacific Rim and Crimson Peak. In an interview for Harper’s Bazaar, she mentioned that the director “…came with a ton of ideas. He’s got the world sorted out in his head”. Unlike the classic version, the film was set in the 1850s, so the designer’s main intention was to bring a fairytale energy to a Victorian, Germanic backdrop.

Tiffany and Co. took part in the production of the movie, the Elizabeth’s rosary bead necklace being a very important element of the costume, according to Hawley. Coincidentally, during the time of the Civil War — precisely the period in which the story is set — the brand was known by doing surgical instruments. Besides Elizabeth’s rosary bead necklace, other important pieces included the Favrile Glass Scarab Necklace by Meta Overbeck and the gold, platinum, and diamond Wade necklace.

Color in the film was a crucial element in setting the tone for Frankenstein. According to the designer, in an interview for The Credits, “Color’s a big part of Guillermo’s language as a director. […] He did not want a black, Dickensian kind of seascape, with beautiful, baby-sea-like gorgeousness. He also talked about Hammer Horror and the films of Mario Bava, and that’s all part of his catnip.”. With that in mind, the film features a beautiful color scheme, each shade reflecting the characters personalities through costume. Claire, Victor’s mother, is portrayed in red — wearing a red veil in the beginning of the film — and the presence of the color red marks her touch on the other characters — Victor wearing red gloves, the red flowers in Elizabeth’s bonnet in Victor’s room, Elizabeth’s rosary bead necklace and even Elizabeth’s death, with red blood staining the white.

While red represents Victor’s mother, Elizabeth was portrayed in vivid, bright blues and greens — reflecting her empathetic nature toward the Creature. An important part of Elizabeth’s costume was her wedding dress. Hawley, in an interview with W Magazine, says that “Elizabeth reflects Victor’s world at the beginning, but in the end, she’s reflecting The Creature, and the bridal dress is integral to that”. The three layered dress, which is similar to an X-ray, is the one the character wears in the moment of her death — the blood once again connecting back to Claire’s presence.

Victor — portrayed by Oscar Isaac — is a Victorian man with a messy look. We can see his personality, the mad, restless scientist, through his colorful, crumpled costumes. According to the designer, the disheveled appearance comes from “Oscar’s extreme physicality and the irreverence” and the way he moved between takes.

For the Creature, Mike Hill was responsible for Jacob Elordi’s makeup, which included hours of transformation. The character is portrayed at the beginning of the film wearing few pieces of fabric and, as he evolves and interacts socially, his costume becomes more “human.” By the end of the film, he wears a coat taken from a skeleton killed in combat.

With precise work and beautiful pieces, Kate Hawley was able to bring to life one of the most important literary classics through Guillermo del Toro’s point of view. The costumes capture the gothic essence while also bringing out color and highlighting the characters’ development throughout the film.

With the new FX’s series “Love Story”, we’re all obsessed with Carolyn Bessette Kennedy style and the iconic ‘90s it couple. Bessette’s minimalist, effortlessly chic looks are taking over the internet and perhaps the forecast calls for a Calvin Klein summer.

As we now know, Bessette worked as a salesperson at Calvin Klein before meeting her husband, John F. Kennedy Jr. The series shows her rise to the position of publicist for the brand and the ultimate “pupil” of Klein after she moved to New York City. According to People, Carolyn worked at the brand from 1988 to 1996, leaving the company just a few months before her wedding.

When I asked my mom — who is the same age Carolyn would be today — she told me the Kennedy girl was a huge inspiration back in the 1990s. “She was so beautiful. They were the most influential couple back then. Everyone wanted to be like them, dress like them,” she said.

Bessette had a very cool, minimalist style. With a wardrobe mostly composed of black and white pieces and classic jeans, the Calvin Klein aesthetic of the 1990s was not only embraced by her but also became widely associated with her image.

With the brand’s recent comeback and Love Story becoming everyone’s latest obsession, I firmly believe we may be entering a Calvin Klein spring/summer moment. According to Bloomerang, Google Trends searches for ‘Calvin Klein 90s’ increased by 850% in the US the week Love Story premiered.

After a six year hiatus, Calvin Klein returned to the runway with the aesthetic that made the brand shine in the early days. In the most recent spring/summer collection, Veronica Leoni revisited the essence of ‘90s Klein — the kind of understated elegance Bessette herself would likely have embraced.

In episode 5 of the new FX series, Calvin Klein, portrayed by Alessandro Nivola, says “Could you please remind Cassandra that any of our colorful inventory should be tucked away at the back of the store…” when planning an event for the self-named company. As we can see, the brand is known by its restrained color palette — a foundation that closely mirrors Bessette’s own wardrobe, often composed of beige, black, white and gray. Looking at the brand’s Spring/Summer 2026 collection, this same palette once again takes center stage.

We can also see accessories worn by CBK in the 2026 version of Calvin Klein. Bandanas, flip-flops and handheld bags appear throughout the collection, creating an effortless chic appearance. In other words, a Carolyn approved visual.

Another parallel between this season and the Kennedy it girl’s style is the presence of oversized, elongated blazers — a silhouette frequently seen in recent fashion weeks and an essential element of Carolyn’s wardrobe.

With the renewed fascination with Carolyn Bessette-Kennedy’s style and Calvin Klein’s return to the runway, the industry appears ready to revisit the 90s minimalist aesthetic once again. What once defined the decade may very well define the season ahead. Perhaps we are witnessing more than a nostalgic revival. Perhaps we are entering, once again, a Calvin Klein summer.

“I am obsessed with the smallness of the body— the contrast between ourselves and the vastness which surrounds us”. These were Miuccia Prada’s words about the Miu Miu Autumn/Winter 2026-2027 season.

Miuccia is a revolutionary. While the fashion industry is trying its best to impress, she makes a statement. She brings passion, truth and authenticity to the runway — yet she never loses sight of what keeps fashion alive: sharp styling and that elusive feeling of wanting something new each season.

For this collection, Mrs. Prada plays with the concept of the human body’s size in relation to the vastness of the world. “We are small in the world, but we are enough. You have your body, you have your mind, that should be enough”.

With this idea, the runway’s setting is a “wild forest, within a palazzo”, which symbolizes a confrontation, an “active context and frame” for the bodies moving. The show happened inside the Palais d’léna, and gathered names like Daisy Edgar-Jones, Tyla, Lola Tung and Alexa Chung on the audience.

If the emphasis is on the bodies, then the clothes will show that: short dresses, slim tailoring — more like a 90s kind of look — coats with shorter sleeves, flared pants and pencil skirts made their appearance in this collection, the fabric close to the models figures. Each detail was like a love declaration to the human physique: the bows — representing underwear, the pieces of clothing closest to the skin — the fabric showing purity and simplicity while big hats, oversized gloves and fur coats were exaggerated, confronting the scale. “Clothes that are a method of self-preservation, a means of valuing that inside. They emblematize the individual, and in turn the identity of Miu Miu, itself.”

This season for Miu Miu was a return to the 90s. With early-2000s headbands, claws and clips, bubble sole sneakers, 90s shaped glasses and Chloë Sevigny returning to the runway after three decades, Miuccia brings a nostalgic sense to the collection. Other names like Gillian Anderson, Diana Silvers, Kristen McMenamy, Gemma Ward and Lily Newmark were also part of the show’s casting.

The aprons and the windbreakers from previous seasons also had their presence felt this Autumn/Winter, this time with more sober colors and with sophisticated embroidery.

“This collection is not about fragility—there is a confidence, and a strength—but always, [it’s] about a confrontation between a human and the expansiveness of the world.” the Italian designer added. Miuccia was gracefully able to honor the body in a way that it’s not just fragile or sexy, but strong and firm, while still retaining the sensuality and sensibility of a human being.

Photo: Giovanni Giannoni / WWD

“I always will feel like a tourist in Paris”. In a reel shared on Dior’s Instagram page on Monday (March 2nd, 2026), Jonathan Anderson and Bella Freud sit on the infamous green chairs of the Jardin des Tuileries – the exact location where the Dior Autumn/Winter 2026-2027 show would take place on Tuesday (March 3rd, 2026.)

The show felt like a love letter to Paris and its history. The models catwalk in the beautiful greenhouse setting portrayed a walk through the Parisian park, according to Anderson — and it certainly felt like it.

Created by Catherine de Medici in 1564 and opened to the public in 1667, the Jardin des Tuileries has long been a theatre of display. Once reserved for the French elite, the park was a place for the upper classes to showcase their high fashion — essentially a place “to see and be seen”.

That notion became the backbone of Anderson’s Autumn/Winter collection. It was a mixture of contemporary and 19th century fashion – putting together a Victorian Era silhouette with pieces like jeans, cardigans and miniskirts.

The collection was almost like a work of art — with beautiful embroidery, skirts with frilled trains, ruffles and feathers. Anderson played with shapes and fabrics to highlight the idea of the Parisian aristocracy that the whole collection revolved around.

In the midst of a somber season — with dark colors and straight silhouettes — flowers bloomed and bright colour returned at Dior. For a moment, fashion felt optimistic again.