my 2026 fashion trend predictions

Today I'm going to be sharing with you all my 2026 fashion trend predictions and I'll be honest I almost didn't make this episode because the conversation around fashion trends right now is an absolute mess it's chaos and I'm not 100% sure where I stand on things on one hand people are saying that everyone's exhausted by the trend cycle the fashion trend cycle has sped up so quick to the point that no one wants to keep up anymore it's exhausting and it's wasteful and on top of that it's actually become not cool in some people's opinion to keep up with trends because it's a sign of being chronically online which is no longer cool complicated but I see that side of the argument trends have almost become a trend and the thing about a trend is that it'll always go out and so it's almost becoming trendy now to not pay attention to trends and to try to develop a personal style try to create a sort of capsule wardrobe with timeless pieces that you can re-wear in style in a bunch of different ways which I think is a great thing but also that might also be sort of a trend in itself okay see this is why this conversation is is hellish okay because it's like a rabbit hole really I briefly interrupt this episode to let you know that this episode is presented by Venmo okay hear me out apparently you can earn cashback with your Venmo debit card all you have to do is join Venmo stash in boom you get cashback when you shop at your favorite brands it's kind of an awesome flex with Venmo stash you can get up to 5% cashback at your fave brands just pick a bundle of your go-tos to shop with your Venmo debit card and earn cashback at them and you're free to mix things up you can easily swap out your bundle of brands every 30 days start earning when you do more with stash Venmo stash terms and exclusions apply max 100 dollars cashback per month see terms at Venmo dot me slash stash terms now back to the episode so that's one side of the argument that people are sick of trends the trend cycle has sped up too quick no one can keep up and so everyone's giving up on it and doing their own thing and also to because of the internet everything is sort of trendy all at once like we're exposed to so many different types of people wearing so many different types of outfits and there's so many different aesthetic niches and this and that that we're kind of seeing every single type of outfit possible through the internet there's no trends anymore because everything is being worn all at once and we're we're all seeing it because we're all on the internet basically argument number one is trends are dead trends don't exist anymore argument two is that trends will always exist this is just how we interact with fashion you know yes maybe trends are harder to pinpoint nowadays but they're never going to fully go away it's just not possible personally I don't know what to think I'm not sure what 2026 is going to hold in terms of fashion trends perhaps there will be no trends but the more I thought about it the less likely I thought that would be I do think there are going to be fashion trends in 2026 in five years from now maybe trends will cease to exist due to the internet perhaps the fashion world will just become completely trendless and and everything will be happening all at once but I don't think we're there yet regardless I was able to create a list of what I think is going to be trendy in 2026 which to me is a sign that we're not quite there yet where trends don't exist anymore if we ever even get there but I have to stop I have to stop like dissecting the fashion trend conversation because it actually it makes my brain melt out of my ears I can't handle it it's an onion it's an onion of a of a topic you can just keep peeling back the layers so I put together a list of 2026 fashion trend predictions now this list was formed through various sources source number one instinct I'm not sure where my instincts come from could be subconscious like I'm constantly consuming fashion content whether it's on the internet or it's in person like this is something that I love and I'm constantly looking at it you know like my default lens is a fashion lens like if I'm sitting at a cafe I'm analyzing everybody's outfit not even consciously just subconsciously because it's something I am interested in I love seeing the way people express themselves etc but also too in my free time I love looking at runway shows online I love going on Pinterest and scrolling and scrolling scrolling I'm constantly exposing myself to fashion content so my instincts could be based on that or just a weird gut feeling I'm not 100% sure source number two is what I already mentioned but in a more conscious way like hanging out at a trendy cafe in Los Angeles and and seeing people's trendy outfits looking at runway shows going on Pinterest but like consciously noticing things seeing it over and over again I mean like oh that's a thing now I that must be or it's going to be a thing soon because I keep seeing it and then source number three is a mindfulness around like past trends in decades and like what was trendy say in the 50s 60s 70s 80s 90s and just kind of being like you know that hasn't had a moment in a while it's probably gonna come back soon that's the thing with trends they really always come back and oftentimes they're sort of reinvented in a modern way but you know I recently made a trendier timeless episode about 80s fashion and I made that episode because I started to feel like the 80s was coming back number one because the 80s haven't had a moment in a while and then number two because I started to see little glimmers of it in runway shows and I was like oh I think this is going to go mainstream soon and so I made that episode and you'll notice in this episode there are some 80s fashion trends that I think are going to come back in 2026 because I think it's time I think it's going to happen but again take all this with a grain of salt I don't really know what I'm talking about I'm kind of just going based on vibes and instinct and also just what I've literally seen out there start to pop up you know so without for their due these are my 2026 fashion trend predictions starting with tight pants tucked in to knee high riding boots imagine horseback rider aesthetic okay tight pants beautiful tailoring tucked into a sleek simple riding boot shiny I'm thinking like shiny leather riding boot dark wash jeans that are tight a knit almost borderline leggings sort of pant tucked into a boot I've seen this a little bit on the internet but it also kind of gives me like princess Diana vibes did she wear that I just googled princess Diana skinny jeans with boots hold on oh yes she was totally doing it and it looks good yes she did that and it was chic it was really chic wait I kind of like this so good I like this honestly I might do this which is kind of scary to me because the idea of like buying a tight pant to me is frightening because I feel like I'll regret it later because I'm really at a point in my life now where I do not want to buy things that are trendy I it's like my life's mission to not participate in trends but this actually might be kind of timeless and I think it's really cute I could imagine it with like you know like a boxy sweater or like an oversized blazer very preppy I feel like we were tucking our pants into knee high boots in the 2010s I'm not feeling like it's gonna be like that it feels preppier in the 2010s it was more chuggy I don't know how to explain it like the boots we were wearing the pants we were wearing like things were more embellished the colors were brighter not good I I don't like the 2010s version of tucking pants into boots it feels princess Diana to me that's what I'm picturing in my head and I think that is going to be a trend in 2026 moving on to tall hug boots okay the classic UG boot that goes up to the knee now this is not going to be like a trend in a fashion way I don't think more in like an at leisure way wearing leggings with the knee high UG boots and like a windbreaker to a workout class that feels like a 2026 trend to me and it feels like sort of almost like a spin-off of the knee high riding boot with the tight pant tucked in like it feels like the at leisure version of that and I feel like tall knee high boots are just going to be in I feel like we've experimented with every single UG boot over the last few years you know like the short little angle ones the platform ones but we haven't worn the knee high UG boot in a while and I think it's going to be back because I feel like the knee high boot especially like flat boot hasn't really been in I don't think but I feel like it's back okay moving on to loose Capri pants okay the last few years we've seen everyone in their mama wearing tight Capri pants almost legging like at most maybe with a little flare around the knee okay but I think in 2026 loose Capri's are going to be in loose Capri pants could look a few different ways it could be like a straight leg Capri like almost like if you were to take a classic straight leg dress pant and just chop it off right under the knee I also could imagine perhaps a slightly more straight leg but still with a little bit of a flare by the knee so you know this shape isn't fully straight up and down but it's overall a looser shape but still with that flare I think the Capri is not going out anytime soon definitely not in the next year but I think people are kind of getting sick of the super tight Capri they want something that feels a bit different and I think that's where a looser fit Capri is going to come in okay moving on to short sleeve trench coats I don't know why I just feel this one I don't I don't even think I've seen anyone wear a short sleeve trench coat recently but I just imagine spring 2026 people wearing trench coats with short sleeves and can I be honest cute and I I kind of love it I think it's cute it feels I don't even know what era like is that kind of 90s vibes like short sleeve or is it early 2000s I don't know and I don't really care to Google it or maybe it's like 50s I don't even know I don't know final Google it fine I like the idea of the short sleeve trench coat because you know the idea of a of a coat is that it keeps you warm there's something kitschy and fun about you know the weather started to get warmer and you still wearing the trench coat but there's short sleeves and perhaps you could wear like a basic white you know long sleeve under it and that layering moment would be so cute oh I'm I'm excited about that maybe I'm just manifesting that okay I'm not finding information about what era the short sleeve trench coat is from but so chic also could be worn kind of as like a dress I think really cute and I actually also think timeless okay next feathers I just think feathers are gonna have a moment but in like a billion different ways I just think feathers are gonna be everywhere okay you're gonna see feather details on clothing and accessories like a hat with like a little feather in it not like a fedora not like a creepy weird fedora with a feather in it okay I'm not saying that but like perhaps like a cute little I don't know like a cute little cap with like a feather in it or you know a little pin with a feather on it or perhaps like one of those like feather boa scarves or perhaps like a skirt that is made out of feathers not even as like not real feathers but you get what I'm saying like it looks like a bunch of feathers like a bunch of feathers stuck onto a skirt or a dress that has feathers sticking out you know how sometimes they'll do that I'm so about it describing things but imagine like little feathers sticking out feathers I just think feathers are are happening in 2026 I feel like the last few years it's been all about the fur coat there's definitely lots of faux fur coats out there the look in the feel of fur I feel like that's been really in and I feel like feathers are sort of the next logical step from that like people are getting sick of fur but they still want sort of fluffiness and texture like that I think the feather is going to be in but even too like I imagine jackets that have those little fine little feathers around the wrists and around the collar all different types of feathers big feathers small feathers obvious feathers subtle feathers I just think feathers feathers feathers okay next this is so random and I don't know why I think this is going to be a trend I don't know if I've seen this like I I literally can't figure out where this came from and maybe it's already a thing I I don't even know you know like those vintage ribbons like award ribbons almost like a pin like a button pin it'll say like first place and then it'll have like frilly ribbon around it with two ribbons dangling down okay I think those are going to be a trend like wearing those on on a shirt or a sweater attaching them to bags it's a subtle trend it's a small trend but for some reason I I feel like it's going to be in I'm actually now remembering that I wore a dress for a photo shoot like six months ago maybe a year ago now that had a big ribbon on it so maybe it's already in but perhaps it'll go more mainstream in 2026 I think they're really cute and it's sort of an extension of like the button trend I think buttons really had a moment in 2025 everyone was attaching buttons to shit I was I still am I like buttons I think they're really fun there are a nice easy way to personalize an item but also you know you can easily take them off and move them on to another shirt or whatever like I don't know it's like nice to attach them to things that are otherwise boring like a baseball cap or like a boring tote bag or onto a shirt it to me it's like a harmless easy way to add dimension to literally anything and it doesn't feel like a like a bad trend to participate in even though it was trendy I feel like as long as you're picking out pins that you really like that feel like they're an extension of your personality or whatever or your sense of humor or your interests I think you can't go wrong it feels like an extension of that the button trend the pin button trend what are those called pin button like button pin you know you know what I'm fucking saying I'm not like a button all the buttons were really trendy last year and I think they're gonna get even more trendy this year like actual buttons with like the four holes in it buttons were just getting started in 2025 I think they're gonna be all the rage in 2026 so I guess we're adding that to the trend predictions although I think buttons were already buttons to me are timeless they're like polka dots polka dots were really trendy in 2025 but to me you can always wear polka dots like that I'm sorry no one can convince me otherwise that is a timeless pattern same thing goes for buttons for me it's like a button is forever but also I'm biased because I'm obsessed with buttons because my favorite movie is Coraline and if you've never seen Coraline I will inform you that one of the sort of symbols of that movie is a button so that has made me sort of obsessed with buttons ever since I was a kid because that's like a potent symbol in the movie so much so that I have a button tattooed on my arm in honor of Coraline and my love for buttons they're just like a nostalgic item for me because of that so I have my own personal bias but they had a moment anyway but I think they're gonna continue to be trendy but anyway back to what we were talking about before because I really went off on a tangent vintage award ribbons I don't know I just see it I think brands are gonna start selling like sweaters and stuff that have those already attached or like a skirt we'll see can moving on roses I just think roses are gonna be trendy I'm talking about rose print sort of classic rose floral patterns but also too manipulating fabric to make it look like a rose jewelry with roses like you know like little dangling rose earrings roses I thought this and when I was doing research further research for this episode to see if there's anything I missed and I was looking at the last season or two of runway shows I actually noticed a lot of roses so I actually had an instinct about this and then when I was looking I actually noticed it so I might actually be on to something with that next aprons the last mu mu show there are a lot of aprons going on but I've kind of been feeling this for like a year I can't remember if I mentioned it in last year's trend predictions but I feel like aprons are gonna be in but not like a classic chef's apron like clothing fashionable clothing inspired by the shape of the apron like the cook's apron but not like a literal chef's apron like I think perhaps some brands will create like a fashionable version of a chef's apron and it'll be used as like a layering piece and I think it's gonna come in the form of a full body apron you know the type that you put over your neck and it goes all the way down to your knees and you tie it around your back but also to just a waist apron I think the waist apron has a higher likelihood of fully becoming a mainstream trend because it's actually a really wonderful layering piece you can just tie it around your waist over your pants or even over a skirt and add dimension that way but I think that shape apron shape will be in and perhaps they'll be frilly perhaps they'll have pockets but perhaps they'll just be vaguely reminiscent of a chef's apron but I I really see that happening okay moving on to shoulder pads and square shoulders I think big powerful shoulders are gonna be trendy in 2026 and this is a staple 80s fashion trend like if you look up what were the biggest fashion trends in the 80s this is one of them but I think it's coming back and I've started to see it come back and I'm excited about this one because I really love shoulder pads I love strong shoulders I think everybody wants to feel powerful in 2026 and nothing makes you feel powerful like a big big shoulder like I imagine people wearing a dress like a gorgeous dress but with like big shoulder pads to like a holiday party in 2026 I imagine people wearing like power suits with big shoulder pads to work like you know kind of like a boxy skirt with like a matching jacket in the shoulder pad with like a boot or like a pump you know I could see that okay next double breasted tops and jackets I mean this is ultimately a timeless style of top or jacket it's basically a top that overlaps in the front and it has two buttons oh my god I'm so bad at describing this is why you have to watch the video versions of these episodes because I don't even know how to describe these things like think about like a jacket that closes with two buttons on each side and they go all the way down the front like a trench coat that has like two buttons it closes with two buttons instead of just one down the middle it has two so when you close the jacket it overlaps on itself and you button on both sides you know what I'm saying like don't please tell me you know what I'm saying double breasted tops or jackets are honestly always in however I think similar to like polka dots for example though they're in all the time can still have a big moment and I think in 2026 that is going to have a moment double breasted it's classic but at the same time it is intriguing I don't know there's something dynamic about something that's double breasted like having those symmetrical buttons having it be sort of layered on top of each other I don't know there's something interesting about it double breasted pieces are often like an elevated basic you know take a classic trench coat that has buttons down the center that's less interesting than a double breasted trench coat a dressy white button up top is less interesting than a double breasted button up white top do you see what I'm saying and I think people are going to be wanting that I don't know I don't I don't have a lot of evidence to be honest I'm just I'm just winging it next oversized blazers I feel like this is going to go with the tight pants tucked into the riding boot again very princess Diana this is kind of 80s do I love it it's not my favorite but I could see it and I think there is a cute way to do an oversized blazer I mean yeah am I going to go out of my way to get an oversized blazer no but I could see it happening okay next high low skirts shorten the front long in the back I feel like every length of skirt has been so trendy for the last few years like mini skirts in medium length skirts like midi skirts in skirts that cut off mid calf in maxi skirts all the way to the floor in how do we spice things up in 2026 high low skirt but I think in like a chic elegant roughly way not in like a 2010s chevron print sort of way like high low skirts were in in the early 2000s in a really hideous hideous hideous hideous hideous sort of way if I'm remembering correctly I'm imagining the high low skirt in like a very soft elegant sort of way that is almost like subtle to the point where it doesn't even read as a high low skirt it is but it doesn't read like that because it's perhaps flowy or modern in such a way where it doesn't feel reminiscent of high low skirts in the past that now would read as like sort of chuggy I could see it moving on to flannel in plaid I think mainly in the form of like flannel shirts but not in like a cowboy sort of way more in like a preppy way you know like a fitted flannel shirt tucked into like some tight jeans tucked and then tucked into a riding boot very like equestrian coated but also beyond that plaids in general but like elevated gentle soft plaids like very subtle plaids not like thick chunky bright plaids but like easy on the eyes plaids in little button up shirts little skirts perhaps in like little scarves to tie around the head or not even you know I don't know I could I feel like plaid in flannels are gonna have a moment and when I say flannel I mean like a plaid flannel you know what a flannel is button up soft collared shirt plaid usually yeah maybe like maybe the core of 2026 is like equestrian core I'm kind of feeling that I like that's a kind of a pattern I'm seeing as I'm reciting this list but also it seems that the patterns I'm seeing equestrian core horseback riding core and 80s that's the overarching theme it seems okay moving on moving on raw denim dark dark dark dark dark raw looking denim if you haven't seen raw denim it looks like denim that's never been washed like it was just freshly dyed with blue blue blue dye or whatever I don't know how jeans are made super dark blue no rips no tears stiff raw denim is again incredibly timeless but I think it's gonna have a moment and for good reason to be honest I think raw denim is gorgeous and what's kind of fun is you know if you get a pair of raw denim jeans or whatever you can kind of wear them in and they'll sort of patina if you will in a really beautiful way that's unique to you and that's kind of fun like purchasing jeans at the very beginning of their life cycle yeah you can wear them in yourself and give them a wash over time that is unique to you so that's kind of cool and that kind of goes hand in hand with the concept of personal style being a trend right like sort of become a trend to have personal style which goes against the idea of what personal style really is but again if we go down this rabbit hole I think I'm gonna have a mental breakdown so we won't but I feel like raw denim being trendy might sort of be an extension of this is just a hypothesis I'm really speaking out of my ass here but might be an extension of the personal style obsession right now where it's like I don't want to buy jeans that have been worn by someone else that have their patina to them like they were worn in by that person I want to get a pair of jeans you know freshly made and I want to wear them in myself and they'll get creases and stuff in spots that are personal to me maybe I'm getting too heavy about all this but there could be a connection there moving on super flat shoes like I'm talking about shoes with like no soul okay like it is like a flat flat flat shoe like barely any soul mainly in the form of boots either ankle not ankle boots but like either like mid calf boots or knee high boots super flat flat flat slim boots okay which is a departure from what we've been obsessed with the last few years which is like chunky boots we've loved the moto boot we've loved platform boots I think that is out I think a slimming boot that has like barely any soul to it a small understated foot could be what's next but also that extends to another 80s trend which is a super slim leather dance shoe okay my dad educated me about these when I was making my 80s fashion trendier timeless podcast episode I called him and I was like hey you know I did some online research but you are on the ground living it so is there anything I missed and one thing he told me I missed was the capacio dance shoe and I didn't really know what that was so I googled it and it looks sort of like a tap dancing shoe or something it's leather shoe or leathery shoe I don't know if they're actually made a leather but a leather a leathery shoe that is thin there's no structuring inside it's tight to the foot it laces up and the soul is quite thin and minimal it's it's very much just a compact tight shoe to the foot usually coming in either white or black so a neutral color but it seems in the 80s the white pair was more popular based on what I saw online but who knows I think shoes that are slim on the foot and slim on the sole are in particularly in a leathery material which kind of makes sense because for the last few years I feel like we've been obsessed with like big shoes chunky shoes and as with all trends it's got to go eventually and I think now for whatever reason people are wanting are gonna be wanting their foot to be more petite more understated more elongated and I don't know okay moving on to deer print okay we've done cow print then we got sick of it we were obsessed with cheetah print now we're starting to get sick of it so what's gonna be next deer print deer print is so subtle I feel like most of us don't even really know what it is it's basically just brown with like little white speckles in a very particular sort of pattern that looks like a deer but in unless you were to look at it you wouldn't maybe be able to imagine it like it's very specific but it's like okay here's the thing about deer print this is already starting I'm already seeing this this is already slightly being discussed that this is a trend that's coming and I think it's gonna come in full force because one if I find a one thing about trend cycles it's that there's always some sort of animal print that we're obsessed with and then very quickly we get sick of it I've seen us as a society obsess over cow print obsess over cheetah print obsess over zebra print and eventually we get sick of it eventually we hate it then we're on to the next and deer print has that ever even been trendy before I don't know but for fashion lovers everywhere this is exciting for trend lovers everywhere I should say this is uncharted territory I don't think deer print has ever been trendy before it's like oh my god we get a brand new one now because we've been recycling them for years deer print feels brand new and I'm already starting to see it will it go fully mainstream I don't know maybe not but I could see brands latching onto this and being like this is the hot new pattern let's move speaking of prints I've been seeing so much snake print that I just have to say it's gonna be trendy in 2026 because I have been seeing it so much in like every runway show I swear to god they're snake print it's everywhere so I guess snake print 2026 this was not an instinctual one this was very much like I can't ignore this I'm seeing it everywhere next sheer clothes I think sheer clothing though it is a timeless sort of textile whether it's like gorgeous like I don't even know chiffon like what what's chiffon hold on not to google it fuck I don't know any materials okay oh my god I'm a fucking genius chiffon is exactly what I thought it was okay whether it's like a sheer chiffon or it's a lace or it's like a sheer mesh I just think sheer is in and sort of maybe even like having the nip out too like show on the nip fuck it there's like a delicateness to the 2026 fashion trends the slim leather shoes deer print deer are so gentle you know aprons like it just feels very gentle it feels very it feels subtle it feels soft it feels easy on the eyes you know I feel like the color palette for 2026 is going to be really mild but I think sheer materials they're so delicate they're so soft on the eyes I just I mean I appreciate them last but not least anatomical clothing imagine like a t-shirt that has ribs printed onto it where the ribs would be inside of the body almost inspired by like a classic skeleton Halloween costume you know those classic like full body suits that you can put on in there all black but then they have white bones all over them exactly where your bones would be so then you look like a skeleton like that but in clothes I think we'll see jeans that have leg bones printed on them I think we'll see little pins or breaches that people put on say like a blazer that look like a real anatomical heart perhaps you know jewelry that has like eyeballs like just like human body part stuff which I think is kind of cool I think it's interesting and it actually kind of goes hand in hand with this year's mechala theme so maybe that's why I feel like that's gonna be a trend not that the mechala theme like starts trends necessarily but I could see that I've also kind of seen this around more like I've I've noticed anatomical things incorporated into fashion so who knows it might happen and that's it those are my fashion trend predictions I don't know what's gonna happen you don't know what's gonna happen no one knows what's gonna happen we're just gonna have to see and for all I know 2026 could be the year that fashion trends are simply eliminated they don't even exist anymore everybody's wearing everything all the time trends don't exist anymore we'll see we'll just have to see I hope you enjoyed this episode if you did let me know shoot me a message at anything goes on social media if you enjoyed this episode tune in Thursdays anywhere you stream podcasts watch a video on YouTube and Spotify I'm on the internet at Emma Chamberlain in my coffee company is Chamberlain coffee thank you all for listening and hanging out as always it's a pleasure also before I forget let me know what you think is gonna be trendy in 2026 unless you think nothing will be trendy and trends will cease to exist let me know that as well I love you all I appreciate well thank you for listening and hanging out and I'll talk to you next week I love you all bye