I’m Already Wearing These Fall 2026 Runway Trends Now

Fashion Month is officially over, wrapping with a star-studded Miu Miu runway closing Paris Fashion Week, which means we fashion-obsessed are now armed with all the information we need to know what will be big come fall—and I can tell you there is a rich buffet of trends to choose from this season.

From high-lace collars at Collina Strada to the buzzy high-vamp heels at Chanel, there were countless notable moments and trending motifs to keep up with. If all that seems like a lot to take in and predict what trends will land, you are not wrong… but that’s what we’re here for!

I’m constantly on the hunt for trends that inspire me and align with my eclectic personal style. When it comes to fashion, I’m not one for delayed gratification, so I immediately started plotting how to work these trends into my wardrobe now.

Some of the trends that dominated the Fall-Winter 2026 shows continued from Spring-Summer, including lush fringe and fluid texture. Classic, flowy fringe appeared everywhere, dangling from long scarves and sweater epaulets at Etro and cascading from the oversized florals on the jaw-dropping finale dress at Sarah Burton’s Givenchy. If you prefer something more eccentric, this trend might be for you. From fluffy knit fringe coats at Diotima to synthetic-looking pieces at Bottega that moved more like high-fashion Koosh Balls, fringe showed no signs of slowing down. I was tempted to recreate the chic white button-down-and-fluffy-fringe-skirt combo from Michael Kors’ 45th-anniversary show, but it felt like a sister look to one I’d already styled, inspired by the Spring-Summer 2026 runways—and there are so many more to explore!

Volume and Paillettes

Volume was a major theme from New York to Paris, with lots of structured peplums, bustles, and flounces showing up in aesthetics from boho to minimalist. Then there were the creative twists from emerging designers, like inflatable balloon skirts at Tabbe, pannier skirts at Menyelek, and a personal favorite — the most gorgeous, exaggerated hip ball gown at Chuks Collins. Legacy labels were all in on volume too, with structured hip skirts and sculpted leather blazers at Junya Watanabe, piles of stacked ruffles at Dior, and big feather-effect shoulders and roomy flared peplum tops at McQueen. Indeed, it felt like peplums in particular were taking over.

As someone who came up in the plus fashion space, I have to admit that I have been side-eyeing the peplum trend since it first started making a comeback, but not because of anything inherent to the style itself! As anyone who was working in plus fashion then can tell you, peplums were inescapable in the plus market throughout the first half of the 2010s (including well after they left the overall fashion zeitgeist). This wasn’t because plus shoppers disproportionately loved the style; it was largely because brand executives thought we did, since it was traditionally “flattering.” But the end result was a large swath of the plus options looking dated. So imagine my surprise when I found myself drawn to the peplums I was seeing on the FW26 runways!

Paillettes were another standout trend for me this season. While sequins will never fully go out of style (see Schiaparelli’s gorgeous mixed sequin look from their RTW show), their maximalist older sister paillettes are clearly ready to take center stage with fall. These oversized flat, dangling discs were spotted at all the cool girl faves this season, from strategic placement over diaphanous chiffon skirts at Marni to sharply contrasting with a colorful underlayer at Christopher John Rogers. I was inspired by the latter for this look, layering this sheer black paillette top from ASOS over the springy green of this reversible pleated dress by Baacal. If you want to channel the laissez-faire vibe of the Miu Miu show, you could just wear this shirt as is for an oversized tee silhouette. I initially planned this look just so, but when I was playing around with a Croptuck (the TikTok favorite gadget for cropping shirts on looks without waistbands), I realized I could fudge a peplum silhouette by cinching the waist of this oversized top - a perfect way for me to try this trend without committing to a new purchase.

I was even more surprised by how much I loved it. The shape felt purposeful, not like an attempt to camouflage my body, and echoed some of my favorite runway moments this season, with cinched waists and hip volume. The bright contrast of the Miyake-esque pleated dress kept the look from reading too holiday to wear now, but rest assured, I will be reusing this faux-peplum styling hack again come party season. I finished my look with minimal mules, and would add an oversized trench for a cooler day.

Lace, Leather, and Animal Print

As someone who loves color, I’ll admit that the news that black was the top color of FW '26 didn’t thrill me, but I do love any excuse to get creative! So I decided to add interest to the palette with some other trends I’ve been inspired by this season.

I combined the leather pants resurgence (as seen at Khaite, Tods, and Altuzarra) with the sultry sheer lace trend I loved at Christian Cowan and Saint Laurent, among many others. The contrast of the rich navy faux leather and the black lace really spoke to me, especially with the faux-nude effect of a neutral bralette on top. I completed the look with a cropped cape trench and a pair of snip-toe ankle boots in another trend: Unexpected animal print.

Much like sequins, I don’t think leopard print ever truly goes out of style, but I’ve still been enjoying the variety of animal prints that have been gracing the runways lately: Tiger at Kim Shui, zebra at Fendi, python at Sergio Hudson, and so many more. I know I’ll be wearing my faux-fur animal-print coats again come fall, but for now, I am all about adding accents to the print trend. This brown and black cow print boot is a perfect example: The sleek shape complements the kick flare of the pants, and keeps my ankles warm during this transitional season where the weather is swinging between snow and faux summer.

Drop Waist

One of the most notable silhouette trends this season was the rise of the drop-waist. This was another one that spanned aesthetics, from classic tailoring at Carolina Herrera to sheer sequins and feathers at Christian Siriano to luxe bohemian at Zimmermann to full-on tactical at Jane Wade. But the true standard bearer of the drop-waist moment this season was undoubtedly Mathieu Blazy. His takes on drop-waists at Chanel were 1920s low (some almost to the knee!), with some versions leaning into bulbous volume on top and others evoking a modern take on a century-old flapper trend. The effect of these super low waistlines is striking, but can also be a bit intimidating - and because Blazy is truly shaking things up, there’s very little on the market now that is comparable. Fortunately, if you are looking for a more approachable version of the trend, there are plenty of gorgeous options to shop now.

This mixed media dress from NYC label Hutch is the perfect example. The curved dropped waist still gives the visual effect of the trend, but without a sharp horizontal line that can sometimes feel like it is directly underlining the belly. The included belt is detachable, and the fit is just as structured through the bodice without it, so if you want an even more pronounced drop-waist vibe, you can just remove it. And I absolutely love the lightness and the movement of the skirt!

For this look, I styled the dress with metallic high vamp pumps and a gorgeous little Alexis Bittar clutch in another animal print that was all over the runways this season: Classic leopard. Even though less traditional animal prints are having a moment, leopard was still a major player, whether on a luxe leopard coat at Marni, rendered sharply in black and white at Carolina Herrera, on skinny scarves and floaty leopard dresses at Zadig + Voltaire, and voluminous skirts and coats at what turned out to be Harris Reed’s final collection for Nina Ricci. This pretty clutch also has the molten-metal vibe I love so much, so it’ll be in heavy rotation in my wardrobe this year and beyond.