Copper Emerges as Fashion's New Metallic Favorite on the Red Carpet

Huishan Zhang gave copper a red-carpet shape with sharp intent: Kerry Washington stepped out in a copper-toned minidress, set with crystal embellishments and finished with a dramatic train, to accept the Courage Award at the Women’s Cancer Research Fund’s annual An Unforgettable Evening gala in Los Angeles on March 11, 2026. The look was brief in length but grand in effect, the kind of silhouette that lets metallic fabric do more than sparkle.

That balance mattered at the Beverly Wilshire Hotel, where the gala has spent more than 25 years bringing together leaders in entertainment, cancer research and corporate philanthropy. The Women’s Cancer Research Fund, a program of the Breast Cancer Research Foundation, supports research focused on prevention, diagnosis, treatment, survivorship and metastasis of breast cancer. Washington’s appearance gave the night a fashion edge without losing the gravity of the cause: copper read polished, modern and precise, not costume-y or overly ornate.

Part of why the color landed is that the metallic conversation has already been building. Metallics were a top trend in the Spring 2025 couture collections, where houses including Chanel, Giorgio Armani Privé and Elie Saab used gleaming fabrics and embellishment for a sense of opulence and escape. By Fall 2025, silver and gold had moved even further into the spotlight in couture collections from Germanier, Iris van Herpen and Chanel. Silver, once sidelined relative to gold and rose gold, had already begun its return through jewelry and then clothing. Copper feels like the next, smarter turn in that cycle: warmer than silver, less expected than gold, and far less predictable than a standard party sheen.

Huishan Zhang is well suited to that shift. The London-based luxury label, launched in 2011, often works best when structure and decoration meet, and Washington’s dress showed exactly that. The minidress kept the look fresh and leggy, while the train supplied the sweep usually reserved for fuller gowns. It was a reminder that metallic dressing does not need to mean head-to-toe shine. A copper clutch, a pair of sculptural earrings, a satin sandal with a burnished finish, or even a wash of copper-toned shadow can all carry the same energy without slipping into holiday territory.

Copper’s appeal right now is that it feels newly edited. It has the glow of gold, the chill of silver and just enough warmth to flatter evening skin, which is why it can move from red carpet to accessory tray to beauty counter without looking like a seasonal detour. Washington’s look made that argument in one sweep of crystal and train: copper is not following metallic fashion back onto the carpet, it is leading it.