New York Fashion Week 2026 Champions Heritage Tailoring and Quiet Luxury

Michael Kors turned Lincoln Center into a study in restrained glamour, descending models down the Metropolitan Opera lobby’s grand staircase for his 45th anniversary show and closing with Christy Turlington. The staging included long leather opera gloves and floor-length gowns, and guests moved from the Met to an after-party at J.G. Melon where martinis and sliders awaited. Wallpaper’s coverage captured a striking footwear decision that echoed across the week: Kors declared, "There's not a stiletto in sight," adding, "I can't stand going to parties and seeing women have to take their shoes off. It's awful."

Nostalgia threaded several of the most talked-about returns, none more buzzy than Public School. Designers Maxwell Osborne and Dao-Yi Chow reappeared with a menswear collection described by Vogue’s Christian Allaire as a "cool, modern assortment" of great coats and suits, highlighted by a satiny red bomber layered over a slouchy double-breasted suit that Allaire singled out: "So good."

Texture and craftsmanship dominated staging and garment choices at Altuzarra and Colleen Allen. Joseph Altuzarra used the Woolworth Building to showcase tactile layering of suede, leather, cashmere and shearling; Vogue’s Hilary Milnes wrote that the "texture and styling were so good" she "wanted to reach out and touch," and even noted the little book placed on seats as part of the show's inspiration. Colleen Allen’s Louise Bourgeois–inspired collection offered cocoon-like wraps and intentionally tattered lace dresses, and Allen introduced a first-ever accessory, a bustle bag. Hannah Jackson of Vogue closed her appraisal with an emphatic consumer note: "I'll take one of everything, please."

Coach balanced heritage flourish with theatrical staging, setting its runway to LCD Soundsystem’s "American Dream" and sending looks down red-carpeted stairs: relaxed trousers with dramatic overskirts, puff-ball shearling jackets in white and crimson, and tailored gowns paired with opera-length leather gloves. Anna Fixsen for Wallpaper documented ostrich feathers ornamenting skirts, sleeves, hats and bags, and a footwear arc that began with chunky block heels and finished with minimalist square-toed flats.

New formats and intimate venues punctuated the schedule. Drishti Gangwani’s Closr hosted a watch-and-shop event where the Proenza Schouler runway played on a massive screen while attendees could buy pieces by Cindy Castro, Old Folks and Delaluz. Cucculelli Shaheen staged an art-deco–inflected show at Bowery Ballroom with a live band; "Never Have I Ever" star Maitreyi Ramakrishnan attended in a detailed mauve gown while Tyler Blackburn kept sunglasses on in the front row, a scene reported by USA Today. J. Press leaned into Ivy League props at the New York Historical Museum and Library on the Upper West Side, with models carrying books, a bicycle and large oars and Tom Felton observed in the front row.

The week closed with markers of continuity and of revival: Marc Jacobs presented his spring 2026 collection two days before the official schedule, Ralph Lauren opened with Gigi Hadid on February 12 and reintroduced low-slung Y2K belts, and Wallpaper’s roundup named Diotima, Khaite, LII, Eckhaus Latta, Area, Fforme, Calvin Klein Collection, Michael Kors, Ashlyn, Zankov, Tory Burch, Coach and Proenza Schouler among the best shows. Across venues from the Woolworth Building to the Met and Bowery Ballroom, designers favored heritage tailoring, tactile materials and accessories that read as quiet luxury rather than spectacle.