7 Street Style Trends Defining Fall 2026, From Every Major Fashion Week City

Introducing “Word on the Street,” a seasonal street style report tracking the standout looks, emerging trends, and defining fashion moments across the world’s major fashion capitals. Featuring a panel of plugged-in fashion industry voices on the ground at the major shows, the series offers an expert read on the season’s most compelling style movements and a sharper picture of what’s moving beyond the runway and into real life.

After a month of covering fashion week from attending New York to dialing in to write about Paris, I always leave September with street style moments glued to my brain and a running list of what the best-dressed showgoers kept reaching for. Some of it surprised me…did anyone see cummerbunds with jeans coming? And some of it was a reminder that a great white shirt still wins every time. The best street style trends are the ones that make you rethink pieces you already own, and this season offered plenty of inspiration.

In the past few seasons, we’ve seen a return of what we are calling an ode to personal style. This fashion month, many of the street style trends we saw were the finishing touch that makes an outfit feel exceptionally 2026. That final outfit-making piece that separates someone from being a fashion show goer as opposed to just another stylish Parisian. That common theme made the trends we’re rounding up below even more exciting to comb through.

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To figure out which looks actually have staying power, we teamed up with Lyst to find out where the shopping data matched the trends we saw on the streets. because while a trend might catch our eye on the street, the real test is whether shoppers are paying attention, too. Then, we asked a panel of industry insiders for their read on the season. They told us all of the details on the trends that they saw at every fashion week they attended. The best street style trends Ahead, the seven trends that caught our eye, earned their place in the data, and have the industry insiders talking.

street style runway moments

(Image credit: Getty Images, Mode Hunter)

To help us sort out what’s worth trying from what’s best left on the sidewalk, we asked four industry experts who saw fashion month up close to weigh in. April Hennig, president of Moda Operandi, sat in on the shows and came back with plenty of opinions. Darrel Hunter is the street style photographer to know, and he spent fashion week on the ground capturing the best moments for @modehunter. Kristen Nichols, associate director of special projects at Who What Wear, was at the shows and saw it all. Rounding out the panel is Jalil Johnson, writer of the Substack newsletter Consider Yourself Cultured, who test-drives new trends for a living and knows exactly what’s catching on with real people.

street style runway moments

(Image credit: Getty Images, Launchmetrics, Mode Hunter)

If you attended any of the fashion weeks this season, you couldn’t head out for a show without noticing someone wearing a cummerbund over unpredictable wardrobe staples. It’s rare that you would think to style a cummerbund over a slouchy knit or a crisp shirt and jeans but the fashion crowd was doing it. “The cummerbund is the hot accessory of the moment, and during NYFW, I saw at least three a day,” says Jhonson, and Lyst backs him up, with demand jumping 65% from August to September thanks to Dries van Noten, Giorgio Armani, and Valentino. Nichols spotted it on the F/W 26 runways at The Row and Celine, adding, “It was also in the spring/summer 2027 collections of Kallmeyer and Polo Ralph Lauren, so we know it has staying power.”

Valentino Garavani

Ruched Satin Cummerbund

The Frankie Shop

Bellano Satin Cummerbund Belt

LE SUNDIAL

Grosgrain Belt

Valentino Garavani

Ruched Satin Cummerbund

Thom Browne

Silk Faille Cummerbund Corset

street style runway moments

(Image credit: Getty Images, Launchmetrics, Mode Hunter)

Think romantic, slightly undone, Sunday afternoon in Paris. These days, just one flower pinned to a lapel changes the whole outfit. “There’s something wonderfully romantic and slightly nostalgic about it, but what makes it feel modern is the way women are styling it—pinned to an oversized blazer, a simple knit, or even at the waist,” says Hennig. As for why now, Johnson says, “I think the interest in floral brooches in particular is part of the Blazy Effect,” referencing Chanel’s recent show led by Creative Director Mathiu Blazy that playfully finished a few of the looks with a floral detail in the form of a brooch.