September 15, 2026 |
We’re back, baby! For the fash pack, September means one thing and one thing only – shows, shows and more shows. We’re ready and raring to go, and first stop on our tour de fashion month is The Big Apple. Here’s everything that’s going down at New York Fashion Week SS27.
Luar
Rooting his Christopher Street Columbus collection in an exploration of colonial history and Christopher Street’s enduring strength and style, Luar’s Raul Lopez paid homage to a famous LGBTQ+ haven while confronting the violent histories endured by marginalised communities.
That inspiration appeared across every aspect of the showcase. Staged at Flushing Meadows Corona Park in Queens, the runway was set against the Unisphere, a giant steel globe that has long stood as a symbol of global unity. Lopez, however, used his SS27 offering to interrogate that ideal, presenting instead a vision of a community that has survived – and thrived – despite prejudice and division.
The clothes were a “contradiction made physical”, as described in the show notes. Imperial-era codes – dramatic shoulders, excessive ruffles and tightly-cinched waists – were given a streetwear gloss, with models stomping down the runway in baggy trousers, thigh-high boots and disco-ball-esque fabrics. The final looks sprouted with pink feathers, marrying historical grandeur with a club-ready flair. It was a demonstration of the beauty born from resistance. BK
Lii
Fresh from Paris, where he’d just collected the LVMH Prize‘s Karl Lagerfeld Award, Zane Li returned to New York to present Lii’s SS27 collection, built around a deceptively simple question: can we miss something we never knew? His answer played out as a study of the 1960s seen from a distance, its codes of youth, propriety and romance peered at through a contemporary lens.
Familiar Lii silhouettes ran throughout the looks, including anoraks reimagined as detachable hoods fixed to camisoles, and T-shirts spliced and layered to both cover and expose the body. Primary reds, blues and greens were blocked against black and white, with touches of vinyl and spongy, mini-length volumes. Bold relics of another era, reworked into the kind of childlike optimism that feels needed right now. TP
Khaite
Khaite kicked off with a bang: a perfectly mussed Kaia Gerber in a high-waisted leather skirt and bra top stomping out to the steady strum of PJ Harvey’s Rid of Me. Ok, you have our attention! What followed was a parade of looks inspired by designer Catherine Holstein’s recent trip to Venice. Many of these boudoir-ish looks would fare well at a palazzo party – the slinky silk dresses that looked like chic nightgowns and a sheer floral number that benefited from Guido Palau’s messy bouffant. The ensembles that worked the best were the ones that weren’t trying to do too much. Also, all hail the black leather jackets – a Khaite signature. I’m sure the celebs in attendance – Alexa Chung, Iris Law and Riley Keough among them – would tend to agree. SC
Sandy Liang
The Sandy Liang girl has decided to venture into the great outdoors, with a decidedly feminine take on gorpcore. Opening with a sleek black jacket, miniskirt, and what is sure to be the hot item next spring: a utilitarian belt bag dubbed “Sandy Liang X3000.” The accessory made an appearance throughout, with versions available in pink and purple as well. Other sporty nods include anoraks, accented with everything from dolphins to polka dots for sweet flair while flouncy bow adorned dresses and tailored workwear offered options for all of the other moments in her life. It’s functional, pretty, and going by the way her fans applauded at the end, a surefire hit. DT
Area
A year after his debut at Area, Nicholas Aburn proves that his vision for the brand remains as fresh and youthful as ever. For spring 2026, Aburn explores the notion of light, amplifying it through shimmering and metallic dresses while reflecting it in crisp, all-white looks. Lace, denim, and a pared-back palette of blue, yellow, and orange define the collection, bringing a playful energy to the season. While the materials push the boundaries of wearability, the silhouettes remain decidedly romantic and feminine, balancing experimentation with Area’s signature sense of glamour. Alma de Ganay
7 For All Mankind
There was a stretch in the early 2000s when getting dressed was less a discipline than a dare, and Nicola Brognano has spent his tenure at 7 For All Mankind coaxing that spirit out of retirement. His SS27 collection is an ode to the mid-decade It girl in her natural habitat – piecing together an outfit the morning after, reaching for whatever’s within arm’s length and somehow emerging photograph-ready. Denim, the house’s mother tongue, did most of the talking, pared to two silhouettes: the cropped skinny and the micro hot pant, washed and dusted with crystals.
To the sound of Addison Rae’s New York, models circled a glass-walled space high above Manhattan. Skinny scarves trailed where they pleased; jackets with shoulder pads sat atop denim capris with the nonchalance of borrowed menswear. Swimsuits were layered over lingerie, poplin grazed bare skin, and the accessories – enormous east-west bags and vertiginous platforms – piled on. It looked gloriously thrown together, though of course nothing was: Brognano knows exactly how much effort it takes to appear effortless, and how seductive the result can be. TP
Michael Kors
On Friday morning, Michael Kors’ well-heeled devotees made their biannual pilgrimage to watch the designer’s latest looks – 65 in total – parade down the runway at MoMA’s Sculpture Garden. For those attuned to the surroundings, a question arose: would Kors acknowledge the proceedings downtown honoring the 25th anniversary of September 11th? The New York-born and bred designer kicked things off solemnly enough – three all-black looks – before administering splashes of color and ample cutouts, much to the delight of onlookers including Rachel Zoe, Nicky Hilton and a smattering of Broadway stars.
Kors attributed the collection to people-watching at the places “where different style sets converge – museums, galleries and openings.” This translated to a very mod offering – skirt sets paired with cropped jackets, bias-cut dresses with long, flowing tails trailing in the breeze, and bubble-shaped skirts and dresses cinched at the waist. Accessories were fun and jaunty: dangly geometric earrings and striped handbags.
It’s been a big season for celebrating (Coach’s 85th, Bergdorf’s 125th); and this year marks Kors’ 45th anniversary. As the King of American Sportswear jogged down the runway, it was clear that he isn’t slowing down anytime soon. SC
Eckhaus Latta
Eckhaus Latta has always understood that getting dressed can be an act of negotiation – between exposure and protection, ease and awkwardness, the ordinary and the slightly offbeat. For SS27, Mike Eckhaus and Zoe Latta pushed that tension further, presenting familiar components like tank tops, trousers, tailoring and slips that were altered just enough to make you want a second look.
A palette of black, white and cream, was punctuated by acidic chartreuse, plum and flashes of red. There were mesh dresses, abbreviated knits and louche tailoring, some drawn from a newly announced collaboration with J.Crew. Then came the confetti. A small eruption of celebration in a collection otherwise occupied with the complications of everyday dressing. Eckhaus Latta’s clothes have never asked for perfection, and this season that very appeal lies in their friction. Talia Panayi
Tory Burch
Elegant optimism was the name of the game at Tory Burch on Thursday. Models circled around Isamu Noguchi’s meditative Sunken Garden, wearing all sorts of bright, opulent pieces. The show kicked off with flocked pie-crust cardigans nipped at the waist and paired with chic pencil skirts. In terms of proportion, the collection featured low-slung skirts that hugged the hips and buttoned-up, boxy jackets. (Shoutout to Alexa Chung, who wore a cinched overcoat like a true lady who lunches.) The show notes said the collection was designed with collectors in mind; in that case, the opera coats – in shades of buttery yellow and violet – were works of art in their own right. DT
Proenza Schouler
Rachel Scott‘s sophomore outing at Proenza Schouler continues to wrestle with the idea of what women want to wear versus what they’re told to wear. And in her world, there are no rules. A casual gown? A slim cut trouser with a sheer top? A sequinned tiger print dress? Yes, yes, and yes. Of note was the rose print, the only pattern in the collection, as a political and feminist symbol. A new iteration of the PS1, the PS1 Walker, revives the classic handbag, rendering a nostalgic favourite more practical for modern day use. Scott has found her stride and the cheers that filled the room only cemented just how much she is loved. Diana Tsui
Catalogue
One of the more compelling launches this week came from the New York-based duo An Nguyen and Pablo Correa of Catalogue. The Peter Do alums showed in a studio in East Williamsburg, far from the madding crowd. It was worth the trek. The first collection draws on vintage lingerie and chic suiting, but with a club-kid sensibility. “It’s as if Tom Ford had a younger daughter who liked to go out,” we were told at the presentation. Sarah Cristobal
Diane Von Furstenberg
One of the more anticipated shows at NYFW was Henry Zankov‘s debut at Diane von Furstenberg. Known as a pioneer of women’s ready-to-wear, Furstenberg created dresses (including the now iconic wrap silhouette!) that were both sensual and practical for the modern woman about town, Zankov had big shoes to fill. And fill it he did. He took that idea of the woman in motion and successfully ran with the concept, placing the movement of a dress with the body at the centre of its seduction. Using bold colours and flowing fabrics, it was a new era for the brand through the unmistakable Zankov lens. Alma de Ganay
Top image: photography courtesy of Lii.
