Why Fashion is Finding Joy in Fantasy and Nostalgia

By Joanne Yulan Jong

Couture week in Paris has always represented the height of the fashion season. It’s the moment when designers step away from commercial expectations and share their most unfiltered creative ideas. This year brought a noticeable shift. Instead of the oversized drama and spectacle seen in recent seasons, the focus moved toward imagination, nostalgia, and a quieter kind of emotional comfort.

At Chanel, the show opened with a soaring, familiar Disney score as models walked through a dreamlike world filled with oversized mushrooms. The entire scene felt soft, warm, and whimsical. As I watched, I couldn’t help but smile.

“Everything spoke the language of magical realism. Inspired by a Japanese haiku, Blazy thought of the lightness of a bird that lands for a moment on a mushroom and then flies away. It was only ten minutes, but one left the show feeling good.” - The Business of Fashion.

Up and down London's famous Bond Street, store windows designed to spark joy were ready for the wave of buyers and press arriving for London Fashion Week. The same shift toward imagination was unmistakable. Playfulness and storytelling took center stage, and I was struck by the childlike creativity and uplifting spirit behind each display.

The broader cultural mood might help explain this shift. After years of minimalism and tightly defined trends, the fashion world is leaning toward something more individual and emotional. Clean lines and strict rules shaped an aesthetic that was easy to duplicate and eventually became predictable.

I have spent decades working in fashion, and trends have always risen and fallen. But the world we live in today feels fundamentally different. Digital overload, nonstop news updates and a general sense of uncertainty have led people to gravitate toward clothing that provides comfort, identity and a stronger sense of individuality. Designers are responding by creating pieces that feel genuine and emotionally grounding.

Still, it is worth asking whether there are other forces shaping these nostalgic, playful themes.

According to Bain & Company, global luxury shoppers have been stepping back as economic uncertainty and price increases take their toll. This shift has led to a significant drop in aspirational buyers. Bain notes that the trend is especially strong among Generation Z, whose enthusiasm for luxury brands has continued to decline. Over the past two years, this shift has resulted in the luxury customer base shrinking by nearly 50 million people. The scale of this loss is now pushing brands to rethink how they can win those customers back.

It is not only about offering lower price points. Brands are also focusing on injecting more creativity into their products and making the shopping experience feel inviting and engaging. One way to do that is by bringing fun, nostalgia and fantasy to the runway, then giving customers a way to participate through a playful accessory, a charm or a small moment of joy.

This shift toward whimsy is far from superficial. Brands recognize that many people are looking for small moments of relief in their everyday lives. Nostalgic details tap into that feeling by reminding us of times that felt slower and less fragmented.

Historian Agnes Arnold‑Forster, author of Nostalgia, describes it as “a complex and slippery emotion”, one that “reflects the anxieties of the age in which it appears”. In her work, she shows how nostalgia often rises during moments of cultural unease, helping people process discomfort with the present while imagining a more reassuring future.

This is why we are seeing the return of lace, crochet, jacquard, delicate buttoning, embroidery and other historical craft‑focused details. These elements bring texture and a sense of meaning back into our wardrobes at a time when so much of life is experienced through screens.

This helps explain why designers for Spring Summer 2026 are returning to heritage, craftsmanship and familiar visual references. It is not about recreating the past, but about finding emotional grounding within it.

These themes are at the core of the House of Colour SS26 Style Guide. This season feels like a return to the simple joy of getting dressed, combining nostalgic details with everyday practicality. Couture offers the most amplified version of this mood, giving designers space to explore fantasy without limits. Those ideas then filter down into ready‑to‑wear collections and eventually into what appears on the high street.

This cultural shift is also supporting the rapid rise of vintage and resale. The resale market is expanding faster than the broader fashion industry because people are gravitating toward pieces with history, personality and a sense of meaning. It aligns naturally with the growing desire for individuality and emotional connection in the way people dress.

The SS26 Style Guide highlights three themes that show how fashion is reinterpreting the past for the present.

• Romantic Fantasy leans into softness and storytelling. Lace, draped silhouettes, heirloom‑style detailing and gentle metallic finishes create a feeling that is familiar without becoming costume‑like.
• Textured Travels draws from boho and Western influences. Fringing, suede, denim and artisan textures bring a grounded, tactile quality that helps counter our digital day‑to‑day.
• Vintage Flashback nods to the 1980s. Defined shoulders, color‑blocked combinations and cigarette trousers introduce structure and confidence without replicating the past too literally.

House of Colour personal stylists play a meaningful role in helping people navigate these themes. Color and style analysis help cut through the noise of global trends and bring the focus back to personal identity. This becomes especially valuable in a moment when trends are increasingly driven by individuality and emotion.

By understanding colors that suit their natural skin tone and personal style, clients can bring nostalgic elements into their wardrobes in a way that feels true to them rather than copying looks that feel inauthentic. This helps keep nostalgia from slipping into costume and supports pieces that are wearable for the long term.

In a digital‑first world, nostalgia is becoming a way to feel more grounded. When people embrace themes like Romantic Fantasy or Textured Travels, they are not simply following fashion, they are expressing values, memories and a desire for connection.

The SS26 season shows that fashion is looking back to help us stay anchored in the present. Designers are using the past as a creative resource to navigate today’s complexity. Fashion becomes a tool for stability, meaning and self‑expression. This season makes it clear that nostalgia is not a retreat. It is a way to move forward with intention.

Joanne Yulan Jong is a Creative Strategist, Fashion Writer, and Author of the bestselling book The Fashion Switch: The New Rules of the Fashion Business. She is the founder of Yulan Creative, a consultancy specialising in brand strategy for fashion and lifestyle businesses. In 2020, she led the rebranding of House of Colour and continues to serve as a Non-Executive Director. You can follow Joanne on Instagram, Facebook and LinkedIn.