From Cummerbunds to Chatelaines: Here Are the NYFW Trends Worth Noting
Plus, the designers who brought them to the runway.
It was a magnetic season at New York Fashion Week, filled with new store openings, NYC debuts, and a delicious spring edition of opera house dressing.
Across the Pond, London, Warsaw & Amsterdam Make a Splash in NYC
Dutch womenswear label Róhe opened its first store on Mercer Street during NYFW. Designed in-house by Stéphanie Oonk and founder and creative director Marieke Meulendijks, the store immediately transports you to a tranquil place upon entry, “giving people the feeling they can slow down,” Oonk shared.
The space showcases Dutch art and references, with bespoke woodwork by DeanWorks and thoughtfully collected vintage pieces throughout. My favorite details were the bedroom-sized fitting room and the selection of nineteenth-century Dutch silver miniatures.
London-based Conner Ives made his New York debut, and homecoming, at The Grill on Saturday afternoon. The collection was filled with “passion and flamboyance”: a silky fish-print dress, fur-trimmed robes, cummerbunds, a suiting collaboration with Savile Row tailor Gieves & Hawkes, and, to close the show, a featherweight beaded silk dress inspired by Parisian dressmaker Callot Soeurs.
Magda Butrym, a Polish label, brought a New York debut to their Spring 2027 show and Mercer store opening. Both the store and runway felt as though you had been fully immersed into the world of Magda; the spaces held an element of heavy structure contrasted with an ethereal femininity. The collection featured clutched pearl rosaries dripping down hands onto leather box bags, sheer layered dresses inspired by her grandmother’s aprons with long necklaces tangled underneath, cocoon-style leather jackets, and tailoring with touches of feather trim and lace.
Cummerbunds: Beaded, Pleated & Wrapped
It may be because I’ve been writing about them for years— Opera House Fall & Opera House Spring—or because they’ve long been one of my core styling accessories, but waist sashes and cummerbunds, both beaded and silk, felt like a major throughline of Spring 2027 NYFW.
Earlier in the week, I wore an Atelier JÉA tasseled cummerbund with a Róhe velvet jacket to a cocktail. At Heirlome’s debut show, I was floored by a perfectly wrapped front cummerbund paired with a softer take on the tuxedo shirt. I wore their Marianne Top to the show and was delighted by the almost built-in cummerbund at the waist. Then there was Kallmeyer’s beaded cummerbund, which completely caught my eye. Beaded cummerbunds are something I’ve been working on myself, so seeing one come down the runway felt especially resonant, particularly from a designer whose work I deeply admire.
Dusters & Silk Coats
Heirlome showcased a striking long silk coat over an aqua collared shirt and tuxedo trousers. Colleen Allen, whose long dramatic coats have been among my favorites season after season, drew on references ranging from Pina Bausch to the almost medieval, with floor-sweeping layers worn over sheer bodysuits and a Swedish Stockings collaboration to come. I was also struck by the airy blue trench at Fforme, which floated down the runway fastened like a cape around the model’s shoulders. I wore a Maria McManus reversible duster coat to her preview, a perfect opera coat, and an Abadia Abaya that practically gave me wings to fly through Saturday’s full day of shows.
Chatelaine-Style Focal Necklaces
Having previously written about the history of chatelaines, and designed my own collection with Nina Runsdorf earlier this year, I found myself particularly drawn to the many chatelaine-like focal necklaces appearing both on and off the runway. I wore the entirety of our collection together one day during Fashion Week, which felt especially celebratory.
Fforme showed tiny perfume bottle necklaces in collaboration with ANH Studio, while Kallmeyer’s jewelry was curated by Casa Shop, including pieces like its silver basket pendant necklace. At Róhe’s new Mercer Street store, nineteenth-century Dutch silver miniatures offered another beautiful reference to the tiny, precious objects traditionally collected and carried on chatelaines.
