The crowds, the commotion, and, of course, the collections of Milan Fashion Week can feel like a seven-day blur. How does one celebrate all the best parts of MFW, especially the smaller—but no less thoughtful—details that might go unnoticed? Below, we’ve rounded up every little thing we saw and loved during the spring 2026 runway shows and presentations.
Simone’s Turn
It’s been a season full of exciting designer debuts, and Jil Sander’s first collection with Simone Bellotti stood out as a distinct favorite. After four seasons as Bally’s former creative director, Bellotti has becoming something of a fashion favorite, and being named the head of Jil Sander injected plenty of excitement into his first show. The Gucci alum—who first worked under Frida Giannini and then Alessandro Michele—delivered in spades. His spring 2026 collection was a revelation of minimal dressing, with clever cutouts and flourishes you had to see up-close to really appreciate. Most importantly, it was filled with things people will actually want to wear—especially these sheer, colorful bodycon dresses paired with mannish, perfectly shined brogues.
Dario, Dario, Dario!
Versace’s spring 2026 show was a major moment for the house, which brought in its first nonfamily member designer, Dario Vitale, since Gianni Versace founded the brand in 1978. It was also the first collection not created by Donatella Versace in 28 years—the length of her tenure as creative director prior to Vitale (she’s now chief brand officer). We were blown away by the newness of the whole collection; the eveningwear especially caught our eye. Against a soundtrack of Annie Lennox, models wore looks that were filled with sex appeal, undeniably chic, and noticeably without a Medusa-head logo or printed Cuban-link chain in sight. Welcome to the new era!
The Opening of Palazzo Fendi Milano
One of the biggest launches during Milan Fashion Week was Fendi cutting the ribbon on its new, multilevel salon-style boutique, located at Via Montenapoleone and Corso Matteotti in the city’s prime shopping district. The building, designed by architect Emilio Lancia and constructed between 1933 and 1936, is breathtaking in and of itself. But the interior—which spans four floors and includes an in-house atelier and a dining concept by Langosteria—is truly next-level. (The marble floors inspired by Ancient Roman designs were especially eye-catching.) There are also artworks on display from local foundations and galleries, including Fondazione Officine Saffi, Fondazione Arnaldo Pomodoro, Mazzoleni, and Secci galleries. Of course, the brand has plenty to celebrate now: after 33 years, creative director Silvia Venturini Fendi stepped down on September 29 to invite new talent into the house.
Gucci’s Faux Red Carpet
Demna’s rollout as Gucci’s new creative director has spanned months—in fact, the designer who made history at Balenciaga before taking the helm at the Italian house in March released a look book for his first collection two days before the runway show. When show day came around, he unveiled a short film called The Tiger written and directed by Spike Jonze and Halina Reijn. The cast of the film—Alex Consani, Demi Moore, Elliot Page, Gwyneth Paltrow, and Lila Moss—attended the screening, wearing the newly released looks from the spring 2026 collection. As they entered the venue to watch the flick, they created their own sort of fashion show, posing for the cameras before ducking inside.
Alex Consani
The Devil Wears Prada Crossover Moment
The fourth wall broke on September 27, when Meryl Streep and Stanley Tucci sat front-row at the Dolce & Gabbana show dressed in character as Miranda Priestly and Nigel Kipling from The Devil Wears Prada’s Runway magazine. The inspiration for Streep’s character sat directly across from her: Anna Wintour, the editor in chief of Vogue. (They greeted each other warmly.) The actors were rumored to be shooting an actual scene for the new TDWP sequel, out in May 2026. True or not, it was still such a fun fashion moment.
Capping It Off
Nearly every ensemble in Loro Piana’s spring 2026 collection look book was finished with some fun headwear—whether it was a bottle-tip beanie or an oversize boater that Pharrell Williams would love, each of the designs was playful, and came in multiple colors. The Italian heritage brand styled one particular soft bucket hat with a scarf underneath, proclaiming that this trend still has legs beyond summer music festivals.
Bravo, Louise!
To describe the energy surrounding Louise Trotter’s debut as the new designer for Bottega Veneta as “buzzing” would, frankly, be an understatement. It was electric. The IYKYK veteran of Joseph, Lacoste, and Carven ascended to a global stage when she introduced Milan Fashion Week (and the world) to the New-New Bottega. Held in Fabbrica Orobia, a former zinc factory near Fondazione Prada, the runway show drew a rare celestial alignment of three Academy Award winners: Julianne Moore, Michelle Yeoh, and Uma Thurman. Even Zadie Smith, who only attends fashion presentations every now and then, appeared with her teenage daughter.
Julianne Moore
As far as the fashion went, our special faves were all the fringed tops and skirts. The brand described the creation process of these garments, saying they’d take “laser-cut bands of recycled synthetic material,” then design and place “each band individually, creating unique compositions across every piece.” A single skirt requires “three days of dedicated craftsmanship.”
The artistry hardly stopped there—even the chairs at the show were, in fact, hand-blown Murano glass cubes designed by 6:AM.
6:AM hand-blown Murano glass cubes designed for the Bottega Veneta Summer 2026 show set
“Grazie, Mr. Armani”
What had initially been planned as a 50th‑anniversary celebration for a legendary brand became fashion’s final goodbye to its paterfamilias. On the evening of Sunday, September 28, Giorgio Armani’s niece and head of womenswear, Silvana Armani, and head of menswear, Leo Dell’Orco, closed Milan Fashion Week with a posthumous presentation of the late founder’s spring 2026 collection (his protégé, Stella Jean, wore a t-shirt that read “Grazie, Mr. Armani”). Giorgio Armani’s passing at 91 years old on September 4 changed the course of fashion history. For now, we have his final oeuvre—a testament to his dedication to a life of elegance and glamour.
A Flock of Birds at Ferragamo
The skinny, tasseled scarves and tassel embellishments on dresses in Maximilian Davis’s spring 2026 Ferragamo collection had so much movement in them, they looked like they might fly away. Not as much as the feather bags though, which we adored (all of the accessories were to-die-for, to be fair).
The English designer put multicolor marabou on shoulder bags, clutches, and shoulder bags worn as clutches. There was even a Brat-green version with a chain strap.
Prada’s Pop Art
Color-blocking is already emerging as a major trend on the European spring 2026 runways—and, as usual, Prada set the standard for the season. Designers Miuccia Prada and Raf Simons created a candy-box collection filled with bright greens, vibrant pinks, and the most electric of pale blues. Of course, every shocking jewel tone was tempered by a dark gray or black piece, as seen below, providing lots of inspo for spring wardrobes.
