Spring 2025 has arrived, and with it comes a parade of clothes that seem more interested in confusing you than impressing you. If previous seasons asked us to dress for the fantasy life we wanted — sipping espresso on an Italian terrace, leading a startup from our Soho loft — this season seems to ask: What if you didn’t have a plan at all?
The trends are chaotic. Playful. Sometimes aggressively impractical. It’s as if designers got tired of pretending that everyone wants to look effortless and instead decided to lean into the chaos of real life: the mornings when nothing matches, the nights when your outfit makes sense only after two glasses of wine, the moments when you catch your reflection in a shop window and think, "Maybe it’s fashion?"
Expect to see a lot of looks that feel like inside jokes — fishnet gym wear, sailor sweaters gone rogue, and handbags that stretch across your body like you’re smuggling baguettes. Tailoring has tightened up, but not enough to erase the sense of irony that runs through everything this season. Sporty is in, but only if you look like you might never actually go to the gym. Minimalism is still hanging on, but it’s less "quiet luxury" and more "mischievous whisper."
Aquatic Chaos: The Mermaid Who Goes to the Gym
This season, designers decided that mermaids no longer lounge on rocks, brushing their hair with a fork. No, the 2025 mermaid is busy, sporty, and probably has a ClassPass membership. Sequins shimmered alongside scuba zippers and sporty mesh. Think fishtail skirts paired with windbreakers, fishnet leggings worn unironically, and swimsuits doubling as officewear. If it sparkles, stretches, or looks like it could survive a riptide, it's in. But forget the old ethereal Ariel vibe — today’s sea siren has a protein shake in one hand and a waterproof tote in the other.
Key pieces: fishnet joggers, scuba jackets, bodysuits styled as real outfits, anything that looks like it could be found washed up on a beach — in a chic way, obviously.
Fisherman's Daughter: Coastal Prep Gets a Weird Makeover
Coastal dressing isn't new, but Spring 2025 drags it down to the docks and gives it a few martinis. The classics — Breton stripes, chunky cable knits, pea coats — all make their expected appearances, but this time with a winking, slightly absurdist twist. Stripes are thicker, sweaters are slouchier, and there are actual fish-shaped bags floating around like it's completely normal.
The vibe is less “yacht club” and more “I borrowed this from my slightly unhinged uncle who lives on a houseboat.” Comfort and fluidity are key — expect everything to be just oversized enough to suggest that you might be about to board a sailboat, even if your only plan is brunch.
Mad for Plaid
Plaid isn’t here to play nice anymore. It ditched its neat, preppy image and showed up this season looking loud, rebellious, and occasionally kind of unhinged. Designers messed with colorways, blew up proportions, and paired checks with unexpected textures and silhouettes.
Forget about looking polished and buttoned-up. The new plaid is jagged, oversized, and a little bit punk — more “broke into the country club” than “member since birth.” Best worn clashing wildly with itself or something equally inappropriate.
AMY LYNN - Cher Alexa Plaid-Pattern Puffball Woven Midi Dress - Buy here - £74.25
alice + olivia - Kidman cropped jacket - Buy here - £432.00
The High-Fashion Windbreaker
In the most practical plot twist of the season, the humble windbreaker became the most glamorous item in your closet. Designers seized the waterproof jacket and decided it should be worn with sequin dresses, layered over tutus, and styled with a level of drama previously reserved for opera capes.
This isn't about hiking. This is about showing up to dinner in a floor-length crochet gown — with a bright yellow zip-up thrown on top like you’re that confident. If your windbreaker isn’t clashing aggressively with your fancy outfit, are you even trying?
Fringe Benefits: The Return of the Swingy Drama Queen
Fringe was so omnipresent this season it practically replaced hems altogether. Designers couldn’t resist the urge to attach tassels, shreds, and strings to anything that stood still long enough: jackets, dresses, handbags, even shoes.
But this wasn’t your basic Coachella fringing. Think heavy metallic strands, sophisticated flapper nods, and bursts of technicolor chaos. Fringe for 2025 isn’t for wallflowers — it's for anyone who wants to make a grand entrance and leave a glittering trail of confusion in their wake.
Skirts Layered Over Everything
Somewhere between Y2K nostalgia and sheer impatience with normal pants, the layered skirt-over-trouser look officially completed its comeback tour. It’s no longer just a cute trick for Gen-Z TikTokers; now it’s business casual. Tailored trousers with pleated skirts, long tunics layered over slouchy pants, hybrids that can't decide what they are — it’s all happening.
The best versions played with proportion: razor-sharp skirts over soft wide-leg trousers, or see-through chiffon dresses revealing matching sheer trousers underneath. Basically, if it looks like you couldn’t decide which bottom half to commit to this morning, you're doing it right.
Long and Low: The Rise of the East-West Bag
The East-West bag is back, and it’s skinnier and longer than ever — like the fashion world’s version of a low-rise jean for your arm. This stretched-out silhouette dominated runways, reworking classic shapes into elongated, borderline impractical versions of themselves.
Bags now dangle horizontally across the body, with structured straps that look almost architectural. If you’ve ever wanted a bag that’s about two inches too wide for every chair and elevator, this is your year. Style tip: The more it looks like a baguette you forgot to eat, the better.
Work Hard, Dress Soft: Reality Dressing is In
After years of aspirational dressing — outfits chosen for Instagram likes and not much else — fashion is swinging back toward reality. Not the boring version where you wear the same black pants for three years, but a new kind of chic practicality. Soft tailoring, relaxed silhouettes, and clothes that understand you might actually have to move around during the day.
The new "real" dressing isn't about giving up on style; it's about being stylish and comfortable enough to go to work without fantasizing about ripping your shoes off on the tube. Expect plenty of smart trench coats, wearable tailoring, and low-key but devastatingly good jewellery.
Minimalism with an Attitude: Quiet Luxury Grows a Personality
Minimalism isn’t dead — it’s just tired of being boring. For 2025, pared-back fashion gets an upgrade with playful details, unexpected materials, and a few flashes of personality peeking through the neutral palette.
Cargo pants come with couture-level tailoring. Windbreakers get sequin embellishments. Pastels sneak into otherwise serious wardrobes, offering a burst of energy without sacrificing sophistication. Beige still exists, but it’s flirting shamelessly with blue mints and soft lilacs. The vibe? Luxe, but not like you’re trying too hard to prove it.
Move It or Lose It: Sporty Fashion Grows Up
Fitness and fashion have been dating casually for a while now, but in 2025, it’s officially serious. Activewear is no longer reserved for actual workouts; it's built to blend seamlessly into daily life. Think elevated track pants, asymmetrical workout tops that could pass for designer blouses, and sleek capri pants (yes, capris — sorry).
The new sporty style is less about running errands and more about running your life — polished, functional, and a little bit smug about how versatile it is. Bonus points if your leggings outfit looks just as good at the coffee shop as it does doing Pilates.
Suited Up: Masculine Tailoring, No Apologies
Tailoring for 2025 feels like a power move — strict, structured, and intentionally buttoned-up. Suits aren’t trying to be sexy by way of missing half their buttons or pretending shirts are optional. They're dressed, pressed, and slightly intimidating.
Wide shoulders, sharp collars, ties (yes, ties) — it’s a uniform that doesn’t flirt, it commands. Whether it's trousers so long they puddle dramatically around your shoes or jackets that could moonlight as armour, this trend says: I have somewhere to be, and you’re in my way.
