Fashion has a funny relationship with trends: we love to hate them. Trendsetters are our gods, and yet anyone who follows a trend is deemed to have no personal style. When a certain style starts trending, it immediately becomes less cool, and by the time you’ve noticed it, the moment has died. Fashion critics, writers and influencers rely on trends as a way to analyse the current mood, political climate and youth culture landscape, though ironically, we’d still advise that you don’t follow them. 

This year, the themes have been a little chaotic, but the common trend within this list makes it seem like we’re preparing for battle: we’ve seen literal knights in shining armour, military jackets and protest t-shirts. Elsewhere, Timothée Chalamet’s wardrobe has arguably never been so influential; meanwhile, the main pop girls continued to set the tone for summer. Labubus aside (because frankly, we can’t look at another image of them), here are the biggest trends of 2025. 

ARC’TERYX BEANIES 

What a year it’s been for Timothée Chalamet’s wardrobe. He entered 2025 cosplaying as Bob Dylan and will close the year as Marty Supreme, wearing matching pumpkin leather with girlfriend Kylie Jenner. Back in January, while on his way to appear on Saturday Night Live, Chalamet caught the world’s attention by stepping out in a baby pink Telfar puffer, cross-body Chanel handbag, blue denim jeans and an Arc'teryx Bird Head toque. The simple beanie might not look like much, but it carries an impressive fashion lore – and if anyone could revive a menswear trend, it’s Lil Timmy Tim, who subsequently influenced almost every man in east London and beyond (the beanies even sold out as a result). 

FLIP IT AND REVERSE IT 

Tailored trousers worn as tops at Hodakova, suit jackets worn backwards at Givenchy and Yohji Yamamoto, the 1948 Dior Delft dress turned into cargo pants at Jonathan Anderson’s debut – it’s been a higgeldy-piggeldy year on our runways. If you thought you knew the right way to wear a blazer, no you don’t. Think you know how to step into a pair of trousers? Wrong! They go over your head now. Zomer’s AW25 show even started backwards, with the finale kicking off proceedings. We’re yet to fully witness this trend translate fully into our everyday, but need I remind you of Miranda Priestly’s cerulean jumper monologue? 

MEDIEVAL CORE 

A year ago, Pinterest predicted that medieval core would become a thing in 2025, and it wasn’t wrong. Armour was a huge (yet relatively discreet) trend during this year’s shows – cropping up in several collections, including Yuhan Wang, Charlie Constantinou, Di Petsa and Denzil Patrick, while Paolo Carzana’s AW25 collection was inspired by dragons. At Burberry AW25, a mysterious knight in shining armour even sat front row. On the red carpet, chainmail is the noughties trend that just won’t die, and Joan of Arc continues to be a source of inspiration for today’s creatives (looking at you Baz Luhrmann, who’s currently working on his adaptation of Jehanne d'Arc). 

BUTTER YELLOW

Sure, Pantone’s colour of the year may have basically been white – disguised by its cutesy name, “Cloud Dancer” – but the real, sartorial hue of 2025 was undeniably butter yellow. Once again, this was a trend partly popularised by one Timothée Chalamet, who wore a custom Givenchy leather suit to the Oscars. Rihanna and Sabrina Carpenter are proven fans, although Hailey Bieber did declare the death of the shade in July – “butter yellow is played out.. Respectfully,” she wrote on Instagram. Regardless of Bieber’s personal opinion, that didn’t stop it from creeping into our wardrobes this summer, a knock-on effect from last year’s runways, where it showed up in multiple collections, from Gucci to Versace. 

MICRO SHORTS 

To be a pop star in 2025 requires the following: a substack; a viral moment; a cameo in a major movie, and teeny tiny hot pants. With the rise of pop’s new vanguard, also came the rising wedgie – Charli xcx even made a point to remove hers on camera at Coachella. Dua Lipa, Olivia Rodrigo, Megan Thee Stallion, Doechii, Jennie and Tyla have all subscribed to the uniform, and as a result, this summer’s festival season witnessed a wave of micro shorts. For so long, we’ve liked our shorts loose, denim and a bit ripped up. Now, we prefer them to be skin-hugging, leather, Lycra or PVC, ideally paired with a belt almost as big as the hot pants themselves. 

PROTEST TEES 

There were so many reasons to protest this year that a major fashion trend emerged as a result. Taking a leaf out of Katharine Hamnett’s book, celebrities, fashion designers and young people around the world used their clothing as a way to convey their beliefs. The most popular protest tee of them all was indisputably Conner Ives’ viral Protect The Dolls t-shirt. Of course, protecting the dolls is no fashion trend, and amazingly, the popularity of the t-shirt raised over half a million dollars for Trans Lifeline. At the Cannes Film Festival, Harris Dickinson took a stab at Tory MP Suella Braverman, wearing a t-shirt that read: “Living on the streets is not a lifestyle choice Suella. It’s a sign of failed government policy” while promoting his homelessness drama, Urchin. Meanwhile, also at Cannes, Julian Assange wore a t-shirt that listed the names of 4,986 Palestinian children aged five and under, killed by Israeli forces since 2023. Of all the trends to emerge this year, this is the one we’d most like to stick around – people using their moment in the spotlight to draw attention to something far more important. 

MILITARY JACKETS 

It was October 2010 when Cheryl Cole first stepped onto The X Factor stage with cherry cola coloured hair. It was a moment that inspired half the British teenage population to dye their hair – it was, to young girls, what Justin Bieber’s fringe was to young boys. Cheryl’s influence had us in a chokehold, and 15 years later, her effects are still being felt, now with the revival of the military jacket (a Cheryl favourite, famously worn during her X Factor performance of “Fight For This Love”). Obviously, this isn’t a trend started by Cheryl – its history is embedded in its name. But in 2025, it’s been reinterpreted by multiple designers, including Seán McGirr at McQueen, Jonathan Anderson at Dior men’s and Stefano Gallici at Ann Demeulemeester. There were so many examples that we decided to run a whole feature on why the hottest girls you know are dressing like the nutcracker. 

CUNTY BOOTS

If 2024 was the year of the toe (thanks to the Vibram FiveFingers), 2025 was the year of the cunty boot. Another nod to medieval core, this year’s favourite footwear silhouette was a 14th-century phallus – or poulaines, as they’re known. During the AW25 runways, we saw versions from McQueen, Marc Jacobs, Saint Laurent and Acne Studios; meanwhile, in 2024, they appeared at Gyouree Kim, Martine Rose and on Doja Cat’s feet too. But aside from the extra-pointy variation, another boot dominated our feeds this year: Saint Laurent’s over-the-knee Joe boots, as seen on Alexander Skarsgård, Pedro Pascal and Brad Pitt. We thank you for your important work, Anthony Vaccarello.

PUBES 

Earlier this week, Leigh Bowery’s 1987 merkin and accompanying ‘Starfish’ crop top sold at auction for £22,100. Clearly, there is a demand for faux pubes. 2025 has welcomed the rise of full bush fashion, following on from last year’s Margiela haute couture spectacle, plus Kim Shui’s AW25 collection and celebrities like Julia Fox embracing her hair on the red carpet. Then, of course, Kim Kardashian controversially jumped on the full bush bandwagon, launching a Skims merkin in October, ideal for anyone who regrets getting laser hair removal. Luckily, for those who never dabbled in laser, the great pube renaissance certainly makes showering quicker.