7 Trends That Will Be Everywhere in 2026

As an editor who has covered women’s lifestyle trends for over 15 years, I’ve seen everything—the pickle craze, the rise of peplum, the ascendence of Cross Fit, the wolf cut, the second rise of peplum…

And through it all, I’ve maintained that, as a well-informed person, you don’t need to follow every trend. (A lesson I learned the hard way, thanks to a Bump-It and high-low hemline.) But you probably should know about the trends. You know…to stay relevant.

That’s why I always have a blast rounding up what’s in and what’s out for the coming year—in the name of take-it-or-leave-it research, rather than prescriptive gospel. Here’s what’s on tap for 2026, from the shoes you’ll be wearing to the way you’ll be buying them.

Pump up the Bangles (but this time, leave out the leg warmers); ’80s fashion is back, baby. “Back then, fashion was a real tool for projecting authority. Madonna made tailoring feel powerful, while Grace Jones completely challenged what femininity could look like,” says PureWow Fashion and Beauty Director Deena Campbell. “That same confidence is what’s fueling the trend’s return now. On the Spring ’26 runways at Saint Laurent, Chloé, Elie Saab, Schiaparelli and Tom Ford, exaggerated shoulders and strong silhouettes were everywhere, balanced with softer details like pussy-bow blouses, pencil skirts and classic pumps.” Expect to see this elevated ’ 80s as mass retailers as well, with everyone from Anthropologie to Cos hopping on the trend.

ADHD diagnoses and neurodiversity conversations are still on the rise, but this year’s biggest parenting buzzword is something almost anyone can relate to: Executive functioning, by which we mean the high-level cognitive skills needed to plan, organize and execute. (Or, you know, bring your homework home, sharpen a pencil to do it, do the actual homework and bring it back to school the next day). This past year brought a spate of influencers waxing philosophical on the subject, as well as a summit for parents and teachers hoping to help kids with its effects. Even celebrities (from Ed Helms to Simone Biles) discussed their own executive functioning challenges. This coming year, expect more conversations about the tools and skillsets needed, particularly as an anecdote to the much-maligned brain rot. Predicts PureWow parenting editor Rachel Bowie, “Schools will increasingly educate students and parents about why executive functioning is a core skill that is just as important as reading and math. And everyone—from Dr. Becky to Dr. Aliza Pressman—will continue to be talking about it.”

If 2025 was the year AI use went mainstream (even your grandma is asking ChatGPT for therapy advice), 2026 is the year that AI starts doing instead of just talking. Agentic AI refers to AI systems that can “independently set goals, plan, and take actions to achieve complex objectives with minimal human intervention.” (And yes, that quote came from AI.) In other words, these are AI systems (or agents) who can handle a complex task from soup to nuts. For example, if you hand off your Christmas list, the agent will shop for the best deals, search your contacts for addresses and then place the orders on your behalf. Or if your flight gets canceled, the agent will know and automatically book you on a new one. Expect to see known platforms—like Gemini and Claude—become more sophisticated in the coming year, as well as companies “hiring” agents for specific tasks like writing strategy memos or looking over tax documents. (And yes, that sounds vaguely dystopian to me as well.)