Few skirts swished down Spring 2026 runways without an additional layer of fringe flowing in the Fashion Month wind. Even the buzziest designers—including Chanel, Loewe, Alaïa, and Dries Van Noten—tapped into the tassel trend. On March 18, Anya Taylor-Joy's two-week-old skirt from Balmain's collection proved the fringe trend has off-runway appeal.
Two days after the 2026 Vanity Fair Oscar Party, Taylor-Joy and stylist Ryan Hastings sourced a fringe Balmain skirt set for a stop by theToday Show. The piece from new creative director Antonin Tron's debut line began on a rather minimalist note with a simple black halter top. Then came the one-two punch of a leopard print fringed skirt—a "more is more" moment, according to fashion editor Lauren Tappan.
"Here, she let her skirt do much of the talking, anchoring the rest of her outfit in pared-down black staples, including a simple tank, sharp heels, and oval shades," Tappan tells me. "In doing so, Taylor-Joy created the perfect amount of balance, and mastered the art of styling an anti-minimalist trend." The calf-grazing midi only became bolder past its small-to-large, leopard dots. Metallic fringe separated the animal print from the skirt's three-inch hem.
During Balmain's fashion show, a runway model slipped neutral tights into pointy, multi-strap mules. On the streets of New York, Taylor-Joy traded those for a peep-toe Giuseppe Zanotti pair. She didn't need much more than her skirt's fringe to accessorize her look—just Gentle Monster sunglasses and a $8,500 Tiffany & Co. ring.
Clearly, Marie Claire's Tappan wasn't the only fashion insider swayed by Spring 2026 fringe. It girls like Sabrina Carpenter, Dua Lipa, Teyana Taylor, Bella Hadid, Kylie Jenner, and Dakota Johnson have picked up where last September's runway circuit left off. On Jan. 21, Selena Gomez's date night Zara skirt boasted sequin fringe from top to bottom. Now that Taylor-Joy flagged its returning role in Fall 2026 collections, fringe could transform from a trend to a fixture of the year ahead in fashion.
