Photo Credit: Daniel Quintanilla

MADE WITH OPTIMISM

Today at Texworld New York City here at the Javits Center, we get a first look at the fundamental fashion sourcing trends for spring and summer 2026. The key takeaway seen for next year when producing items is women’s and men’s apparel and accessories spell out futuristic abundance. With this being a more optimistic mindset, DANIEL PLUS LAUREN sees it as after 2025 is spent mainly on rebuilding, 2026 primarily celebrates the fruit of our labor with increased wealth and happiness. Candidates for new found happiness are 3 trends acting as one with eclectic tapestry of color, unity, and tactility, come in Whimsical-Wit, Engineered-Expression, and Muted-Modernism.

WHIMSICAL-WIT

Gone will be the minimal expression that GEN Z currently feeds on, GEN Z will finally find it in their hearts to play around more. Whimsical-Wit is a time where self-expression makes a comeback with a maximalist approach to lively color and stimulating patterns with sustainable and tactile materials. Self-expression consists of prints and patterns clashing while luxe fabrics are matched back to stalwart textiles like cotton jersey and denim. Materials consist of sweater knits, denim, cotton, and silks being foundation, while intarsias, graphics, and prints are artful, all taking on mixed textures, embossed leather, tape yarn, ombré lame, just to name a few. Colors completing the Whimsical-Wit come in first bloom, claret red, emberglow, quince, beacon blue, roasted russet, and blanc de blanc.

ENGINEERED-EXPRESSION

Taking it to the max as an understatement would be foolish, we already know and feel this will once again be the norm. Engineered-Expression celebrates the new maximalism era carved out for SS26 with innovative materials and clever construction to maximize the utility and versatility of every garment. In a max environment, uncertainty still exists as one is functional and practical, garments are multi-purposeful as our surroundings change fast. But at the very least, wardrobes are getting smarter by customization, innovative fabrics, sculptural silhouettes, and industrial details elevating utility. Materials consist of rugged textiles, smart knits, expandable pleating, and hardware for adapting product, all for coated denim, cotton tiptop, chain stitch yarn, and lurex slub rib. Colors engineered include pink tint, mocha bisque, set sail, delphinium blue, cloud dancer, and elderberry.

MUTED-MODERNISM

We’ve come to the final leg of SS26 as you finally have your best plans laid out, now it’s time to execute, and add shiny new toys to the plan. The challenge however is to update or modernize not so loudly. This is Muted-Modernism, projecting a softer interpretation of futuristic fashion, sleek silhouettes and straight edges tempered with soft textures and luminous hues. Unlike our past vision of the future, soft tactile appeal with glowing colors and fluid fabric ease us into the next digital age. The hardness of modernization smooth themselves out with seamless knits and plush piles of materials that are sharp streamlined silhouettes with liquid knits and sheer layers, accompanied by heathered fleece jersey, fine-gauge knit, lustrous denim, perforated leather, lightweight quilting, and moleskin. Colors for this quiet approach to modernism include electric green, bay, celosia orange, violet tulip, golden haze, pale lime yellow, and princess blue.

CONCLUSION

As you look into Texworld New York City’s outline of spring and summer 2026, you definitely will notice how colors despite different names are very similar in the 3 trend sourcing categories. As SS26 poses itself as a new beginning to a world after everything has been rebuilt, the future comes to you with ease. Self-expression and maximalism makes a comeback to a GEN Z universe who finally appear to abandon their past, 90’s minimal ways in favor of moving into the future. Though, the future will be taken seriously, but more or less softly, fabrics, silhouettes, and colors unite as one for an open culture. As the next chapter of fashion enters with a bold and calm approach, it’s now a perfect opportunity to celebrate sustainability in apparel and accessories that will play for more than one purpose. Overall, after years of turmoil that lasted for decades, it’s possible to bring on a new generation of fashion accompanied by a world that’s now fully developed, or at least makes a decision to celebrate people, and not empire.

DANIEL QUINTANILLA