Spring/Summer 2026 Womenswear Trend Forecast
“Surreal Freedom”
The Ask:
Create a womenswear trend forecast for Spring/Summer 2026 based on the concept of yearning
Julia Karns www.linkedin.com/in/julia-karns
The group
Sophia Nelson www.linkedin.com/in/sophia-nelson
A Note On Team Dynamics:
I took on a leadership role in image curation and concept development, working closely with the team to shape our creative direction and maintain cohesion. This project took place during my Spring 2025 semester abroad at Santa Reparata International School of the Arts in Florence, Italy. Most of us were third-year Fashion Merchandising students from the same university, while one teammate was a Business major from a different school—bringing diverse perspectives that ultimately strengthened our work.
Balancing different backgrounds and expertise levels presented challenges in maintaining engagement and ensuring quality standards. While I pushed the concept in a more experimental direction, other team members grounded our ideas in practical considerations like commercial potential. This dynamic created a final project that was both creatively original and commercially viable.
The experience reinforced the importance of advocating for my vision while remaining open to diverse perspectives—a critical skill in any collaborative creative environment.
Trista Anderson www.linkedin.com/in/trista-anderson
Key Words .𖥔 ݁ ˖
Key Words .𖥔 ݁ ˖
Our group began with an in-depth discussion and a collaborative Pinterest board to explore and refine our individual interpretations of the prompt. Once we established a shared understanding and direction, we developed a set of key words to ground our concept and keep the aesthetic consistent throughout the forecasting process.
Childlike Nostalgia
Liberation
Playfullness
Experimentation
Kitsch
Connection
Buyer Persona
Influences
Inspiration can be drawn from candy-like, plasticky ceramics, interiors, installations, and digital art
Influence of Generative AI
An appearance of fluid movement can be found within these silhouettes, making every piece feel as if it takes on a life of its own
Found inspiration by spending hours looking at artist’s work on Pinterest, Google, & Pinterest. The deeper I dove into a rabbit whole, the more inspired I became. I discovered a personal interest in digital design after coming across https://www.instagram.com/alexvxvxvxvx/#
Textiles, Materials, & Surfaces
Usage of mesh, knitted materials, & sheer overlapping fabrics in varying colors. Incorporation of abstract, rounded shapes and fun, unexpected embellishments.
Emphasis on tactile nature of materials
Drawing inspiration from inflated objects, jelly-like substances, and three-dimensional textural elements. Play with the endless possibilities “dream logic” by incorporating atypical surfaces and fluid or arbitrary shapes (Future Snoops, 2025).
While searching for inspiration, my professor mentioned the redundancy and lack of originality that can result from a classroom full of students referencing the same social media with the same algorithms for imagery. Therefor, I made a concerted effort to search for visual inspiration from various sources, such as Cosmos.
Color Guide & Design Inspiration
Within recent collections, brands such as Emilio Pucci and Florentina Leitner are pairing fluid, multi-dimensional silhouettes with playful colors, reminiscent of the youthful optimism of the digital age.
The Skills:
Visual Curation
Research
Trend Analysis
Copywriting
Negotiation
Outcome
“Surreal Freedom” reminds us that innovation doesn’t have to feel cold—it can sweat, and stick, and shimmer like sunlit water. We’re not just designing garments—we’re engineering nostalgia, sculpting sentiment, and bottling the feeling of sun on skin in mid-July.
I was incredibly proud of our final result and how we optimized the team around each member's strengths.
“Dream of Freedom” by Ivana Živić