What Everyone Will Be Wearing to New York Fashion Week This September

If you haven't yet gotten on board with wearing a dress over pants, NYFW is the place to try it.

Chloe takes a playful approach, styling a green printed apron-style mini top over distressed, patched wide-leg denim, and finishing the look with crisp white pointed pumps, retro sunglasses, and a plaid tote. Genesis takes a chic evening approach, layering a black lace slip dress over black tailored trousers, accessorized with a slouchy suede clutch and sleek black slingback heels. 

This is one of those trends where the styling is just as important as the pieces themselves. Keep the dress short, let the denim show, add an unexpected accessory, and suddenly a combination that sounds questionable on paper starts making a lot more sense.

And isn't that half the fun of fashion week?

Sometimes the outfit doesn't need another layer, another accessory, or another trend. It just needs a really good shoe.

Statement shoes have a way of doing the heavy lifting for an otherwise simple look, which is especially useful when your NYFW schedule requires you to go from a morning show to lunch to an event to an afterparty without changing your entire outfit in between.

Valerie keeps her outfit understated in a loose black mini dress, letting her towering black-and-cream platform wedge sandals take center stage. Tori goes full eccentric bohemian in a vibrant chartreuse green asymmetrical dress paired with knee-high lace-up suede boots and a yellow tote bag.

Your feet may hate you by midnight, but your outfit won't.

If there is ever a week to abandon the idea of “just pick one color,” it is this one.

Helena wears a watercolor-printed purple, blue, and yellow set paired with a pink woven shoulder bag and a turquoise beaded necklace. Kiana channels high-octane glam in a metallic gold one-shoulder tunic paired with shiny gold harem trousers and embellished sandals.

This is one of those trends where I think overthinking it is your biggest enemy. Pick the colors you love, put them together, and see what happens. Fashion week is not the time to be afraid of a little color commitment.

Statement jewelry is taking over as the ultimate focal point. Whether you’re wearing a show-stopping fringe set or a breezy slip, a chunky, multi-layered necklace instantly elevates the fit.

Alix wears a dusty pink fringe set featuring a halter crop top, matching skirt, and black thong sandals, letting the cascading pink neckline double as a statement collar. Elena pairs a simple blush lace slip dress with a green beaded choker featuring an antique metal pendant.

What I like about this trend is that it doesn't require you to completely reinvent your personal style. You can wear the same dress you always reach for and add one piece that makes it feel entirely different.

If you've been waiting for a socially acceptable reason to wear something covered in sequins, rhinestones, metallic embellishments, or anything that catches the light from approximately three blocks away, consider this your sign. Sparkles are not just reserved for the afterparties anymore.

Sparkle has always had a place at NYFW, but the trick is making it feel like part of your personal style rather than a costume. Dana does this with a bright turquoise embellished dress layered over white trousers, while Julia takes a more vintage-inspired approach with a heavily embellished gold top, lace shorts, and black boots.

Sparkle doesn't have to mean going full disco ball, either. A beaded top, metallic bag, embellished shoe, or even a little shimmer can give an otherwise simple outfit some personality. Because if you're going to spend a week running around New York trying to make it to every show, you might as well give the street photographers something to work with.

New York Fashion Week is sexy, bold, and very, very chaotic. It’s a reminder why the hustle and bustle of the city is so addictive—the energy on the street is electric, the outfits are unmatched, and for seven days straight, nobody is afraid to show off their personal style. It’s not a subtle fashion week, but why would you ever come to New York to be subtle?