There have been frequent claims recently that micro-trends are dead—farewell to 'tomato girl,’ ‘eclectic grandpa’, ‘coastal grandmother,’ and ‘mob wives.’ In their place, #BringBack2016 is trending; that year being seen as the ‘last good year’ of digital innocence, offering a break from current and future anxieties.
Politically, 2016 was a particularly turbulent year: the UK voted to leave the European Union in the ‘Brexit’ referendum, and the United States fell short of electing its first female president, despite widespread expectations.

However, mainly focused on social media and the Internet, many young people are looking back ten years with rose-colored glasses. They envision 2016 as a simpler pre-pandemic, and less algorithmic era; before hyper-curated influencer content, AI, and intense performance on social media, And it’s leading to widespread cultural nostalgia for that year.

What better way to express that nostalgia than through clothing? Not only are people posting images of themselves from 2016 on IG and other social media platforms, they are also rummaging through closets to find their favourite pieces from ten years ago.

So with the FW2026 ready-to-wear collections starting shortly, it’s a good time to look back at some of the ones that might be revisited or referenced this year. These images were taken during the February/March 2016 and September/October 2016 Fashion Weeks and we will no doubt see similar styles during 2026 both on and off the runways.