NEW YORK, NEW YORK - MAY 05: Zendaya attends the 2025 Met Gala Celebrating "Superfine: Tailoring Black Style" at Metropolitan Museum of Art on May 05, 2025 in New York City. (Photo by Dimitrios Kambouris/Getty Images for The Met Museum/Vogue)
NEW YORK, NEW YORK – MAY 05: Zendaya attends the 2025 Met Gala Celebrating “Superfine: Tailoring Black Style” at Metropolitan Museum of Art on May 05, 2025 in New York City. (Photo by Dimitrios Kambouris/Getty Images for The Met Museum/Vogue)

Somewhere between rosette tops and coquette micro-moments — all bows, lace, and soft-focus femininity — fashion quietly outgrew the novelty phase and dressing older found its way back. The baby tees, the decorative chaos, the outfits engineered to scream look at me started to feel less playful and more… exhausting. And almost overnight, the coolest women in the room pivoted.

They started dressing older. On purpose.

Not corporate. Not boring. Not a rejection of femininity. This is polish with confidence — clothes that don’t need explaining, outfits that hold their own in daylight, and pieces that suggest you own a wardrobe, not just a mood board. The flex isn’t looking cute anymore. It’s looking certain.

Case in point: Zendaya, who has essentially turned tailoring into a form of self-expression. Her recent run of razor-sharp suits proves that structure can be just as compelling as skin — maybe more so when it comes with intention and control. This isn’t office wear. It’s authority dressing, reimagined.

Sofia Richie Grainge is seen on April 27, 2025 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by Rachpoot/Bauer-Griffin/GC Images)
Sofia Richie Grainge is seen on April 27, 2025 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by Rachpoot/Bauer-Griffin/GC Images)

Then there’s Sofia Richie Grainge, whose pared-back aesthetic has become shorthand for the great grown-up reset. Clean silhouettes, neutral palettes, zero chaos. Her looks don’t chase trends — they edit them. It’s less about minimalism and more about restraint, which, in 2026, reads as power.

Off-duty, Hailey Bieber has mastered elevated basics — long coats, loafers, great trousers — while Jennifer Lawrence leans into relaxed menswear that feels borrowed from a very chic, very competent man. These aren’t outfits built for a single post. They’re uniforms. Repeatable. Reliable. Grown.

Rihanna is seen on December 16, 2025 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by DUTCH/Bauer-Griffin/GC Images)
Rihanna is seen on December 16, 2025 in Los Angeles, California. (Photo by DUTCH/Bauer-Griffin/GC Images)

And before anyone labels this as quiet luxury fatigue, enter Rihanna. She remains the ultimate counterpoint — proof that dressing older doesn’t mean dressing quieter. Oversized, sculptural, dramatic? Yes. But never random. Every look feels designed, not decorated. That’s the difference.

Jenna Ortega wears Dior outside the Dior show during the Womenswear Spring Summer 2026 as part of Paris Fashion Week on October 01, 2025 in Paris, France. (Photo by Kirstin Sinclair/Getty Images)
Jenna Ortega wears Dior outside the Dior show during the Womenswear Spring Summer 2026 as part of Paris Fashion Week on October 01, 2025 in Paris, France. (Photo by Kirstin Sinclair/Getty Images)

The shift is showing up with a younger set, too. Jenna Ortega has traded novelty goth for cleaner lines and longer silhouettes, while Dakota and Elle Fanning are leaning into tailoring, trousers, and coats that look like they’ll still matter five years from now. Fashion with a shelf life.

Even the men are moving in step. A$AP Rocky continues to prove that elevated dressing can still feel playful — just upgraded — while Lewis Hamilton approaches style with precision: sharp silhouettes, rich textures, no wasted moves.

At its core, this moment isn’t about age. It’s about intention. Fewer pieces, better ones. Outfits you repeat because they work. A coat that does the heavy lifting. Trousers that replace the need for a “going-out top.” One excellent bag instead of five novelty ones you regret by summer.

Because right now, the ultimate flex isn’t youth.

It’s control — and dressing like you know exactly what you’re doing.

Dressing Older, Done Right: SHOP NOW

Pair a soft knit with tailored trousers, anchor the look with a blazer, and stop there. Restraint is the point — and the flex. High, low, and everything in between — because great style should work at every price point.

BLAZER (WARDROBE ANCHOR)

Saint Laurent Jacket in Silk Habotai; $4,100. SHOP NOW
Saint Laurent Jacket in Silk Habotai, $4,100. SHOP NOW 

Classic structure with modern polish — a forever blazer that works year-round.

Aritzia Babaton Standout Blazer; $248. SHOP NOW
Aritzia Babaton Standout Blazer, $248. SHOP NOW

Clean lines, modern tailoring, and endlessly versatile for work or weekend.

TOPS

Toteme Mohair blend rib knit black; $640. SHOP NOW.
Toteme Mohair blend rib knit black, $640. SHOP NOW

Polished, minimal, and endlessly wearable — the kind of top that makes everything else look smarter.

Uniqlo cashmere sweater; $79. SHOP NOW.
Uniqlo cashmere sweater, $79. SHOP NOW

Affordable cashmere that looks polished on its own or layered under tailoring.

BOTTOMS

The Row Orieno Pant; $1,350; SHOP NOW.
The Row Orieno Pant, $1,350. SHOP NOW

Fluid, tailored, and quietly powerful — these replace a going-out dress entirely.

COS Tailored Straight Leg Trousers; $129. SHOP NOW.
COS Tailored Straight Leg Trousers, $129. SHOP NOW

Sharp but relaxed, and instantly grown-up without trying too hard.

ACCESSORIES

Bottega Veneta Small Andiamo Chain bag; $5,100. SHOP NOW
Bottega Veneta Small Andiamo Chain bag, $5,100. SHOP NOW

Soft structure and woven leather that instantly elevate even the simplest outfit.

Schutz Boris Stiletto Slingback Pump; $148. SHOP NOW
Schutz Boris Stiletto Slingback Pump, $148. SHOP NOW

A polished, walkable heel that works from day to night.