Why Is Romance So Universally Appealing Right Now?

Coming off Fall 2026 fashion month this past March, we were left with a lingering, wistful feeling of romance. The Wuthering Heights press tour was in full swing, and there seemed to be a startling overlap between the subverted feminine tropes playing out onscreen and those walking down the runways. In Paris, Saint Laurent showed a procession of startlingly similar dresses with moody-hued lace serving as models’ second skin. Chloé’s Chemena Kamali played with ruffles, chiffon, and embroidery. And at Dior, tiered cupcake skirts with trailing trains could have been plucked straight off Marie Antoinette’s buffet table—the Sofia Coppola version, of course. Throughout the month, similar ideas popped up in the collections of Colleen Allen, Erdem, Simone Rocha, and Khaite, where the fashion felt frothy and feminine. In Forbidden Fruits , the four main characters host a séance in frilly Rodarte dresses embellished with lace and ribbons. The costumes may conduct a romantic feel, but the plot does not—someone’s about to get initiated into a cult. Wuthering Heights may look romantic but it doesn’t really feel romantic. Each is provocative…