Feeling nostalgic about the last 12 months? You needn’t look far for end-of-year recaps: Vogue Runway has its Year in Fashion poll; Vogue Business its running trend trackers and innovators lists. Lyst has a quarterly index, Pinterest has its annual predictions, and Google its top 100 gifts. Our own look back overlaps in some places—it’s only natural—but where our point of view differs is that we’re just as curious about what you clicked on as what you bought. Our collective shopping carts act as a prism to tell a broader story of the brands we couldn’t get enough of, the trends that shaped our wardrobes, and the outfits that captured the cultural zeitgeist. Here’s what rose to the Top of the Carts in 2025.
1. The Nour Hammour Leather Jacket
Co-founded in 2013 by Nour Hammour and Erin Webb, we’ve long been fans of the Paris-based label sought after for its enduring luxury outerwear—and which began over a decade ago as made-to-order business; to this day the brand remains committed to a minimal-to-no inventory ethos. Its ever-growing cast of A-list fans—Rosie Huntington-Whitely, Vittoria Ceretti, Emily Ratajkowski, and Kendall Jenner to name a few—helped secure its place on Lyst’s 2025’s Q3 list as a “brand to watch”. The Drey, Beck, and Clint styles are just a few of the leather jackets you’ll find in many of our edits; the Ariste, new for fall, unequivocally shaped the season’s funnel-neck jacket trend.
2. The Under-$300 Sneaker
Tracking celebs’ looks this year proved that sneakers are the ultimate wardrobe equalizer. Whether it was Dua Lipa in the sold out Jacquemus x Nike Moons, Katie Holmes in Nike Cortez or Autry sneakers, or even Emily Ratajkowski in her bright red Puma Speedcats, an easy everyday shape was the off-duty shoe of choice no matter the season—and not a day went by when you, the readers, picked up a pair.
3. The Chocolate Brown Bag
From runway to street style, everyone’s go-to bag wasn’t black or camel, but a rich, chocolate-y brown (call it mocha mousse, if you must). In suede or leather, as a top-handle or a slouchy carryall—you didn’t play favorites, and neither could we.
4. The Pop of Red
A shortcut to trigger the dopamine receptors, flashes of red gave wardrobes a lively and confident jolt that matched the season’s “come as you are” attitude.
5. The Saint Laurent Brown Suede Loafer
Some trends in 2025 were total wild cards, others took us back to basics. Saint Laurent’s brown suede loafer turned out to be a wardrobe workhorse—and a regular feature on Gab Waller’s Hot List this year. Unsure how to wear it? Do as Tonne Goodman would and pair with crisp white jeans.
6. The Ralph Lauren Everything
It would only makes sense that in a bumper year for preppy style, Ralph Lauren’s colorful cable knits and logoed caps would reach their apotheosis.
7. The Rugby Shirt
Somewhere between sporty and bookish academia, the striped rugby shirt emerged as the breakout star. Seeing it everywhere during Paris Fashion Week (not to mention the Vogue offices), reminded us that some pieces are best borrowed from the boys. Style it the Prada way with a pleated midiskirt, zip-up jacket, and brogues for the Milanese’s take on charming tongue-in-cheek.
8. The Dries Van Noten Sneaker
Dries Van Noten’s retro runners hit their stride at the top of 2025, when you could hardly find a single size—let alone colorway—in stock. Julian Klausner featured a bright red suede pair, among others, in his debut men’s spring/summer 2026 show; even slimmer 2.0 versions cropped up in his first women’s collection a few months later.
9. The Do-It-All Scarf
If 2025 had one not-so-secret styling secret, it was the silk scarf. Swooped up into the canon after Klausner’s menswear debut, it became the accessory that could do it all. At Copenhagen, New York, and Paris Fashion Week, editors cinched it at the waist with tailored trousers; online, it added color to ponytails and low buns in endless iterations. With personality dressing defining the year, a luxe silk scarf became the finishing touch every great outfit shared.
10. The Flip-Flop
Exposed toes divided the fashion set, particularly in New York, where the idea of revealing your “dogs” meant risky business for subway commuters. Fortune favors the brave, and some of our favorite looks only made sense with the controversial summer sandal.
.jpg)
11. The Tory Burch Flower Tank
The sartorial equivalent of a Summer Friday, seen on editors with flip-flops and Tory Burch’s mirror skirt.
12. The Juju Vera Petra Necklace
It was the summer of the statement pendant, with Juju Vera’s Petra necklace making it onto pretty much every fashion girl’s mood board—ours included after originally seeing it on the always-polished Alyssa Kapito in her 2024 Vogue feature.
13. The Prada Sneakerina
Prada’s graceful, ballet-like sneakers quickly found favor with the street style set after their men’s spring/summer 2025 runway debut, but it was none other than Harry Styles in his micro Adidas shorts who cemented their mainstream popularity. Now, with the recent re-release of the 2005 Montecarlo, it’s once again clear: Mrs. Prada drew the blueprint.
14. The Leopard-Print Coat
The runway-to-reality pipeline was strong for the leopard-print coat. Equal parts bold and timeless, it’s a reminder that cats do rule the world. (Sorry, dogues.)
15. Anything With a Lace Trim
If you scrolled through Instagram at all the last six months, chances are you saw a whole lot of lace—the delicate fabric brought romance to everyday staples when styled with easy white tees and soft cashmere knits. Dôen’s silky, lace-trimmed separates were top of mind, selling out multiple times over.
16. The Aflalo Lolana Pant
While the genie pant’s buoyant return can be traced back to Alaïa and Chloé’s spring/summer 2025 shows, our favorite interpretation had to be Aflalo’s Lolana pants: A lightweight silk crepe de chine rendition in a handful of colors to good to choose just one. With a statement belt, ballet flats, and tank, the look balanced comfort with high‑impact style.
17. Heads Up!
Jaunty toppers made for excellent front row conversation starters the past two seasons.
18. The Phoebe Philo Bombe Shades
It’s rare for an accessory to excel in function and spark a full-blown fashion frenzy, but Phoebe Philo’s Bombe shades did exactly that. The dramatically oversized, ski goggle-esque silhouette became the street style standout of 2025—equal parts UV armor and ultra-sleek attitude. At PFW, fashion insider Ramya Giangola made them her signature finishing touch, anchoring every personality-packed look with bold flair.
19. The Tote Seen Around NYC
Spotting an Alex Mill tote in the wild—i.e. the elevator banks of 1 World Trade Center—inspired a sense of camaraderie and spontaneous small talk amongst the writers and editors that not even years of working on the same floor could do.
20. The Chloé Paddington
Straight from the Chloé archives came the Paddington—an East-West shoulder bag with a chunky padlock and dangling key that originally debuted on the label’s spring 2005 runway. With the help of long-standing muse Alexa Chung and freshly-minted Chloé girl, Daisy Edgar-Jones, its nostalgic appeal was immediate. Vintage lovers: Now’s when you turn to eBay for early-aughts originals.
21. The Prada Pump
Only Mrs. Prada can turn flights of fancy into coveted essentials: This year, it was an antique leather pump that looked stapled together in the best possible way.
22. The Below-the-Ankle Charm
Toe rings and charm-laden anklets weren’t exactly on our bingo cards, but that didn’t stop us from playing for keeps. Meg Strachan gave us a first taste with Dorsey’s surfer-chic paracord anklets; Tessa Tran rode the wave with Chan Luu pedicure parties on both coasts. The trend crested with Leandra Medine, who to this day remains inseparable from her blingy creations with Aflalo.
23. The Row Market Tote
While Kendall Jenner and Zoë Kravitz were quick to add one of The Row’s multicolored Barn totes to their collections of Marlos and Parks, inexpensive mesh shoppers corralled from local farmers’ markets and travels abroad were equally emblematic of the trend.
24. The Tiny Watch
The biggest watch flex this year was teeny-tiny, best worn stacked like jewelry in multiples.
25. The Trend We Wish Took Off But Didn’t
Pony hair!
