Fringe and volume were the headline trend from Edeline Lee’s spring/summer 2026 London Fashion Week show.
The Canadian-born designer apprenticed with Alexander McQueen in London and John Galliano in Paris, where she learnt the importance of proportion and symmetry.
When the Princess of Wales wore Lee’s asymmetrically pleated plait midi skirt during a visit to Cornwall it put her firmly on the mainstream map.
This collection had a commitment to proportion we would expect from Lee, but this time she led with volume and space.
The show included a grey dress that ballooned at the hip then tapered toward the hem, its construction both generous and disciplined. This piece set the tone for the show – bold shapes with internal structure enough to make them more wearable than dramatic.
Throughout there was a clear tension between expansion and restraint.
Lilac and white skirts hung with long threads that caught every step; a mint green skirt was gathered to swell, yet fell into clean panels so the movement did not feel chaotic.
Sequin detailing appeared in places, often edged into fringe at hems, but always anchored by simple, unadorned bodices.
The upper thirds of the looks were mostly high-necked, sleeveless or gently ruffled collars; ornament stayed below the waist.
Colours in the collection were a classic spring palette of pastels, such as lilac, mint and sky blue.
Later however, deeper cobalt, crisp whites and flashes of silver entered, used sparingly so they surprised rather than overwhelmed.
Fabrics looked resilient; hems were generous but not impractical; volumes, even when large, seemed engineered to hold shape rather than collapse. The grey opening dress, for instance, looked as though it would retain form even after hours of wear; fringed skirts and flowing panels offered movement without asking too much of the wearer.
Of course, the more dramatic pieces carry caveats. Balloons and fringe make for striking visuals but are harder to wear, but Lee seems aware of the trade-offs: for every outsize silhouette, there was a scaled-back variant.
The tools she uses of fringe, volume and shine are offered in more than one size, so to speak.
Compared with last season, spring/summer 2026 feels more fun and structured. Lee sharpened her focus on the latter: how to suspend fabric, how to let shape carry energy. The pieces felt less like experiments and more like well-thought-out statements.
The standout trends, like many of her contemporaries, appeared to be fringe and volume this season. But for Lee they posed as more than trends but tools for giving women space and presence.
It is a restrained, assured collection that refines Lee’s exploration of space and movement into something tangible: high-necked tops pared back to the point of purity, skirts that balloon or fringe without losing control and pastel tones cut through with flashes of cobalt and silver.
By anchoring fringe and volume in disciplined cutting and a carefully stepped colour palette, Lee turned the clothes into a commentary on the power of proportion and how excessive volume can frame, rather than swamp, the body.
It is a trend that is sure to catch on next season.
