New York Bridal Week Spring ’26 Report

This season, romanticism lingered at the heart of bridal, in shapes that evoked the inherent strength there is in femininity. In New York, designers returned to the idea that going back to traditional silhouettes leaves room to revel in the beauty of couture fabrications.

Voluminous silhouettes, pearl-strewn embellishment, sculptural florals, and drop waists embrace the poetry of yearning for sentimentality. A sense of the poetic beauty there is in idealism. Intricate textures and contoured shapes echoed the natural world, while nods to Renaissance dress reminded us of a time when the wedding dress held sacred weight. Gowns imbued with craft and reverence can slow time.

We look to the designers leading this quiet revival—Elie Saab, Monique Lhuillier, Andrew Kwon, Zuhair Murad—and share our highlights from Bridal Week.

Delicate Lace

Through lacework, and a softness that lingers, gowns evoked the quiet poetry of romanticism. Elie Saab and Zuhair Murad balanced structure with delicacy—lace traced over high necks, sheer sleeves, and sculpted bodices that spill into airy A-lines and gentle flares. Mira Zwillinger’s signature lightness, tactile lace, and barely-there draping echoed a femininity steeped in craftsmanship. Through fitted mermaids or skimming sheaths, gowns felt inscribed with quiet intimacy, where every detail—lace appliqué, sheer paneled sleeves, softly layered fabrics—unfolded like romance itself.

Sculptural Floral Motifs

Designers reinterpreted nature through couture gowns blooming with floral artistry. From Monique Lhuillier’s bold, sculptural blossoms to Galia Lahav’s soft draping and subtle florals, we saw a poetic interplay of texture, silhouette, and craftsmanship be constantly repeated. Ines Di Santo, Reem Acra, and Francesca Miranda explored hand-applied petals and delicate lacework, balancing ornate detail with a present lightness. Silhouettes shifted between voluminous tulle and sculpted forms, adorned with embroidery that was nuanced by cascading flowers and vines. Tulle, lace, organza, and silk enhanced movement, while structured bodices offered contrast—revealing an innate femininity.

Pearl Accents

We saw gowns explore the many forms pearl embellishment can take—fluid, architectural, romantic—and how they interact with silhouette and structure. Naeem Khan built drama through dense, geometric beading and cascading pearlwork that elongated and sculpted the form. While Francesca Miranda‘s soft columns with wave-like pearl placements, echoed motion. From sleek sheaths to voluminous skirts, pearls moved from bare surface textures to structural detail, anchoring voluminous shapes or finishing hemlines with fringe-like fluidity. From airy, ethereal layers that felt suspended to corseted bodices that balanced restraint with romance, looks fused old-world technique with modern linework.

Pearls are never just am embellishment. They create rhythm, contrast, and depth, transforming gowns into tactile expressions of form and feeling.

Sculptural & Layered Bodices

Gowns featured bodices balanced by structure and softness where silhouettes met sweeping movement, and tradition was reimagined through an editorial lens. Andrew Kwon leaned into sculpted shapes with cloud-like layers of organza and wind-swept bodices that felt as if caught mid-motion. Zuhair Murad refined through precise corsetry and sheerness, weightless layering that spoke of an opulence beneath form. Elie Saab offered a quiet kind of tailored silk folds and fluid minimalism, while Toni Maticevski brought tactile modernism. Off-shoulder, sculpted, and full of textural depth. Monique Lhuillier evoked an old-world glamour, but with restraint—clean lines and just a touch of drama.

Iridescent Beading

There’s always a transformative power of iridescent beadwork—how it sculpts, softens, and lights the silhouette. From Elie Saab’s off-shoulder A-lines using gradated embellishment to balance volume with softness. Whether densely scattered to add texture or delicately placed to enhance fluidity, beads mimicked water, or light and shadow. Zuhair Murad’s voluminous ballgowns and form fitting columns pulsed with brilliance as light played across fabrics. As we saw Ines Di Santo’s structured mermaid silhouettes with cascading beading, and Francesca Miranda’s sleek column shapes in wave-like shimmer, the artistry of bead placement became both form and function.

“A transformative power of iridescent beadwork—how it sculpts, softens, and lights the silhouette.”

Dramatic, Voluminous Sleeves

From Andrew Kwon to Monique Lhuillier, designers are leaning into scale, using sheer billows and sculptural poufs to add drama to even the most classic silhouettes. Whether paired with clean mermaid lines, softly draped skirts, or sweeping ballgowns, these sleeves become focal points—balancing architectural shapes with an ethereal, almost fantastical lightness. Some float like clouds around the shoulders, others balloon with couture precision, all weaving a narrative of modern romanticism. At once regal, this is a silhouette where boldness breathes through softness, and the traditional bridal silhouette is reimagined unapologetically.

Low Drop Waists

“Whether paired with delicate beading, billowing layers, or sleek minimalism, this silhouette sculpts the torso while inviting movement in the skirt.”

Minimalist Gowns

Gowns that stand in the beauty of restraint, pieces that embrace the bare and minimal with an elegance that speaks softly rather than shout. United by clean lines, fluid tailoring, and the quiet luxury of exquisite fabric, each design offers simplicity that elevates the wearer’s natural form. From Alyssa Kristin’s silk column that glides to Honor’s soft architectural draping and Francesca Miranda’s sculptural silhouettes, the focus is on the integrity of shape and the beauty of subtlety. Details are pared back to let pleats, soft peplums, and barely-there seams become the statement.

See a full edit of Bridal Designers on The Lane Directory.

Images by Marcos Sanchez for The Lane