KAWAII COUTURE

TAKING THE TEMPERATURE AT TOKYO FASHION WEEK, FROM THE RUNWAY TO THE STREETS.

By Elisa Eymery

The Japanese conception of beauty is plural—it’s not easy to pin down. Consider the term kawaii, often translated as “cute.” More broadly, it encompasses what is desirable, applying just as well to the quiet elegance of the kimono as to the playfulness of the Harajuku girl, or to the rebellious, subcultural waves of street fashion that dominated Tokyo in the ’80s and ’90s. While what’s kawaii remains deeply rooted in the Japanese psyche, the capital’s Fall/Winter 2026 catwalks revealed refreshingly diverse modes of expressing feminine beauty.

Tokyo Fashion Week, headquartered at Shibuya Hikarie, spanned March 16 through the 21st. The gathering brought together just over 30 labels, offering fascinating insight into the Japanese creative scene and beyond. The local industry remains relatively independent from the usual circuits of New York, London, Paris, and Milan—and as such, it provided a space for Japanese designers to truly do their own thing.

Over my time in Tokyo, across the board, I noticed a version of womanhood tinged with sensuality. It was expressed unapologetically: sometimes sexy and figure-emphasizing, elsewhere slouchy and dripping with confidence—a bomber jacket with a fur collar and a graphic monochrome print, for instance, could give casual, alluring, and androgynous at once. I don’t give a damn fashion. On the runway, both versions appeared at Yueqi Qi. Elements of menswear tailoring coexisted with figure-hugging draping. On the street, cool kids favored impactful pieces that highlighted their personalities: metallic trousers and leather jackets for an edgier look, a black pencil skirt and boots for simple polish, or lots of layers for a whimsical effect.

Next came a bold and innovative vision of beauty that exaggerated and celebrated the curves of the body as if it were a sculpture—functioning seamlessly across genders. Yohei Ohno presented dresses with dramatic A-line silhouettes and sharp angles. At Houga, the mood was more classically elegant, yet still forward-thinking and full of volume; the boys were as pretty as the girls, donning full-length dresses with bows and ruffles with ease. Showgoers echoed this play on proportion; both men and women embraced smart tailoring that tended to cinch at the waist, as well as wide, princess-like skirts.

Kawaii prettiness, in its most girlish form, was still very much present, perhaps most clearly at Yusho Kobayashi: patchworked floral prints, pastel tones, bohemian crochet, and painted motifs. The overall impression resembled, in the best possible way, my six-year-old daughter’s creations, lending the week a sense of fun and self-affirming freedom. Outside, that spirit was everywhere. Stylist Reina Ogawa Clarke paired mid-length skirts with knitwear imbued with vintage charm. There were plenty of ultra-kawai, sometimes punk-leaning ladies who embraced an almost cosplay-like version of the aesthetic, complete with a sugary palette, abundant ruffles, and delicate coiffes. Other looks evoked kawaii more subtly, with playful bag charms or long white dresses that came off ultra-wearable when combined with trainers. A pleated skirt paired with a short pea coat avoided the schoolgirl trope, timeless and elegant.

In a society where views on gender roles can remain relatively conservative, and where youthful cuteness is often upheld as a dominant ideal, Tokyo’s fashion scene continues to carve out a space of remarkable freedom. What emerged this season was not a rejection of kawaii, but rather its next chapter—expanded, reinterpreted, and at times subverted into something more fluid. Women have long borrowed from traditionally masculine wardrobes; it feels refreshing to witness men moving in a similar direction, embracing skirts, dresses, and playful accessories. This is style at its most instinctual.