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Copenhagen Fashion Week is celebrating its 20th anniversary next week, and to commemorate those two decades of Scandi cool girl style, we here at Vogue are taking a look back not just at its impact on the runways, but on the streets.
Not only has the country given rise to some of the Internet’s most-followed influencers—as our resident CPHFW expert Laird Borrelli-Persson recently highlighted—but they’ve consistently been on top of fashion’s most talked-about trends—that is, when they’re not starting them (think: Butter yellow, a shade they embraced a full four years before the rest of the fashion world caught on).
From flowy dresses and fringe bangs to puff-sleeve dresses and glorious gingham, the Scandi set has paved the way for the biggest street style trends in recent memory. Here, we take a look back at their effortlessly elegant and undeniably cool contributions to the broader street style canon, from 2016 to today. Nyde!
2016: Easy Does It
A decade ago, our beloved street stylers made a very convincing case for easy, flowy dresses and perfectly fringed bangs. Sometimes less is, indeed, more.
2017: Leather Weather
In 2017, our Scandi cohort couldn’t get enough of leather—skirts, pants, boots, coats, you name it. It’s easy to see why.
2018: True Blue
From faded azure to inky indigo, this was the year that Stockholm Fashion Week attendees embraced the everyday allure of the straight-leg jean.
2019: Sunshine Ahead
Years before the rest of fashion set went gaga over the sunny, optimistic charm of the butter yellow trend, Emili Sindlev and the rest of Copenhagen’s best-dressed were already indulging the cheerful hue.
2020: Checked, Please!
Dorothy, we are definitely not in Kansas anymore. And the Scandi street stylers showed exactly how and why a gingham dress looks just as good in Copenhagen as it does in Kansas (or, for that matter, Oz).
2021: Masked Up
A year into COVID, these enterprising street stylers proved that even a mask and gloves can be chic accessories when worn with the right outfit.
2022: In-Vest-ed
We will always remember this as the year that the Ganni sweater vest took over Copenhagen Fashion Week.
2023: Stylish to Boot
It was back-to-back banner years for the popular Danish Ganni, when its popular cowboy boot was adopted en masse by the street style set, including social media savant Emma Chamberlain.
2024: Flower Power
Floral brooches were a must-have this year, proving that Scandi street style stars were feeling rosy (and look at the world with rose-colored glasses, natch).
2025: Goal!
R.I.P. to the beloved brand Saks Potts—but may their preppy-sporty-cool rugby shirt live on forever in street style.
2026: Frill Seekers
Danes paid homage to Cecilie Bahnsen—who hosted her tenth anniversary in Copenhagen—by showing up and showing out in her frilly, feminine puff-sleeve dresses. Vidunderlig!
