Seemingly no collection was without some kind of slim and sleek tank silhouette; fashion’s Olympics-fuelLed athletic fixation has not yet waned. At Christian Dior, tanks had a sporty aspect. We also saw sophisticated takes on sportiness like billowy polo dresses and windbreakers in materials from nylon to satin, to wear with sequined dresses.

Circles and discs, symbols associated with femininity, were also abundant. The invitation to Jonathan Anderson’s spring show for Loewe was a ring, and on the runway the man who resurrected the structured pannier for spring/summer 2023, went further back in history to bring the bell-shaped hoop skirt back into rotation. His had a weightlessness the originals lacked. Panniers put in an appearance too, most notably on side-bolstered robe de style dresses popularised a century ago by Jeanne Lanvin. Also coming out from the shadows were bewitching looks. These ranged from the darkly mysterious (banshees were referenced at McQueen; Disney’s Wicked antiheroines made their presence known), to the romantic á la Stevie Nicks’s “Rhiannon” (who, as “a woman taken by the wind” is exceedingly on trend). Seduction is a kind of sorcery that designers played with via cone bras and transparent (tulle) veiling that was like a physical replication of a soft filter.

Softness and fluidity are not far apart, and into this especially feminine season, dandies made a dramatic entrance. At Saint Laurent the house founder was the muse. Sailors, Renaissance princes, Tudor kings, Little Lord Fauntleroy, and other storybook characters also came to life on the runways.

This analysis of the most directional spring trends is based on a review of over 400 brands in the four fashion capitals (New York, London, Milan, and Paris) as well as Tokyo, Copenhagen, and Berlin, plus women’s looks presented during menswear.

Cloud nine: inflated and stuffed shapes; bubble hems

Float away in power-pouf dresses that are stuffed or actually inflatable. More traditional bubble silhouettes offer a more down-to-earth alternative.

U-turns: Tank tops

A basic reimagined in myriad ways.

Bewitched: The seduction of dark romance

Free-spirited or severe, these looks cast a spell.

Leg it: Skorts and skirts-over-pants

Fashion loves a hybrid; this season the skant, and one-legged pants, are contending for your attention.

Soft filter: Tulle wraps

Designers redefined the idea of taking the veil for spring.

Get sporty: Upping the game on athleisure staples

Windbreakers with sequins, or floor-sweeping polo dresses for the win.

Suspended animation: Garments that make you wonder how they stay on

Further developing the idea of flatness introduced for autumn, designers turn to nude-illusion and other tricks of the trade to create anti-gravity looks.

Smells like…: Plaid for spring

Nirvana meets Country Living checks, for any season or type of weather.

Hoop dreams: Crinolines, farthingales and panniers, oh my!

Historical and novel, fashion borrows from the past.

Scout’s honour: Utility gear in khaki and olive drab

Into every wardrobe some functionality must come.

Continuous loop: spiral silhouettes

Spin that fabric right round, baby.

Fine and dandy: masculine archetypes

The world needs heroes, fashion delivers.