2016 Fashion: Why Chokers, Bombers and Velvet Are Back After Ten Years

Over the holidays, the first trend of 2026 turned out to be the year 2016. Almost as soon as the clock struck midnight on January 1, users started posting throwback snaps and videos of themselves using the Rio de Janeiro filter, and a TikTok video from the night before had set it off. Ex-Vogue editor Leah Faye Cooper told ABC News that people are longing for a time that felt simpler and more optimistic. That is reason enough to reopen the closet, and 2016 fashion is the part you can shop.

 

Vogue's shorthand for the look is merch worn with a choker, maybe a bomber layered on top. Its advice for reviving it is the one I would follow: do not recreate 2016, channel its spirit. So I would pick one piece from that year and let everything else be modern.

 

The easiest piece to start with is the choker. Ralph Lauren, Dior, Elie Saab and Alexander Wang all sent versions down the fall and spring 2016 runways, and by festival season it had replaced the flower crown. Today it is a statement accessory that sits right on the body.

 

In our fashion dreams, she is walking out in a plain black tee and a worn-in blazer with a black stretch tattoo choker, the small metal beads catching the light. I would also look at the Eliza heart locket on a ribbon, because the locket really opens. The Lover satin wrap choker from Five Fourty Nine ties in a bow with a small gold heart, and the Poppy ribbon choker from Astor & Orion is a wide white satin band with a sculpted gold flower. For something softer, the Off-White arrow charm bead choker is all blush stones. Tip: check the closure and the length before you commit, since a choker that sits too loose is just a necklace.

Harper's Bazaar spotted the bomber first on the Vetements runway in early 2016, and by spring the satin version, often embroidered, was everywhere. A fashion search platform reported one bomber sold every three minutes in May of that year. That makes it a true 2016 piece.

 

The way to wear it now, according to stylist Ingvarsson, is cropped or oversized, in technical fabrics, with tailored pieces instead of the skinny jean uniform. I would take that literally. The Alpha Industries MA-1 cropped flight jacket in cream has an orange-red flash on the sleeve and would sit well over a long skirt. The Levi's relaxed bomber in chateau gray is a water-resistant nylon with welt pockets, which makes it the October one, for wet walks to the train.

 

For the glossier route, the Manière De Voir Monique is a cropped brown satin bomber with wide shoulders and a ribbed band, and the adidas Originals SST is black satin with white stripes down the sleeves and a snap front. The Cynthia Rowley in army green is lightweight and soft with a relaxed fit, and the CITY BLUES jacket has a mauve and black cloudy print with striped trim.

 

Test: zip it, then lift your arms. The ribbed hem should stay at your waist, and satin should not pull across the back. The Members Only satin bomber in black and the cropped brown racer jacket are the plainest versions, with a snap collar on the racer.

 

What I would skip: a boxy cropped jacket over a high-waisted skirt if you want a long line. It will chop you at the wrong spot.

In June 2016, a fashion search platform saw 3,000 searches an hour for the off-the-shoulder top, called the bardot style after Brigitte Bardot. The versions coming back now are less festival and more thought through. Stylist Ingvarsson told The Zoe Report they are creeping back in a more refined way, and I agree with her.

 

Refined here means cleaner necklines and better fabric. The Witchery top in pale blue is fine-gauge jersey with a straight neckline, and the Project Social T Studio City in cream has a wide folded-over neckline with long sleeves. The Naked Wardrobe ruched top is dark and asymmetric with extra-long sleeves, which I would put under a coat in October. The Open Edit crossover in blush pink has a stretchy jersey wrap neckline that stays put.

 

For more drama, Petal & Pup's Rory is baby blue knit with a deep fold and flared sleeves. The ALICE + OLIVIA Alta is a cream sheer blouse with billowed sleeves and ruffles. The SUGARLIPS Genoa Kaila in black has layered ruffles across the neckline, and the BP. sweater in pink aurora is oversized, bubblegum pink and slips off one shoulder on purpose.

 

Test: raise your arms and reach forward. A neckline that rides up or slides down has the wrong elastic, and a fold should stay where you put it. Then wear it with high-waisted trousers or a plain denim skirt, and tights once it gets cold.

 

What I would skip: a clingy off-the-shoulder top under a bag with a heavy strap. It pulls the neckline down all day.

Pantone named two colors for 2016 for the first time, Rose Quartz and Serenity, and it said it wanted to transcend cultural and gender norms. Pink went on to take over fashion, but velvet was the winter story: a fashion search platform reported UK velvet clothes and accessories up 45 percent from August to December 2016. In London, velvet overtook lace as the most searched winter party dress in November.

 

The new velvet is less bodycon and more relaxed suiting, slouchy blazers and wide-leg trousers, according to The Zoe Report. That is why I would start with the trousers. The Commando wide leg pants are high-waisted black velvet with a smoothing waistband, and the ELLE Collection suit trousers are tailored with a high rise and a slight stretch. Put either with a plain knit and flat boots.

 

On top, the Belle & Bloom Eternity blazer is dark teal with a loose boyfriend cut, and the Endless Rose crushed velvet blazer is gold with padded shoulders. The Free People Lexi in dusty pink is an oversized button-down with a chest pocket, which reads very Rose Quartz. The Finery London Clementine is a black high-neck blouse with balloon sleeves.

 

For party dressing, the Steve Madden Mo is a wine midi with a funnel neck and a back slit, and the IVONNE dress is a dusty rose pleated maxi with long sleeves.

 

Test: rub the nap with your hand. If it looks different in two directions, hang it where the light hits it before you decide.

 

What I would skip: velvet from head to toe. One piece is rich, and three is a costume.

Millennial pink got its name in the summer of 2016, and The Cut said the color had grown to include everything from beige with a touch of blush to a peach-salmon hybrid. Esquire UK traces it back to Pantone's Rose Quartz. That is the thread through these shoes, and the pink slides especially.

 

For the lace-up flats, I would look at the Django & Juliette Keeria first, a low black leather flat with slight cut-out sides. The ZIGI Arreza has a pointed toe and corset-inspired lacing up the front. The FARM Rio Sea is a tan patent jelly ballerina with ankle-wrap laces and seashell charms, and the VIVAIA Miley is a blush knit square-toe flat that comes with three shoelace styles, so you can swap them out.

 

The slides are the pool-deck half of the story. The Calvin Klein Pereen in light pink has a wide band and a cushioned footbed, and the AllSaints Biggy in rose dust is a molded slide with tonal raised lettering. The Birkenstock Arizona Big Buckle in pink is waterproof EVA with oversized buckles, and the ANINE BING Isla in blush has a raised monogram on the wide band.

 

Test: tie the laces and walk the length of a room. They should hold without loosening or rubbing at the ankle. For slides, I would check that the footbed is cushioned where your heel lands.

 

What I would skip: slides outside once it is properly cold. Wear the lace-up flats with socks or tights, and keep the pink for the apartment.

I would pick one thing, not all five. A choker is the quickest way in, a bomber is the one I would wear most, and velvet trousers do the most work at a party. Then I would keep everything else plain, a clean tee and straight trousers, so the 2016 piece carries the look.

 

Before choosing any of it, I would check the closure on the choker, the hem on the bomber, the neckline on the off-the-shoulder top, and the nap on the velvet. Vogue's line, channel the spirit and not the literal look, is worth keeping on a sticky note.

 

Ten years ago, we thought this was just what we were wearing. It turns out it was a decade in the making.