When it comes to clothing, grey might typically be associated with the drab and the corporate – a uniform of neutrality to make its wearer go unnoticed (or, at least, fade away into the crowd).
Though this season, designers have embraced the non-hue for a grayscale wardrobe which twists up the office uniform in subversive style. Take, for example, Simone Bellotti’s debut collection for Jil Sander, where a pencil skirt in mid-grey wool was slashed across its front, recalling a Lucio Fontana canvas.
Fade to grey: the new working uniform
Jacket, £2,400, by Phoebe Philo (phoebephilo.com). Skirt, £550, by Margaret Howell (margarethowell.co.uk). Shoes, £1,755, by Saint Laurent by Anthony Vaccarello (ysl.com)
Or Prada, where the classic Prada uniform was mixed up with eveningwear in an intriguing collage, seeing epaulette shirts worn with opera gloves, or bra tops constructed in tailoring wool. ‘In the combination of the different elements, in this idea of composition, there is a choice and freedom,’ said co-creative directors Miuccia Prada and Raf Simons at the time. ‘It is fashion that is connected inherently to the world, with a meaning and usefulness.’
Elsewhere, it was the tailored suit which came into focus: at his Chanel debut, Matthieu Blazy twisted up the house’s classic tweed suit by slicing the blazer across its hemline, while at Phoebe Philo, the eponymous designer proposed an elastic panel across a jacket’s back to give a shape both unusual and flattering (a throughline of her work).
Here, as seen in the April 2026 Global Interiors issue of Wallpaper*, photographer Sasha Marro and Wallpaper* Fashion & Creative Director Jason Hughes embrace the grey area with a series of S/S 2026’s most striking looks.
Coat, £20,370; collar, £2,220; scarf, £360, all by Bottega Veneta (bottegaveneta.com)
Top; skirt, both price on request, by Jil Sander (jilsander.com). Tights, £44, by Falke (falke.com)
Jacket, $580; top, $240, both by Lii (lii-studio.com). Shoes, £1,775; earrings, price on request, both by Saint Laurent by Anthony Vaccarello (ysl.com).Tights, £35, by Wolford (wolford.com)
Jacket, £6,400; skirt, £3,990; belt, £755; shoes, £1,775, all by Saint Laurent by Anthony Vaccarello (ysl.com). Top, £940; top (underneath), £423, both by Carven (carven.com). Tights, £35, by Wolford (wolford.com)
Top, £2,000; top (underneath), £1,750; top (underneath), £1,010; skirt, £3,250, all by Miu Miu (miumiu.com). Skirt (underneath), £210, by Our Legacy (ourlegacy.com)
Jacket, £1,910, by Issey Miyake (isseymiyake.com)
Jacket, £5,310; skirt, £4,090; necklace, £1,030, all by Chanel (chanel.com). Shoes, £1,775, by Saint Laurent by Anthony Vaccarello (ysl.com). Tights, £35, by Wolford (wolford.com)
Jacket, price on request, by Alaïa (maison-alaia.com). Bodysuit, £210; tights, £35, both by Wolford (wolford.com). Shoes, £1,775, by Saint Laurent by Anthony Vaccarello (ysl.com)
Dress, price on request, by Acne Studios (acnestudios.com) Jumper, £425, by Margaret Howell (margarethowell.co.uk). Earrings, price on request, by Saint Laurent by Anthony Vaccarello (ysl.com)
Shop the story
Model: Emese Nyiro at IMG Models London. Casting: Lisa Dymph Megens at Industry Art. Hair: Yumi Nakada-Dingle using Bumble and Bumble. Make-up: Sunao Takahashi at Debbie Jones Management using Chanel Denim Collection and No. 1 de Chanel Body Serum-In-Mist. Photography assistants: William Fleming. Ricardo Muñoz Carter Fashion assistant: Nathan Fox. Production assistants: Archie Thomson, Indy Davy.
A version of this story appears in the April 2026 Global Interiors Issue of Wallpaper*, available on the Wallpaper* app on Apple iOS, and to subscribers of Apple News + now. Subscribe to Wallpaper* today