Design trends · 2026

Trending design styles

The design styles gaining ground right now, taken from how often each one of Omoro's 224 styles is being used and whether it is likely to last. The first list is emerging: looks still taking shape as a named style. The second is in fashion: established styles having a moment that probably will not last.

Emerging design styles

17 styles

New this decade, or an older source brands are circling without a settled name yet.

  1. 01

    Cyanotype Photography

    Sun-printed iron chemistry: Prussian blue grounds, white silhouettes and brushed edges, from Anna Atkins's algae to contemporary botanical prints

    Why nowA large workshop and craft revival that is starting to appear in botanical, skincare and publishing identities.

  2. 02

    Craft Modernism

    Modern form made by hand: oiled wood, stoneware, paper lanterns and hand-stitched patchwork in cobalt, mustard, tomato red and olive, with the maker's marks left visible

    Why nowRising across interiors, hospitality and furniture as the reaction to flat, fast minimalism.

  3. 03

    Receipt Prints

    Thermal receipts treated as keepsakes: narrow vertical strips, faded one-bit images, monospace transaction type, totals, timestamps and barcode marks, creased and slightly degraded

    Why nowReceipt generators and pocket thermal printers made it a social format; brands are only beginning to use it well.

  4. 04

    Thread & Tape

    Assembled imagery held together in plain sight: photograph fragments, coloured paper, stitched thread, transparent tape, pins and hand-made joins

    Why nowIt is appearing across fashion, publishing and studio portfolios as a response to glossy, generated images.

  5. 05

    Rococo

    Shell-scroll ornament, pale gilt, powder pastels, mirrors and ribbons: the playful, sensuous style of the 1730s Paris salon, back through bows and coquette fashion

    Why nowBows, pastels and gilt are moving from fashion into beauty, confectionery and hospitality.

  6. 06

    Trompe-l'œil

    The image that pretends to be the thing: painted bows, printed folds, fake doorways and false shadows, an illusion played straight and admitted with a wink

    Why nowFashion has made it a signature and interiors and retail are following with painted architecture.

  7. 07

    Illuminated Manuscript

    Gold leaf, dense borders, decorated initials and creatures in the margins: the medieval hand-made book, revived by William Morris and again now

    Why nowThe medieval wave on social, in games and in fantasy publishing is large and mostly unnamed.

  8. 08

    Fauvism

    Colour used wrongly on purpose: green faces, red seas and violet trees in fast, thick, unblended strokes, from the 1905 Salon d'Automne to an illustration language for brands that want joy

    Why nowFood, wine, travel and summer brands are circling it under other names.

  9. 09

    Bead Lettering

    Words spelled out one bead at a time: chrome micro-beads and pearls laid along a letterform on coloured card, raised enough to throw a shadow

    Why nowJewellery, fashion and independent publishing have begun using it; it is not yet a template.

  10. 10

    Rebus

    A sentence where pictures stand in for words: big plain headline type with an object dropped into the line where the noun should be

    Why nowImage-in-headline layouts have spread quickly through brand campaigns and social design in the 2020s.

  11. 11

    Fabric Over Photo

    Real lace or tulle laid across a printed portrait and photographed again: the weave sharp on the paper, the face behind it soft and half gone

    Why nowBeauty, fragrance and fashion lookbooks are taking it up as they move away from hard retouching.

  12. 12

    Chromatic Airbrush

    Subjects dissolved into velvety airbrush gradients, coloured haze and impossible studio light: cyan, hot pink, acid green and saffron, soft focus over high gloss, artificial on purpose

    Why nowFashion, beauty and music imagery are moving toward it as they leave documentary realism.

  13. 13

    Naïve Design

    Graphic naïveté as a brand system: oversized abstract glyphs, loose handwritten marks, simple smiley, flower and fruit symbols, screenprint grain on cream uncoated paper, a six-colour palette and generous empty space

    Why nowWobbly illustration is everywhere; the restrained version, one printed glyph and a lot of space, is still being worked out by independent brands and small studios.

  14. 14

    Bubbleglam

    Inflated, glossy surfaces with candy colors and soft maximalism

    Why nowGrowing in beauty and lifestyle branding, not yet everywhere.

  15. 15

    Chromecore

    Liquid metal surfaces, reflective everything, and industrial futurism

    Why nowRising fast in beauty, tech, and fashion right now.

  16. 16

    Dreamcore

    Surreal liminal nostalgia with uncanny spaces, soft focus, and childhood memory distortion

    Why nowGrowing steadily in music and art-adjacent branding.

  17. 17

    Surreal Dreamcore

    Bright pastel interiors where aqua water, low clouds and impossible daylight calmly overtake familiar spaces

    Why nowStill forming as a named cluster distinct from dreamcore.

In fashion now

18 styles

Established styles that are everywhere at the moment, and read as a trend rather than a fixture.

  1. 18

    PS1 / Dreamcast Low-Poly

    Late-1990s 3D game imagery: low polygon counts, warping textures, fogged horizons, jagged silhouettes and CRT colour bleed in strange empty spaces

    Shelf lifeThe nostalgia cycle that carries it will move on; the atmospheric version outlives the ironic one.

  2. 19

    Acid Y2K

    Rave-flyer acid graphics crossed with Y2K futurism: liquid chrome type, acid green and ultraviolet on black, warped grids and jagged lettering

    Shelf lifeIt rides a nostalgia cycle and burns bright; expect it to cool and return.

  3. 20

    Synthwave

    Retro-futuristic 80s aesthetic with neon grids, sunset gradients, and chrome

    Shelf lifeTied to an 80s nostalgia wave that will eventually recede.

  4. 21

    Y2K

    Millennium optimism with inflatable textures, chrome, and cyber-organic forms

    Shelf lifeA nostalgia cycle that's already showing signs of fatigue.

  5. 22

    Cyberpop

    Digital maximalism meets pop culture with saturated screens and interface elements

    Shelf lifeTied to the current wave of digital nostalgia.

  6. 23

    Vaporwave

    Glitched nostalgia with Roman busts, pink gradients, and corporate surrealism

    Shelf lifeA specific internet-era aesthetic that has already cycled once.

  7. 24

    Neubrutalism

    Raw, bold interfaces with heavy borders, stark shadows, and unapologetic contrast

    Shelf lifeA specific reaction to the smooth SaaS look. It will pass too.

  8. 25

    Grainy Gradient Blur

    Atmospheric gradients with film grain and soft depth-of-field effects

    Shelf lifeA current mood-photography trend likely to fade with the next one.

  9. 26

    Kidcore

    Nostalgic childhood aesthetics with primary colors, toys, and playful innocence

    Shelf lifeTied to a specific millennial-childhood nostalgia wave.

  10. 27

    Cottagecore

    Rural romanticism celebrating pastoral life, wildflowers, and handmade domesticity

    Shelf lifePart of a broader slow-living trend that will eventually cool.

  11. 28

    Frutiger Aero

    2004–2013 glossy nature-tech optimism with skeuomorphic glass, water, and green landscapes

    Shelf lifeTied to a specific 2000s optimism that's currently cycling back.

  12. 29

    Corporate Memphis

    Flat illustration style with disproportionate figures, muted palettes, and tech-company ubiquity

    Shelf lifeAlready showing real signs of backlash and fatigue.

  13. 30

    Indie Groovy

    Organic curves, warm earth tones, and vinyl record warmth - the visual language of independent makers, small-batch goods, and slow living

    Shelf lifeTied to the current slow-living and small-batch cultural moment.

  14. 31

    Vintage 80s

    Miami Vice neons, chrome gradients, and airbrush glamour - the decade when excess was the point and every surface could shine

    Shelf lifeOne 80s nostalgia wave among several that keep cycling.

  15. 32

    Neo 3D

    Inflatable digital objects, soft subsurface scattering, and the Blender-community aesthetic of perfectly imperfect synthetic sculpture

    Shelf lifeTied to the current 3D-illustration wave in digital branding.

  16. 33

    Romantasy

    Dark romantic fantasy meets editorial luxury - jewel tones, baroque filigree, pre-Raphaelite painterly light, and gothic architecture elevated to fashion editorial

    Shelf lifeRiding a current fantasy-genre wave that will eventually cool.

  17. 34

    Clay Style

    Soft extruded 3D forms with rounded edges and matte, unlit surfaces, as if pressed from modelling clay

    Shelf lifeTied to a specific moment in 3D tooling becoming cheap.

  18. 35

    Aurora

    Luminous gradient fields that bleed through one another like polar light, with no hard edges and no visible source

    Shelf lifeReads as a category marker for a specific funding era.