Prada built its Spring/Summer 2027 collection around one of the most familiar pieces in the wardrobe. In Milan, Miuccia Prada and Raf Simons used the skirt to explore proportion, construction and material without settling on a single silhouette.
Prada made its intentions clear with the name of its Spring/Summer 2027 womenswear collection: The Skirt. Rather than placing the garment among several seasonal ideas, Miuccia Prada and Raf Simons made it the basis of the show, returning to skirts throughout the collection in different lengths, materials and constructions.
There wasn’t one skirt shape being proposed for next spring. Pleated versions appeared alongside sheer layers, printed styles and more structured pieces. Some stayed relatively close to the body, while others created volume through pleating, layering and exposed construction. The approach allowed Prada to focus on the garment without reducing the collection to a single hemline or silhouette.
The differences became particularly clear through the materials. Prada used Re-Nylon and ciré alongside cotton treated to resemble leather or suede. Floral prints and crystal embroidery brought decoration into the collection, while oversized jewelled fastenings appeared across other pieces. The same basic garment moved between technical, practical and highly embellished treatments.
Construction was another focus. Crinoline, traditionally concealed underneath clothing to create structure and volume, was brought to the outside of garments. Pleated sections extended away from the body, while layers exposed parts of the clothes that would usually be hidden.
Velcro was used prominently too. Contrasting strips functioned as fastenings but were also incorporated into the decoration, including as a base for crystals. The use of adjustable closures meant construction remained visible rather than disappearing into the finished garment.
The styling changed considerably from look to look. Skirts were worn with pieces of different proportions rather than following one repeated formula. Across the collection, this allowed a familiar garment to move between more formal, technical and decorative combinations.
That breadth is important to understanding the show. Prada wasn’t presenting the return of one specific skirt. Mini, midi, pleated, sheer and structured ideas could coexist because the collection was examining the garment itself. It also adds to the wider picture of Spring/Summer 2027 fashion trends emerging so far across the new-season collections.
The subject isn’t new territory for Prada. In 2004, the house opened Waist Down – Skirts by Miuccia Prada in Tokyo, an exhibition dedicated entirely to skirts. It drew on Prada collections dating back to 1988 and later travelled internationally. The exhibition separated the skirt from the complete outfit and examined the different ways its shape, construction and movement could be treated.
Its presentation also changed according to location. Rather than using a single exhibition design everywhere it travelled, Waist Down was adapted to its surroundings while maintaining the skirt as its central subject. The project established an earlier example of Prada treating the garment as something worth examining independently rather than simply as one part of a seasonal wardrobe.
More than two decades later, The Skirt returns to that subject through a runway collection. This time, different treatments sit alongside one another within the same season, from technical fabrics and visible construction to embroidery, prints and embellishment.
Beyond the Prada runway
Skirts are also visible elsewhere during Milan Fashion Week, although the evidence so far doesn’t support describing Spring/Summer 2027 as an entirely skirt-led season.
Current street-style photography from Milan shows the garment being worn in different lengths and combinations outside the shows. Knee-length skirts have appeared within the office-influenced dressing seen during the week, alongside longer and more decorative versions.
There are individual runway examples beyond Prada as well. Max Mara’s Spring/Summer 2027 collection included a brown wrap skirt with adjustable leather straps. It was one element within a broader collection rather than the organising idea seen at Prada.
That difference is worth maintaining as Milan Fashion Week continues. One major collection isn’t enough to establish that skirts will define the whole Spring/Summer 2027 season, and there is no reason yet to suggest trousers are disappearing.
Prada’s contribution is more specific. By building a collection around the skirt without choosing one dominant version, the house has put the garment firmly into the early SS27 conversation. The remaining Milan shows will give us a clearer indication of whether other designers are moving in the same direction.
