Maybe it’s the Carolyn Bessette-Kennedy effect. Maybe it’s fashion’s obsession with power dressing right now. Whatever it is, I can’t stop seeing pencil skirts everywhere. I first spotted the throwback style on Hailey Bieber last week, and for a second, I thought my eyes were playing tricks on me. Surely the world’s ultimate style muse wasn’t wearing something I had always written off as strictly corporate, business-core. But she was. And, of course, like she always does, she made it look absolutely fabulous. Then I saw Dua Lipa and Bella Hadid wearing pencil skirts too, and it was at that moment that I felt completely left out. Clearly, the knee-length power skirt is back, and our favorite style icons just showed us exactly how chic they can be.
For the longest time, I was totally anti-pencil skirt. For me, a skirt had to be either long or mini—never anything in between. That mid-length just felt like it lacked an edge, was a little too basic, and would cause me to blend right in with a sea of Wall Streeters (no offense to all you finance people, but typical workwear wardrobes are so blah). But lately the A-listers have cracked the code, finding versions of the skirt that feel way more adventurous—think unexpected fabrics like leather and lace or cool details like feathers and fringe. Dua was out recently wearing a white mesh style with feathers at the hem, and it honestly rewired my brain chemistry.
Oh, and best believe they’ve made their way to the runways, too—so consider it official. Fashion has spoken. Bella walked the Saint Laurent show in Paris for Fall 2026 in a black lace pencil skirt paired with a burnt-orange bodysuit, and I’ve had the look pinned in my head ever since as a summer outfit I fully plan on recreating. It’s fun and bold, but thanks to that knee-grazing length, it still feels sleek and totally elevated.
Bella was ahead of the game, though! Weeks before her runway moment, she was spotted wearing a leather pencil skirt with a cobalt blue color-block sweater (which, by the way, is also shaping up to be a major 2026 trend!) and oversized black sunglasses. The whole ensemble was very much giving big HBIC energy. Proof that you can give the classic business look a whole new personality.
I’m not surprised that all it took was the right styling to completely change my mind about a skirt I had fully sworn off. Pair it with an oversized jacket and heels, or go full lace and feathers—suddenly the skirt has range. Pencil skirts, you’ve officially won me over.
Megan Uy is an associate shopping editor at Cosmopolitan, where she searches for the best products in all things fashion, home, beauty, sex, gifts, and more, so you don’t have to. When she’s not writing for the site, she’s whipping up some cool and trendy content for the fashion section of the print magazine. She’s been with the brand since 2019 (when she was an itty-bitty editorial fellow), and she’s also written for Delish, House Beautiful, and People. Follow her on Instagram to get some BTS of the editor life and chaotic NYC content. Also, feel free to hit her up if you ever wanna discuss the madness that is TikTok.