Once associated with formal dressing and inherited jewels, the brooch has, in recent seasons, become one of fashion’s most expressive accessories, appearing across the Autumn/Winter 2026 runways, red carpets and high jewellery collections.

For decades, the brooch was treated as an accessory from another time: beautiful, valuable and most likely stored away in a jewellery box. This season, however, designers and jewellery houses are making a convincing case for bringing it back into everyday wardrobes.

Brooches emerged as one of the most prominent jewellery trends on the Autumn/Winter 2026 runways, appearing at Giorgio Armani, Tory Burch, Ralph Lauren, Simone Rocha and Moschino. Rather than being confined to the lapel of a traditional jacket, they were pinned to pashminas, tweed, shirt collars, shoulders and unexpected points along the body.

That freedom is precisely what gives the brooch its renewed appeal. A necklace belongs around the neck, and a ring sits on the finger, but a brooch has no fixed position. It can transform a blazer, gather a silk scarf, decorate an evening dress or add a flash of jewellery to an abaya, knit or a white shirt.

The brooch has long been part of Chanel’s visual language. Gabrielle Chanel famously approached jewellery with irreverence, mixing precious pieces with costume designs and wearing them in abundance. Today, the house continues to reinterpret the accessory through its most recognisable symbols, including the camellia, lion, feather and N°5 bottle. Across fashion, fine jewellery and high jewellery, each creation offers a different expression of the Chanel codes.

Tiffany & Co.’s Bird on a Rock is another of jewellery’s most recognisable brooches. Created by Jean Schlumberger in 1965, the design depicts a diamond-set bird perched playfully upon an exceptional gemstone. Its imaginative appeal has allowed it to transcend generations, while recent interpretations by Nathalie Verdeille have expanded the motif into a broader range of high and fine jewellery.

Bvlgari has similarly explored the brooch through colour, movement and distinctive Italian glamour. The house’s historic Tremblant floral brooches brought gemstones to life through delicate, moving settings, while the Serpenti continues to offer a more sensual interpretation. A contemporary rose gold Serpenti brooch formed from mobile gold beads wraps around the fabric, creating a piece that feels tactile, sculptural and unmistakably Bvlgari.

Nature and fantasy shape many of Chopard’s most memorable designs. Its Animal World collection introduced 150 unique creations inspired by creatures from across the globe, while its Red Carpet collections regularly transform flowers, animals and storybook characters into miniature works of art. Zendaya recently brought the trend into focus at the Shanghai premiere of Spider-Man: Brand New Day, pinning a Chopard spider brooch to an archival Atelier Versace gown patterned like a web.

At Boucheron, the brooch draws on a 19th-century bestiary. Birds, insects and fantastical animals have appeared throughout the maison’s archives, balancing technical mastery with a distinctive sense of personality.

Whether vintage, inherited or newly created, the brooch offers individuality. Worn alone, clustered together or placed somewhere unexpected, it allows its owner to make the styling entirely their own.