aAt Milan Fashion Week, Gucci’s creative director Sabato de Sarno highlighted a timeless moment of street and runway style: the twinset. Gucci’s Spring/Summer 2025 runway featured bandeaus made from coffee-colored jacquard fabric, paired with matching jackets. For De Sarno, this twin set is an expression of “casual grandeur,” an irreverent, easy-going style of clothing that comes from a rustic era (specifically, the era when Jacqueline Kennedy Onassis vacationed in Capri). represents the approach to
Sophie Barker, stylist and co-founder of fashion directory Homeroom, says the latest revival of the twin set began about five years ago, when Katie Holmes wore a beige cardigan by New York designer Kite. She became a hot topic when she wore a matching bralette. Within an hour after a photo of the actor wearing the cashmere twin set was posted online, the bra sold out.
Twin sets are versatile. Can be worn preppy and minimal, streetwear or casual. The outer layer adds warmth, making it ideal for change-of-season weather. You can also wrap it around your shoulders when the sun comes out. For Barker, what makes it bearable is the sense of ease that comes through. “The easiest way is to just put it together and show it off without thinking too much about it,” she says.
Twinsets have been adopted by luxury brands such as Prada and Dior, as well as Australian designers such as Venroy and Scanlan Theodore. It sits at the intersection of the Venn diagram of the biggest trends of the past few years: quiet luxury, the return of ’90s fashion, and what appears to be “understated.”
The earliest evidence of twinsets appears to be a 1918 Coco Chanel design. A long cardigan is layered over a high-neck top with horizontal stripes in yellow, gray, and navy. Chanel is widely credited with casualizing womenswear by introducing sporty silhouettes that are practical and easy to move in, so it’s no surprise that the twin set is her creation.
Since then, the style has seen several revivals. In the 1950s and early 60s, they were worn with pearls and championed by Grace Kelly and Audrey Hepburn. In the late ’80s and early ’90s, stars such as Winona Ryder, Gwyneth Paltrow, and Jennifer Aniston styled them with capri pants and slip skirts for a modest, pared-back look.
Wynne Crawshaw, designer of New Zealand brand Wynne Hamlin, says each brand modernizes the look with twin sets made from luxurious fabrics and different proportions, like the cashmere that Holmes wore. says.
Victoria and Woods creative director Margie Woods says the style has become a staple in some women’s wardrobes. She has featured various versions of the twinset in her permanent collection since 2004. “Our customers have never waited for a ‘moment’ to realize their value,” she says.
Woods attributes this resurgence to surprising styling. “I think traditionally, twinsets have always had a conservative stigma… Their return has more to do with their liberation,” she says. “Paired with tailored pants, it’s a sophisticated silhouette for someone heading to the office, but for someone wearing a micro mini, it’s fun and flirty.”
If you’re drawn to twin sets but wary of looking like a secretary from an early season of Mad Men, Crawshaw suggests playing with style and texture when putting together an outfit. I am. “If your knitwear is cashmere or merino, pair it with fun jeans or cargo pants,” he says. “If your knit is chunky and oversized, pair it with a slip skirt or tailored pants and loafers.”
For a formal office, Barker suggests pairing the twin set with wide-legged wool trousers and chunky accessories, such as a silver or gunmetal chain necklace. If your workplace has a relaxed dress code or you work in a creative environment, she says a fitted wool twinset also goes well with low-slung baggy jeans and a chunky black leather belt. .
The simplicity of pairing a close-fitting silhouette underlayer with an outer layer made from the same fabric means it continues to please. “In every cycle of fashion, there are some garments that have gained value,” Woods says. “Not purely because they come back, but more because they never leave.”
