In the late 1990s and early 2000s, outfits bedazzled with gems were mostly associated with women and femininity. Whereas today, in 2026, clothing styles have become more androgynous as men have been emboldened to step out more into the different types of fashion there are.
“Men are just starting to be more open about their fashion choices,” said Jermaine Edwards II, fashion director at Journey Magazine. “A lot of men wear women’s clothing; it’s just we’re being more open now.”
Fashion stylist and writer Gabrielle Roach from Newport News, Virginia, believes that openness in the industry is what leads to fashion exploration and, in turn, breeds new ideas overall. Roach has seen new trends develop when designers and stylists decide to do something different and now finds that new trends develop when somebody has a vision of things yet to be done.
“The basis of high fashion or fashion in general is experimenting and doing things that have never been done before,” Roach said. “Fashion is built on that principle. Like trying to be unique and doing things that people haven’t seen before.”
This air of exploration is how celebrities like A$AP Rocky, Pharrell, Jonathan Majors, and many other icons have made men’s fashion spaces more comfortable to show more sides of themselves and push the idea that men aren’t one-dimensional.
This has seemingly happened with the perception of rhinestones and gems on clothing, which were once considered to be made for women and were found more on feminine-presenting pieces.
Cordell Jones, fashion enthusiast and writer for the Miami Herald, described the bedazzled style as “cyclical” and noted that trends and styles seem to always come around again, also mentioning that they often will take new forms when they cycle back.
“I feel like it’s evolved now to be able to work more with feminine and masculine presenting clothing as well,” Jones said. “It’s just kind of been able to grow more than it has been.”
Jones also brought up how independent creatives and smaller brands are helping drive the evolution of styles like bedazzling, which are the true drivers of culture shifts.
“While stones and bedazzling itself probably shows itself more on the runway, I feel like it’s probably more visible within streetwear brands.” Jones said, “The people of the movement are more of the independent designers.”
This evolution is how new and innovative ideas come to life and brands are starting to regain notoriety and popularity for their bejeweled and bedazzled collections. Like Roberto Cavalli’s holiday collection this year, where every piece shines brightly, featuring rhinestone handbags and sleek sequin dresses, or like True Religion’s innovation through their new spring collection, where they mix their traditional approach to their denim jeans with the current wave of comfort in their hoodies and jogging sets.
The innovation isn’t just seen at the top; in fact, most of it tends to start with smaller brands and designers. One example that Jones pointed to is Stolen Arts, a brand founded in 2020 by Darrian Scott, which has a distinct foot and focus on bringing rhinestones into the street-fashion world. They feature belts adorned with gems, rhinestones, and designs that have been what they used to fully differentiate themselves from the rest of the pack and really explore their creativity.
The fashion industry’s cyclical progression, as new decades, new years, and new times in general roll around, always seems to reintroduce a style that has been seen once before. It also brings about new ideas and reinventions of old ones that bring new air into the industry.
