Anne Hathaway Style Guide: Modern Romantic Dressing
Modern romantic dressing has taken over from cottagecore and coastal grandma. It’s softer, but it isn’t sweet: corsetry, ruffles, a slip of florals, worn with...
Modern romantic dressing has taken over from cottagecore and coastal grandma. It’s softer, but it isn’t sweet: corsetry, ruffles, a slip of florals, worn with enough edge that nobody mistakes you for a bridesmaid. Anne Hathaway has done versions of this for two decades, but her current run is the clearest read of it yet — a floral Valentino gown at the 2026 Oscars, a ruffled corset-bodice ensemble on the Devil Wears Prada 2 press tour. Structured, but soft. Here’s how to take the parts of it that actually work on a normal budget.
“Romantic doesn’t mean delicate. The best version of it has a spine.”
Her romantic palette
Five colours that carry the whole look
Cherry Red
#A91E22
Ivory
#F5EFE6
Blush
#E8C4C0
Butter Yellow
#F3D250
Black
#1A1A1A
The corset detail, worn like punctuation
The look people are still talking about is the two-tone Vaquera outfit from her Seoul press stop — a padded, ruffled bodice cinched like a corset over a soft blouse. You don’t need a full corset to borrow it. A corset-seamed top, a cinched waistband, or a plain corset belt over an otherwise simple dress does the same job: it gives a soft silhouette a waist, so the whole outfit reads structured instead of shapeless.
Shop corset-detail pieces
Florals that read grown-up
Her black-and-red floral Valentino gown at this year’s Oscars — a nod to her own Devil Wears Prada wardrobe — was proof that florals don’t have to be sweet. Dark grounds, oversized blooms and a fitted cut beat a ditsy micro-print every time. Keep the rest of the outfit plain, one statement floral piece and everything else solid, and it reads considered rather than costume.
Ballet flats, not heels
Off the red carpet, she’s been in mesh and patent ballet flats more than anything with a heel — a small choice that does a lot of work. Flats keep a romantic outfit from tipping into “dressed for a photo”, and they’re the easiest way to actually wear a fuller skirt or dress on a weekday.
The trench as a romantic neutral
A trench coat doesn’t sound romantic, and that’s the point — thrown over sequins, denim or a slip dress, it’s the thing that stops a whole outfit reading fancy dress. She’s worn hers over everything from soft-washed jeans to sequinned wide-leg trousers this year, and it’s the cheapest way to make one dressy piece do daytime too.
How to borrow it without the budget of a film press tour
Anchor one romantic piece
Pick one — a corset top, a floral dress, a ruffle blouse — and let it lead. Two romantic pieces at once tend to cancel each other out.
Break it with something plain
A blazer, straight jeans or a plain black bag stops the whole look tipping into costume.
Flat shoes do the heavy lifting
Heels make a romantic outfit look like it’s for an event. Flats make it look like your actual style.
Waist first, everything else follows
A corset seam, a belt, a wrap-tie — defining the waist is doing most of the work in nearly all of her recent looks.
None of this needs a stylist or a premiere invite. It’s a defined waist, one soft piece, flat shoes — and knowing when to stop adding things. Stock on anything with a corset seam tends to move fast, so don’t sit on it too long if something catches your eye.