The Victoria’s Secret 2026 Fashion Show Features Chrome Angel Wings

0Bella Hadid walks the runway for the Victoria’s Secret Fashion Show 2026.Credit: GettyThey were made in an auto body shop. Plus, creative chief Adam Selman divulges the inspiration behind each look and the feats of engineering it took to make them all for the latest episode of ‘Behind the Seams.’The wings worn by the models walking the Victoria’s Secret Fashion Show have long been an integral part of the event—and this year was no different. But the latest lineup of these feathered, embellished, and sparkly designs is full of fresh surprises. For the 2026 event, Adam Selman, Executive Vice President and Chief Creative Officer of Victoria’s Secret & Co., has drawn inspiration from the beauty found within each season—spring, summer, fall, and winter—to create a beautifully shifting landscape of styles adorned with florals, metallics, romantic lace, and winter-white sparkle.

The collection is expected to feature some 118 looks, with roughly 50 featuring wings, although Selman says the lineup is always evolving. “Nothing’s final until it goes down the runway,” he explains. The actual show might be ever-changing, but there’s one thing that will always remain a core part of the show. “I love things with movement,” Selman says, recalling a piece of advice he received from Michael Jackson in his years working with the singer: “The clothes, they gotta move, they gotta move.”

The idea for the show’s aesthetic began with the ebb and flow of nature over the course of twelve months. But Selman says the team also considered the seasons of a relationship, which can often move from heady infatuation to a steady, long-lasting connection. It was only fitting, then, to begin the catwalk spectacle with spring, which Marley Glassroth, AVP, Creative Atelier + Fashion at Victoria’s Secret & Co., ties to the word “obsession.” In this case, that means the team’s love of Victoria’s Secret history, from its signature pinks and shopping-bag stripes to its iconic floral motifs.

The peony, due to its innate association with the idea of blooming, became a natural starting point for the opening looks. You can see its influence reflected in the wings within this section of the event, which are made from individually cut, hand-painted fabric petals. One design, created with a kinetic artist, actually opens and closes as the model walks. Depending on their complexity, these pieces can take anywhere from one to four months to make, with artisans responsible for everything from the mechanics to the finishing touches.

That attention to detail carries into summer, where the mood becomes considerably… hotter. “Summer is about desire,” says Selman, who referenced the idea of sweaty disco nights while designing. For this section, the wings include metallic touches and look almost impossibly large. One of the more sculptural designs started as a simple sketch imagining asymmetrical shapes swooping around the model. An artisan in New York turned the drawing into reality by 3D-printing the wings and chroming them (giving them a polished, mirror-like metallic finish) at an auto body shop.

Despite their scale, these outsize appendages are surprisingly lightweight. The same mix of ingenuity and embellishment appears throughout the rest of the warm-weather looks, which include hand-strung beads and body chains as well as sheer denim and lace details. Selman even incorporated metal pieces inspired by the brand’s Bombshell perfume bottle, a reminder that even while innovating, the company still draws upon the past and pays homage to familiar Victoria’s Secret signatures.

As the collection moves away from summer’s dance-party energy, the materials take on a quieter, more intimate quality. Fall is about “peeling back layers and showing what’s on the inside outside,” Selman explains, noting that a palette of nudes, golds, and lace sets the tone here. One of his favorite looks is centered around wings crafted from Victoria’s Secret’s Very Sexy lace in a toffee shade, and finished with crystals that resemble raindrops on a stormy evening. Another recurring element? Feathers—or at least downy flourishes, as the team has found inventive ways to recreate the material’s lightness without sourcing anything from animals. Foam, laser-cut fabric, and intricate pleating all help capture that airy movement. One particularly large wing has a welded metal structure beneath its fabric feathers, allowing it to hold its shape while catching wind from the model’s walk.

If the fall collection is centered around soft and subtle romance, winter is where Selman dials up the drama. The coldest season gets two sections of its own, devoted to sparkle, texture, and the fantasy of snow, building to the grand finale. “That’s where we want all the bling, all the diamonds, and really end with the most extreme, extravagant note,” he says. The team partnered with Swarovski on crystal-covered looks, while other designs use laser-cut dance mirrors to create the effect of feathers swirling around the body. There’s also a voluminous coat inspired by snow and feathers, and a snowball-shaped corset with matching earmuffs. The finale is almost entirely white and filled with shimmering fabrics and dramatic wings. One sheer, iridescent dress presented its own challenge: the fabric was cut into feather shapes, but the pieces lacked dimension until the team doubled them and added wire down the middle.

For all his focus on technical wizardry, Selman is just as interested in the emotional connection that comes with revisiting the lingerie label’s past. That’s where Vintage Victoria comes in, a line built around archival designs he and the team have collected and recreated in a pastel rainbow of colors. Rather than simply borrowing the look of the original undergarments, the team worked to reproduce their exact details, from lace trims to the specific shades of individually dyed fabrics. The finished creations were even washed to give them a more authentic look and feel. “It’s almost this dialogue with the fans,” Selman says. “I want to make sure that I gave them almost one-for-one recreations.”

That conversation with fans extends to the models themselves, many of whom have become part of the show’s history. Adriana Lima returns for her 21st appearance and Alessandra Ambrosio for her 20th, joined by Candice Swanepoel, Gigi Hadid, Elsa Hosk, and Joan Smalls. They’ll share the runway with Ashley Graham, Anok Yai, Amelia Gray, Precious Lee, Paloma Elsesser, Alex Consani, Abby Champion, and Devyn Garcia. Performances by KATSEYE, Megan Moroney, Megan Thee Stallion, and Tate McRae add to the spectacle.

That balance between honoring what audiences love and pushing the show forward is central to Selman’s vision. The goal, he says, is to elevate both the brand’s products and the runway experience.

“We don’t want it to be costume or too overly thematic,” he explains. “We want it to just be a really beautiful, sensorial, exciting fashion experience that everyone can take part in.” He describes the broader ambition as creating a “maison for the masses,” bringing a sense of high-fashion craftsmanship to a brand with a wide-reaching audience. The elaborate wings may be what viewers remember first, but for Selman, the real excitement lies in how they’re made, how they move, and how people respond to them. That response, in turn, becomes the starting point for whatever Victoria’s Secret dreams up next.