🌿 SPRING/SUMMER 2027 TREND

How to Wear Gardening-Core

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The easiest way to wear gardening-core is to borrow one or two outdoor references — cargo trousers, raffia, an apron-style top, utility pockets or a woven bag — and pair them with ordinary modern clothes.

You do not need to dress like you are actually about to prune the roses.

A safe starting point is:

That gives you the outdoorsy utility of the trend without turning the whole outfit into gardening costume.

What is gardening-core?

Gardening-core is an emerging Spring/Summer 2027 fashion direction built around clothing and accessories that borrow from gardening, workwear and life outdoors.

Vogue’s early Spring/Summer 2027 trend forecast specifically identifies gardening-core and points to apron-inspired pieces, raffia, cargos and utility belts as part of the look.

A closely related trend is appearing under the name allotment-core. Who What Wear’s Copenhagen Spring/Summer 2027 coverage highlights basket bags, overalls, patchwork, sun hats, rubber clogs and relaxed dresses.

The common thread is not literally dressing for gardening.

It is taking useful, tactile things associated with outdoor work — pockets, aprons, woven fibres, straps, practical trousers and sun-protective shapes — and making them look intentional.

The basic rule: choose utility or rustic texture, not all of it at once

Gardening-core becomes difficult when every piece is telling the same story.

For example:

Overalls + rubber clogs + straw hat + utility belt + gardening apron + basket bag

may look less like an outfit and more like you forgot to change after watering the tomatoes.

Instead, choose the part you actually like.

• If you like cargo trousers, pair them with a clean tank, knit or shirt.
• If you like raffia, use it in one bag or pair of shoes.
• If you like apron shapes, wear them over simple trousers or jeans.
• If you like utility jackets, wear one over a plain dress.
• If you like workwear pockets, keep the colour palette restrained.

The outdoor reference should look borrowed, not literal.

How to wear cargo trousers for gardening-core

Cargo trousers are probably the easiest entry point because most wardrobes already know how to deal with them.

For a clean version:

For something slightly smarter:

The more pockets, straps and hardware the trousers have, the simpler I would keep the top half.

If the trousers are already very wide and very detailed, you do not need another oversized utility piece above them unless that is deliberately the look you want.

How to wear an apron-style top

Apron shapes are one of the more unusual parts of the trend.

The easiest versions behave almost like a sleeveless tunic, wrap top or pinafore.

• Apron-style top + straight jeans + loafers
• Wrap-front apron top + tailored trousers + sandals
• Pinafore-style layer + fitted T-shirt + simple trousers

If the piece genuinely looks like a gardening apron, give everything around it a cleaner finish.

Denim, neat tailoring and simple leather shoes are useful because they stop the outfit looking like protective workwear.

Raffia and woven accessories

Raffia is probably the easiest part of gardening-core to wear because it already has a place in summer wardrobes.

A woven bag or raffia shoe gives an outfit outdoor texture without committing to the full aesthetic.

• White shirt dress + raffia bag + leather sandals
• Blue jeans + simple knit + woven tote
• Wide trousers + tank + raffia flats

If you are using a large woven bag, you probably do not also need a woven hat, raffia belt and straw shoes.

One substantial natural texture is enough.

Utility jackets make the trend much easier

A utility jacket is one of the most practical ways to borrow the look because it works with clothes you probably already own.

• Utility jacket + simple column dress + flat sandals
• Utility jacket + white tee + straight jeans + sneakers
• Utility jacket + midi skirt + fitted knit + loafers

Look for clean shapes rather than excessive hardware if you want the jacket to work beyond the trend.

An olive, tan, cream or washed navy jacket can also slot easily into an existing neutral wardrobe.

Can you wear gardening-core with skirts?

Yes, and skirts are useful because they bring some movement to pieces that might otherwise feel heavily workwear-inspired.

Try:

• Full cotton skirt + plain T-shirt + woven bag
• Utility-pocket skirt + fine knit + sandals
• Long linen skirt + simple tank + workwear jacket

A full skirt with a simple top also connects naturally with the broader garden and prairie influences appearing around Spring 2027.

Vogue’s recent Copenhagen street-style coverage has also documented continuing prairie and floral influences around the Spring 2027 shows.

What dresses work with gardening-core?

Simple cotton and linen dresses are the easiest.

• shirt dresses
• relaxed column dresses
• simple midi dresses
• pinafore-inspired dresses
• full cotton dresses

You can then add one practical-looking piece:

or:

A current Spring 2027 example comes from Veronica Beard’s “Secret Garden” collection, which is using softer linen, florals and garden references without turning every look into literal outdoor workwear.

What colours work with gardening-core?

You do not have to dress entirely in brown and olive.

Useful combinations include:

• olive + cream
• tan + white
• denim + raffia
• sage + navy
• chocolate + pale blue
• sunny yellow + cream
• terracotta + white
• washed green + denim

Natural colours reinforce the outdoor reference, while a brighter shirt, dress or accessory can stop the whole thing becoming too earthy.

If you want help putting those combinations together, see our guide to what colours go together.

What shoes work with gardening-core?

The trend allows for quite a wide range of footwear.

• Leather sandals: easiest with dresses, skirts and wide trousers.
• Loafers: useful when you want utility pieces to feel more polished.
• Clean sneakers: easy with cargos and jeans.
• Clogs: strongest garden reference; better if the rest of the outfit is simple.
• Workwear-style boots: useful in cooler weather but visually heavier.
• Ballet flats: a useful contrast with rougher cargo or utility pieces.

If the footwear is the part that keeps making the outfit feel too literal, our what shoes should I wear? guide can help.

How to wear gardening-core in Australian spring and summer

This is where the trend actually suits Australia rather well.

The useful materials — linen, cotton, raffia and lightweight workwear fabrics — can make sense in warm weather if the clothes are not overly heavy.

For Brisbane, Sydney or other warm-weather cities, try:

• Linen cargo trousers + tank + sandals
• Cotton midi dress + woven bag
• Utility overshirt + shorts + simple sneakers
• Full cotton skirt + lightweight tee + raffia flats

I would be wary of copying heavy European work jackets, rubber boots and thick layered styling into a Queensland summer simply because the aesthetic is called gardening-core.

Use the idea, not the insulation.

Can gardening-core work for smart casual?

Yes, if the utility element is restrained.

• Tailored cargo trousers + crisp shirt + loafers
• Linen midi dress + structured woven bag + leather sandals
• Utility jacket + column dress + simple flats

The easiest way to make it smarter is to increase the polish of the fabric and footwear rather than removing the garden reference entirely.

Our smart casual dress code guide can help if you are dressing for a particular venue.

Can you wear gardening-core to work?

Parts of it, certainly.

The easiest office pieces are:

• clean cargo-style trousers without excessive straps
• structured overshirts
• utility jackets
• long skirts
• simple woven accessories

A heavily distressed overall, rubber clog and gardening apron combination is obviously a different proposition.

Use our business casual guide or what to wear to work section if you need to judge the formality of your workplace.

How to avoid looking like you are actually gardening

This is the most important section.

The problem is usually not any individual piece.

It is too many literal references in one outfit.

Watch for:

• gardening apron + overalls + clogs
• utility belt + cargo trousers + utility jacket
• straw hat + raffia bag + raffia shoes
• several earthy colours with no contrast
• too many oversized practical pieces at once

The fix is simple.

Replace one literal piece with something familiar.

Swap the utility jacket for a white shirt.

Swap the clogs for loafers.

Swap the basket bag for a structured leather bag.

You do not need to remove the idea completely.

You just need to stop every garment making the same joke.

Five easy gardening-core outfits

Do you need to buy anything?

Probably not to try the idea.

Look in your wardrobe for:

• cargo trousers
• a utility jacket
• a linen shirt
• a full cotton skirt
• a woven summer bag
• a simple pair of sandals

Put one garden-adjacent piece beside the most ordinary clothes you own.

That is probably the best way to decide whether gardening-core has any place in your wardrobe before the trend becomes an excuse to buy an entirely new one.

The rule of thumb

Gardening-core is still an emerging 2027 direction, so there is no reason to treat it like a rigid dress code.

Borrow the texture, utility or outdoor reference you actually like, then wear it with clothes that have nothing to do with gardening.

One cargo trouser, raffia bag, apron-inspired top or utility jacket is enough.

If somebody could reasonably ask you to help repot the hydrangeas, you may have gone one piece too far.