Copenhagen Fashion Week is my business trip – here are all the outfits I packed
Some guests at Copenhagen Fashion Week see their outfits as an opportunity to show off the most eccentric and extravagant garments in their closets. After all, it’s the unofficial start of the global outfit marathon known as Fashion Month, and the city is as famous for its quirky, boundary-pushing street style as it is for its sustainability efforts. How could it be otherwise when designers like Ganni, Cecilie Bahnsen and Saks Potts call this home?
But as a fashion editor covering over thirty shows in four days and meeting designers all the while, I have to think of my street style for Copenhagen Fashion Week as more of a set of work-travel outfits with a dash of personality thrown in. I’m not necessarily trying to get photographed for a gallery or test a polarizing fall trend. I’m here to ferret out stories and represent my company. I want to look good, but I also want to appear professional.
That’s not to say I put off colorful outfits. Rather, I approach dressing for the week as a balancing act: a little comfort for the hours I’ve spent between shows, a touch of pattern here or a big hair accessory for some playfulness there, and a little modesty overall because I’m pressed for time.
Below, I’m sharing every summer work outfit I packed for Copenhagen Fashion Week this season, which, in my humble opinion, live up to the Danish capital’s style reputation without getting in the way of what I came here to do: work.
The simple linen outfit
I stepped off my plane and headed straight to the first round of shows in this comfortable linen top and oversized pants from Everlane.
(Photo credit: Heidi Jones)
The first day of an international business trip is almost always the toughest physically, mentally, and sartorially. The jet lag and the desire to wear pajamas are real. Comfort that can keep up with guests adjusted to a different time zone was especially important for the first day this season: I rolled straight from an overnight flight from New York City—plus a layover in Iceland—into the start of Copenhagen Fashion Week, without much time for a nap. I landed in an oversized COS top and Everlane pants that I wear all the time at home. They’re loose and baggy in a way that feels intentional, but still just as comfortable as my usual travel sweatpants. Glittery mesh ballet flats from Loeffler Randall gave me extra oomph—and inadvertently matched the mesh dresses, shorts, and tops I’d seen on the runways at Mark Kenly Domino Tan and A.Roege Hove (among others).
COS – Twist back sleeveless top
Everlane The Draper pleated trousers
Loeffler Randall Leonie ballet flats in caramel/crystal
No item of clothing in my wardrobe is used more often – neither at Copenhagen Fashion Week nor anywhere else – than my white poplin skirt.
(Photo credit: Heidi Jones)
I was competing with many attendees at Copenhagen Fashion Week for the title of most loyal fan of the white skirt trend. They were as prevalent in street style as they were in the maximalist hair accessory trend, showing up with everything from sheer sequin tops to holey, baggy sweaters. As much as I would have loved to wear mine with nothing but a bikini for a dip in the canal between shows, the look wasn’t quite appropriate enough for all the interviews I had planned. Instead, I took another page from the Scandi playbook and paired mine with an oversized button-up and ballet flats—plus an extra-extra large scrunchie from the J.Crew x Maryam Nassir Zadeh collaboration to top it off. I thought the whimsical cornflower blue had a touch of playfulness that felt very Copenhagen, but button-ups are a particularly business-casual take.
Marie ClaireThe office has a casual dress code, so I could wear this exact combination at home. However, I might swap my ballet flats for the sturdier loafers that were too heavy to pack.
A Day’s March Savona striped poplin shirt
Maryam Nassir Zadeh x J.Crew Gathered Bow Scrunchie
Hill House Home The Delphine Nap Skirt
Miu Miu – “Lea” ballerina flats with logo
The Pattern Play Outfit
When I’m in a hurry, I love a dress that does the hard work for me.
(Photo credit: Heidi Jones)
By the third day of Copenhagen Fashion Week—or any other business trip—I’m starting to lose interest. The hours are long. Deadlines are tight. I need a one-off piece that will hit me like a triple espresso and get me back into power dressing mode. This piece happens to be my absolute favorite work dress. The mixed prints of this Rixo piece take the neutral colors I love and bring them to a new place; instead of digging through my suitcase for something visually interesting and a little vintage, the dress does all the work for me.
I walked onto the track where Baum und Pferdgarten was putting on its Olympia show and paired my mood-boosting outfit with pointy-toe mules and some 80s gold jewelry. My outfit and the thumping soundtrack of the runway left me feeling energized enough to run a 100-meter dash.
Monica Rich Kosann Slim Viv Locket
Manolo Blahnik Maysale 50 suede buckle mules
Petit Moments Broche Para El Pelo Little Rosalie
The outfit with sneakers and dress
For my busiest day there could only be one shoe: a Scandinavian-style sneaker.
(Photo credit: Heidi Jones)
Four seasons of travelling to Copenhagen Fashion Week have shown me that you can wear chunky sneakers with anything– even if you’re not cycling to and from shows. I decided to follow the typical mid-week Scandi-girl formula, on a day when I had six shows in a row and a couple of appointments before and after. Ruffled dresses with lots of volume and sporty sneakers are an unofficial uniform here; I put my own spin on it with a drop-waisted dress I snagged on sale at Revolve and Nike’s V2 Max – one of Kaia Gerber and Jennifer Lawrence’s favourite styles. I wore a t-shirt underneath for modesty (I repeat: this was a work trip!), but I usually just wear this at home with sandals.
L’Academie By Marianna Armanda poplin midi dress
A Day’s March – T-shirt “Myra” made of mercerized cotton
The slip skirt outfit of the 90s
This is the kind of understated outfit I always pack, no matter where (or why) I’m traveling.
(Photo credit: Heidi Jones)
When I had to dress up for my only late-night show of the week and dinner with editors afterwards, I resorted to an outfit formula that I wear all the time at home: the little black top and white skirt. It takes maybe two seconds to put on, but the stark contrast looks sophisticated. A fashion friend once told me that I looked like the ghost of Carolyn Bessette Kennedy in this exact combination, which I take as a huge compliment.
A little cardigan over the shoulders added another tone to the neutral palette I was working with, while also protecting me from the chilly after-dark temperatures in Copenhagen. You can’t see them here, but I also slipped back into my Manolo Blahnik mules for the finishing touch. All of the pieces in this outfit can be paired with the more casual shorts, oversized button-down shirts, and sneakers I packed for work from my hotel the following week—so they really earned their place in my carry-on.
J.Crew – Cropped sweater in a lightweight cashmere blend
L’Academie By Marianna Katia maxi skirt
Mansur Gavriel Mini Hobo Bag in Candy Leather
The upscale jorts outfit
Copenhagen Fashion Week takes place at the end of summer, so jeans have a place on my packing list.
(Photo credit: Heidi Jones)
This summer, I went from being a staunch anti-jort activist to being the biggest proponent of the jort trend revival. (I blame daily exposure to Hailey Bieber and Gigi Hadid’s styles while Marie-Claires fashion news coverage.) On my last day of work in Denmark, I gave my collection of work dresses and skirts a break and paired my favorite pair from Agolde with an oversized black blazer and a peonies-print button-down shirt. With my best mesh ballet flats and a straw bag slung over my shoulder, the vibe was a bit business casual-meets-beach—perfect for a final day of outdoor shows and coffee meetings as the energy started to wane.
I might add that at Copenhagen Fashion Week, no trend is too controversial for a street style moment—and I saw more jorts for Spring/Summer 2025 on the runways at Marimekko, ÓperaSport, and Caro Editions.
Everlane The Oversized Blazer
J.Crew Como Woven Straw Tote Bag
Agolde – Risha – shorts made from organic denim
Dear Frances Balla – Mesh flat shoes
