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It’s not just the sinister stare of Labubus dangling from designer bags on every corner — fashion is fully in its playful era. Whimsical bag and shoe charms are everywhere, jewelry suddenly looks like it’s been hand-crafted at summer camp, and kitschy beaded bags are causing shoppers to descend into TikTok-viral treasure hunts. Summer’s hottest accessories aren’t just a flirtation with nostalgia; they’ve transcended into a full-blown childhood regression. Fashion’s drift toward kidcore has been building for years, but this summer, we’ve officially hit its peak. Yes, it may be fun and games, but the trend of reconnecting with our inner child may also be a deeper response to the not-so-carefree times we’re living in.

Once relegated to niche Etsy corners and cool girls who wear brands like Susan Alexandra and Lisa Says Gah, kidcore has exploded into the mainstream with an unapologetic burst of color, kitsch, and charm — literally. The aesthetic is defined by playful accessories that look lifted from a toy box: think chunky, colorful beaded jewelry, charm-laden designer Crocs, and mini bags in the shape of animals and summer fruits. High fashion fully embraced whimsy during the spring 2025 collections, with designers like Chloé delivering runway versions of jelly sandals, Coach accessorizing its buzziest sneaker with massive Barbiefied pink Cadillac shoe charms, and Moschino topping off its spring looks with bags featuring scribbled children’s artwork. Designer runway show settings and seating arrangements themselves for spring 2025 also leaned into childlike wonder, with Bottega Veneta using animal bean bag chairs as its show seating and Coperni hosting its runway at Disneyland Paris. On TikTok, Gen Z shoppers are hunting down Y2K-era accessories and handmade baubles with a near-religious fervor, turning DIY aesthetics into status symbols. Fashion’s most coveted items look less museum-worthy and more like an arcade game prize.

It’s certainly not luxury fashion’s first stint with kidcore, though. Take Fendi’s Monster Bag Bugs, for instance: the furry charms made their debut on the house’s Fall 2013 runway, parading in a rainbow of colors and fluffy textures — pioneering as the original Labubus. The playful little creatures had fashion firmly in a chokehold for many seasons. Yet, even at their peak, they never strayed quite as deep into childhood nostalgia as today’s playful accessory trend wave — where both the luxury designer options and the consumerist frenzy have reached unprecedented heights.

Summer fashion is always more playful, but the timing and over-the-top extent of the current kidcore explosion is anything but random. The rise of Labubus, kiddie jewelry, and charm-laden accessories has coincided with a wave of global political, economic, and social unrest. “There’s a big psychological shift toward nostalgia, and it tends to intensify during chaotic or turbulent times,” explains behavioral scientist, data psychologist, and bestselling author Patrick Fagan. “Right now, things are particularly stressful, so people want to escape into childhood.” He points to Terror Management Theory, which suggests that when we’re faced with uncertainty, anxiety, or even subconscious fears around mortality, we revert to behaviors (or items) that feel safe or comforting. “Nostalgia works in a similar way: it’s something fixed and comforting to hold onto.”

The rise of nostalgic, playful accessories isn’t just about safety — it’s also about injecting a much-needed dose of joy into a time weighed down by constant doomscrolling. “We often have positive emotions and social connections to these [nostalgic] items, which means that we are drawn to them effectively, so we tend to purchase them because they remind us of the past, or they are just a bit of frivolous fun that you don’t have to take so seriously,” explains consumer psychologist Cathrine Jansson-Boyd, Ph.D. In other words, these accessories offer a brief reprieve from real-world heaviness. And because the trend has become so visible and enjoyed, Jansson-Boyd notes, joining in doesn’t just help you channel the carefree energy of your youth, it also reinforces a sense of community and belonging in an otherwise uncertain world.