This story is from Stuff​ 

It’s been a massive year for fashion. 2022 will be remembered as the year we farewelled a truly iconic style figurehead and more than one pioneering designer, but it also saw change at the top of the big fashion houses, controversy at others , and more red carpets than calendar days.

Tying a tidy bow around such a momentous year is always challenging, but below are the moments – and stars – that stood out to our discerning eyes. Keep scrolling for our 10 best celebrity looks of 2022.

Not actually weird, just cool

Model Bella Hadid had plenty of major runway and red carpet moments this year (the spray-on dress the most hyped), but it was her off-duty looks that helped set the tone for a very specific type of 2022 styling. Dubbed the “weird girl aesthetic”, it was one of the many Gen Z and TikTok influenced trends that were part of the extremely online discourse this year. Think layers, texture, retro-inspired (some would call them ugly) accessories, unexpected pairings - basically Portia from The White Lotus, if her wardrobe was neutral toned, and she was a supermodel who wore clothes effortlessly.

Bella was regularly photographed on the streets of New York in ‘fits that brought to mind the deranged style of the late 90s and early noughties: a grey tracksuit with ballet flats, baggy shorts and knee-high boots, a rugby jersey with a plaid pencil skirt, a black lace dress over a buttoned up shirt. A photo of her sitting on a dirty stoop in NYC eating a slice of pizza, wearing wraparound sunglasses and a pair of platform Uggs with saggy white socks went viral, and influenced a whole lot of people to want to buy the same pieces and channel a similar chaotic vibe. – Zoe Walker Ahwa

Most influential

There’s no denying that 2022 has been Julia Fox’s year. To go from Josh Safdie’s muse in Uncut Gems (Uncuh Jahmzz) to the “who?” on Ye's arm (dodged a bullet there) to the most exciting It Girl of the moment in such a short space of time is impressive.

From her viral smeared smokey eye to those dangerously low-rise leather pants, unhinged makeup tutorials and hilarious handling of media questions, Fox has been God’s gift to pop culture and meme creators around the world.

As her star has risen, her fashion choices have become more out the gate. She’s shown everyone up in her many daring looks this year, but the DIY towel dress she shared in a low-fi TikTok tutorial for ‘End of the World Fashion Inspo’ stands out as a highlight. For someone who has every top stylist and fashion designer in the palm of her hands to hack at a beach towel and look that good at the end proves that she’s really her own biggest muse. As a colleague once said, Julia Fox isn't ahead of the Zeitgeist, she is the Zeitgeist. - Lara Daly

Best risk-taker

Fortune favours the bold and that mindset paid dividends on the style front for Emma Corrin in 2022.

It’s odd to think that Corrin was a relative unknown before playing Princess Di in The Crown a couple of years ago because they’re such a fashion fixture now. This year, while making waves modelling for Miu Miu, choosing a balloon-themed look from Loewe for this year's Olivier Awards and wearing a plastic bag of fish to a film premiere, they’ve made a point of highlighting gender-fluid looks geared towards fashion’s creative side.– Tyson Beckett

​Best masterclass in red carpet dressing

2022 brought us our first proper, glam Venice Film Festival since before the pandemic, and it really brought it. In fact, all three of my favourite looks of the year were from Venice, and not a single one is from the Met Gala. My mind is blown.

I always knew that Jodie Turner-Smith, an utter stand-out at any event she goes to, would be one of the best looks of the year – it was just a matter of selecting which of her many incredible looks was the most incredible. And this is where I find myself, in Venice in September, walking the red carpet in magnificent blue Harbison.

The thing about my beloved Jodie is every single look is incredible. It’s not ever ‘just’ an outfit for her. Here, the beautiful Josephine Baker-esque hair sports a custom dye, the glittering jewels well, glitter, the gown features obligatory cut-outs without her seeming like a starlet, and the bedazzled bralette under it gives an effortlessly cool activewear vibe that belies the glamour of the occasion. - Rebecca Wadey

Best attitude as an accessory

Florence Pugh brought her friendship with Pierpaolo Piccolo from Valentino, and her capacity for harnessing the cultural moments she finds herself in, to create arguably the most viral fashion moment of the year, at the Venice Film Festival. And she wasn’t even on the red carpet!

The outfit that spawned a thousand memes and Halloween ‘fits, the Valentino purple two-piece works best when accessorised with an Aperol spritz and a zero f...s given attitude. - RW

Most fun

Earlier this month actor Keke Palmer used fashion to reveal her pregnancy while hosting Saturday Night Live; ripping open her buttoned top to show off her growing belly. That was just one of her many fun, statement style moments in 2022, a year that saw her step into the spotlight and become a real fashion girlie.

Keke’s energy is unrivalled, and it helps bring another element to her red carpet looks - she’s not afraid to embrace feathers, tulle, colour and volume; big looks that never overpower her big personality. While on the press tour for her film Nope she regularly appeared in this column with looks that combined unexpected colour with sophisticated silhouettes, from her green lace feathery Valentino gown to a neon ensemble by Christopher John Rogers and a yellow column dress by Prada with black opera gloves. - ZWA

Best baby drop

Rihanna deserves an award for making pregnancy look this hot. In the last two years, I’ve seen enough cheesy pregnancy reveals on Instagram (I blame Covid) to make me want to stay childless forever. But of course, seeing Riri debut her baby bump while walking the streets of Harlem with ASAP Rocky changed my mind immediately. She looked like a literal R’n’B angel, in low-rise baggy jeans and a pink vintage Chanel coat, dripping in jewels and a full Fenty beat.

I love that she styled the look and directed the shoot herself, on her own terms. No one will ever come close to doing a baby drop with this much steeze - but I am definitely excited to see them try (TBH one day I’ll be one of them). Riri didn’t stop there either - she served look after look during her pregnancy, from the chic Red Riding Hood moment to the Bratz Doll patchwork coat and ‘90s clubbing top, showing cleavage and bump.

The Met Gala even gave her pregnancy a historic tribute. Just imagine how stylish this baby is going to be. - LD

Best time and time again

Zendaya’s style choices are so reliably excellent that it doesn’t feel like there’s anything revolutionary about her inclusion in this list. With the help of her longtime stylist Law Roach, the Dune star has become synonymous with an easy brand of elegance, one that’s unmistakably modern but references classic style touchpoints.

This year the pair made refenced to the year 1998 twice, both times to great success. First, there was the tribute to Sharon Stone’s 1998 Oscars outfit with the Valentino Skirt and cropped blouse worn at this year's Academy Awards. Then in June, they pulled that vintage Bob Mackie dress for the Time 100 Gala in June. Others may make more showy statements, but Zendaya is the star whose presence on the red carpet everyone anticipates. – TB

Best 90s inspired glamour

It should surprise no one to learn that Tessa Thompson works with the same styling duo as Jodie Turner-Smith. Tessa also wore many award-worthy looks at Venice, including a neon green Christopher John Rogers worn with a black net veil and a pistachio-coloured Marc Jacobs worn with a red hairpiece and dizzying platform shoes.

But it’s the Schiaparelli Haute Couture that really does it for me. The asymmetric ivory silk taffeta is party on one side (featuring vintage strings of pearls across her bare upper midriff) and full wedding confection on the other. The whole thing is pulled together with seemingly effortlessness and the help of ornate brooches and a velvet sash.

The whole ensemble could tip easily into hot mess territory, but Schiaparelli designer Daniel Roseberry has considered control over it at all times, and stylists Wayman and Michah give it the perfect 90s finishing touches. - RW

Best bride

Featuring actor and iconic It Girl Chloë Sevigny in a best-dressed list is a bit of a cliche, but here we are. Her May wedding was the pinnacle of chic, featuring a wonky wedding cake, five calla Lilies as a bouquet, an ice swan sculpture and lots of dancing, and making a certain type of fashion fan (aka me) swoon.

Given her status as a long-standing style icon and genuine lover of fashion, Sevigny fittingly had three outfit changes for her special day, starting with a custom couture Jean Paul Gaultier bridal gown, followed by a Loewe look then a Mugler catsuit. All featured white lace and texture, and combined tradition with cool – and set what is sure to be several wedding trends of 2023. – ZWA