The buzzy event everyone in fashion is clamoring to attend? Well, it isn't actually a fashion event. It's Salone de Mobile, aka Milan Design Week, or just Salone for short among regular attendees. Salone is the world's ultimate design fair, which has emerged as one of the hottest cultural events of the year as design and fashion insiders alike flock to Milan for the hub for furniture and décor.
It's historically drawn design-world insiders, but in the last few years, it has grown exponentially among the fashion set, including fashion brands showcasing their latest home collections and attendees from the style set. This year, brands such as Hermès, Bottega Veneta, Louis Vuitton, Gucci, and Saint Laurent—to name a few—showcased their designs, showing the growing link between luxury fashion brands and the design event. To get an inside look at Salone del Mobile in 2025, we tapped attendees to share their insider takeaways on the top exhibits, design trends, Milan hot spots, and what to wear.
Madeline O'Malley, Market Director, Architectural Digest
"Milan Design Week is one of the few things that seems to be getting better as it gets bigger. There is no city that feels quite as alive as Milan during Salone. The creativity and enthusiasm for design is next-level. When I first started going years ago, it was a much smaller design-industry event, not dissimilar from others around the world. Interior designers and trade professionals wandered showroom floors. … It wasn't boring per se, but it was not the glamorous fashion fest it is today. The fashion world has been smart to get involved. The bigger houses tap the coolest up-and-coming artisans or top-tier global designers for product collabs and one-off creations. The result is a brand expression that is both well-rounded and limit-pushing. I'm of the mind that taste is taste, and the worlds of art, fashion, and design do not exist as silos. The concept of fashion people at home is a major pillar of AD's interest and my own personal interest. When it comes to dressing for the week, comfort is pretty key. I'm walking miles and miles a day, from Brera to the cobblestone streets of Le Cinque Vie. Venetian slippers hold up shockingly well."
Inside Madeline O'Malley's Salone:
Favorite exhibits
"Dimorestudio collaborated with Japanese textiles brand Hosoo and showed them on Osanna Visconti's bronze furniture pieces in her fabulous apartment—[the] height of Milanese style. Cabana Magazine's Martina Mondadori teamed up with Deborah Needleman, who tapped seven different creatives to create pieces inspired by Martina's mother's legendary Renzo Mongiardino–designed apartment. From Peter Schlesinger to Sophie Wilson to Emily Bode and Green River Project, one thing was more inspiring than the next. Loewe's teapot exhibition was studied and understated, and [it was] so cool to see new names."
Favorite event
"I put together a small lunch at the Ralph Lauren restaurant at their Della Spiga store for some fun design-world friends—Noah Ruttenberg, Xavier Donnelly, Bilal Taruk, Matilda Goad, and more. It was so great to actually sit down for a meal. Most events are little more than a 15-minute stop-by, so it's fun to have a more leisurely lunch where I can pick everyone's brains about what they're loving around town. It's become a bit of a Salone tradition."
Favorite places in Milan
Da Giacomo: "Iconic [restaurant] designed by Mongiardino."
Trattoria del Ciumbia: "Designed by Dimorestudio. Delicious food. I went there for the Dimorestudio x Loro Piana dinner this trip. [I'm] obsessed with the red, yellow, black, and white tiles on the floors and the delicate lace on the windows."
Arjumand's World: "My favorite textiles in Milan; such an inspiring stop."
Laboratorio Paravicini: "Beautiful plates; a treat to watch the artisans paint them as you shop."
Top design trend from Salone
"It's all about the return to the craftsman, the hand. Shoppers are becoming less satisfied with mass-produced pieces. They want a story. So much of what we see in Milan is traditional craft done in new and exciting ways. Examples were everywhere. Tomás Alonso's tables for Hermès are made of Italian glass and Japanese wood, traditional materials and technique, but [they're] as contemporary as anyone could imagine."
Shop O'Malley's Salone look:
Kia Goosby, Market Editor, Vanity Fair
"My first time going to Salone was a great experience, and it already has me thinking of attending next year. There was so much to do and see, and I was only there for a limited time. … I feel like I got a small taste of the magnificent world of Salone. I traveled to Milan for the purpose of seeing Louis Vuitton unveil their new signature home collection and some beautiful new objets pieces that will complement any home."
Inside Kia Goosby's Salone:
Top exhibit
"I really enjoyed Gucci's Bamboo Encounters exhibit that featured a variety of artists and how they incorporated bamboo into their artwork. I saw the physical pieces of bamboo as well as the imprints of the pieces where the negative space was more of the work. But there were these kites that were so beautiful moving throughout the courtyard of a school that were so peaceful and calming to watch."
Top event
"Christofle and Charlotte Chesnais did the most perfect collaboration held at Sant Ambroeus, where the table was set with the most beautiful fruit and vegetables, and the flatware pieces were styled throughout. I mentioned to Charlotte that her pieces were just too beautiful to eat on. It just shows you how luxury moments look great at the table too."
Milan recommendations
"Milan has so much to see and do, but if you don't do anything else, you must visit Bar Luce at the Prada Fondazione for a snack—I had the pistachio gelato! The inside of the space is a step into the captivating world of Wes Anderson, who designed the cute little restaurant. I could just sit there all day."
Shop Goosby's Salone look:
Lydia Zacharis, Buying Manager, Net-a-Porter
"Milan's energy during Salone was, once again, palpable—much more so than fashion week—with creatives from all disciplines coming to see as much as possible over the course of a few days, and there was so much that was worth seeing! The increasing cross-pollination of ideas and conversations between design, art, food, and fashion could not be more evident here, where the public was also able to access many parts of the design fair, so the city was filled with so much life and dynamism.
"I lost track of how many fashion brands had a presence this year, a big change to around 10 years ago when Loewe was one of the few luxury brands activating through their Craft program. What I particularly loved is how hidden architectural gems were opened to visitors by brands who smartly chose to showcase their creations in unexpected settings, blending new and old in the most charming way. Hidden palazzos, beautiful private apartments, historical gelaterias, and locations such as forgotten pools were revealed, moving the focus from a trade fair to a pure source of visual delight and inspiration."
Inside Lydia Zacharis's Salone:
Favorite exhibits
The Row: "The brand's first (and personally much-anticipated) foray into homeware in a sparsely populated Palazzo Belgioioso with a collection of handwoven blankets, throws, and bedding in ivory, mink, and black colors, which the brand will be selling in their stores. Very simple and elegant, as we are accustomed to by the brand."
Hermès: "I was taken through the installation by James Conte, one of the brand's regional sales managers, who spoke with flair and passion. The space consisted of suspended white boxes, which were underlined by halos of bright light and housed beautiful new creations, including several bold-colored glass pieces."
Loewe Teapots: "The brand commissioned 25 internationally renowned architects, designers, and artists from around the world. Each teapot had so much personality and names such as 'Listening to the Waves,' 'Peaceful Tea Set,' and 'Love Letter.'"
Loro Piana x Dimorestudio: "La Prima Notte di Quiete, a cinematic, multisensory experience in a re-created eclectic 1970s/1980s Milanese apartment furnished by Dimorestudio with pieces upholstered in Loro Piana's luxurious fabrics. Dramatic red velvet curtains, leopard carpets, broken tableware, to name a few of the details."
Completedworks: "Anna's strange but beautiful pieces in intricate materials such as textured glass and knotted foam against the clean, modernist background of Alcova's Villa Borsani. The silver flowers were a highlight."
Favorite events
"The T magazine party at the iconic Villa Necchi Campiglio, designed by Piero Portaluppi, with the most discerning guest list, handled by L52.
"An affogato break at Georg Jensen's pop-up ice cream café named Gelateria Danese, with the brand's sterling silver serveware taking an everyday role under recently appointed Creative Director Paula Gerbase, who is reinvigorating this historic Danish silversmith house.
"And of course, the Neptune Papers cocktail at allegedly the oldest gelato shop of Milan, Gelateria Umberto 1934, where 12 different delicious gelato flavors complemented interesting conversations—you can always count on VSJ Consulting to gather a good crowd."
Milan recommendations
"The Shop the Story contemporary vintage store with an exquisite edit of, mainly but not exclusively, Prada and Miu Miu pieces."
Top design trends from Salone
"Twenty-twenty-five marked 100 years of the [art deco] movement, which originated in 1925 with the International Exhibition of Modern Decorative and Industrial Arts in Paris, and its influence was seen in many of Salone's propositions. This year, there was an abundance of geometrical shapes; bold colors, including colored glass; metallic finishes; and luxurious materials such as stainless steel, brass, and lacquer.
"Color, in general—something that we interestingly saw during the last round of fall/winter 2025 fashion weeks, too, with one of the last shows of the season, Saint Laurent, capturing the mood perfectly—took center stage. Vibrant glass and acrylic in pieces that explored how light and color can interplay and reflect was one of the key trends we spotted this year."
Shop Zacharis's Salone look:
