BY CHRISTINA BINKLEY

Royal weddings and un-weddings, drunken rants, state dinners, haute snafus and sleeper fashions made 2011 one of the newsiest and most dramatic years for style in recent memory.

We underwent an unexpected fashion revolution. Name one other year that sent droves of men—young men—to the haberdasher for new suits. Women's wear went ultra-ladylike. The confluence of new trim menswear cuts, longer skirts, and a fresh sense of formality created a gush of demand for a well-bred look that many had previously suggested was dead.

In fact, old things were newly stylish in other areas as well—home furnishings, clothing, cookware and ...