<\/p>\n
\n\tWilly Chavarria has a lot to say \u2014 about fashion, footwear and politics \u2014 and he\u2019s not holding back.<\/p>\n
\n\tIt was the second time the designer showed in Paris, following his 10th<\/sup> anniversary event earlier this year, and his show at the Salle Pleyel was certainly an emotional rollercoaster.<\/p>\n \n\tCalled \u201cHuron,\u201d after the rural town in California\u2019s San Joaquin Valley where he was born, it began with a tableau of models dressed in long white T-shirts and shorts, and patent leather slip-on shoes, kneeling on the runway, with their heads bent low. \u00a0\u00a0<\/p>\n \n\tThey stayed there, silently and submissively, as if they were about to be deported, U.S. government-style, while the soundtrack blasted out Jose Feliciano\u2019s iconic take on the song \u201cCalifornia Dreamin.\u2019\u201d The irony wasn\u2019t lost on anyone.<\/p>\n \n\tThen the mood changed, and Chavarria flashed his showman\u2019s side with a collection that was bursting with color inspired by the images of Guy Bourdin, whose photography he\u2019s been thinking a lot about lately.<\/p>\n \n\tIn a bid to raise his growing international profile, Chavarria has inked a deal with Charles Jourdan, reworking men\u2019s and women\u2019s styles from the brand\u2019s archive. He\u2019s also been spending time with Bourdin\u2019s ad campaigns for the French brand, which were famously filled with bright, saturated color and surreal imagery.<\/p>\n \n\tThat statement color seeped straight into the spring 2026 collection, which had more womenswear than ever before.<\/p>\n \n\t\u201cMy head of design, Rebeca Mendoza, is helping me define womenswear, and making sure that it always comes from a female perspective, because that\u2019s important,\u201d said the designer.<\/p>\n \n\tChavarria\u2019s women \u2014 sporting delightfully bourgeois bouffant hairstyles, and wide-brimmed hats, some adorned with silk roses \u2014 strutted like peacocks down the red runway in curvy shirtdresses with pointy collars, structured satin trenches and jackets with puffed-up power shoulders.<\/p>\n \n\tLooks came in hot red and yellow, cooling mint green and sweet candy pink, and those colors weren\u2019t just for the ladies.<\/p>\n \n\tChavarria\u2019s men stepped out in those Bourdain brights, too, although their clothes had a preppy edge \u2014 with a big dose of dandy.<\/p>\n \n\tIt\u2019s safe to say his long jackets, wide-leg chinos and XL shorts might not make it past reception at the country club, but who cares? And who doesn\u2019t want an oversized shorts suit \u2014 or a soft, flowing evening gown \u2014 in hot pink cloque shot through with gold thread?<\/p>\n \n\t\u201cWe\u2019re sending an overall message of hope and positivity,\u201d said the designer, who kept his feel-good looks flowing, from the sleek tailored evening jackets with contrast satin lapels to the off-the-shoulder gowns in candy wrapper colors with sleeves as big as cream puffs.<\/p>\n \n\tIt\u2019s clear that this proud American, with Mexican and Irish roots, is eager to embrace so many different cultures, and weave their colors and textures into his own work.<\/p>\n \n\t\u201cMy goal is to make the most beautiful fashion in the world, and part of that includes making a beautiful soundtrack, and offering a beautiful message to humanity,\u201d said the designer, whose show unfurled to the sound of Spanish-language songs, and live guitar music.<\/p>\n \n\t\u201cShowing in Paris really helps to provide that platform because it\u2019s such a loud megaphone to the world for fashion. I love Paris \u2014 and I\u2019m expanding in Europe,\u201d said the designer, who took his bow in a cobalt blue suit made from light, crinkly cotton.<\/p>\n \n\t\u201cThe cotton feels incredible \u2014 like you\u2019re wearing a FedEx envelope,\u201d said Chavarria, who was going straight back to work the next day.<\/p>\n \n\t\u201cWe do our sales in Paris, too, so tomorrow morning, I\u2019ll be in the showroom, slinging my s\u2014t,\u201d said Chavarria, whose language is just as colorful as his fashion.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" Willy Chavarria has a lot to say \u2014 about fashion, footwear and politics \u2014 and he\u2019s not holding back. It was the second time the designer showed in Paris, following his 10th anniversary event earlier this year, and his show at the Salle Pleyel was certainly an emotional rollercoaster. Called \u201cHuron,\u201d after the rural town in California\u2019s San Joaquin Valley where he was born, it began with a tableau of models dressed in long white T-shirts and shorts, and patent leather slip-on shoes, kneeling on the runway, with their heads bent low. \u00a0\u00a0 They stayed there, silently and submissively, as if they were about to be deported, U.S. government-style, while the soundtrack blasted out Jose Feliciano\u2019s iconic take on the song \u201cCalifornia Dreamin.\u2019\u201d The irony wasn\u2019t lost on anyone. Then the mood changed, and Chavarria flashed his showman\u2019s side with a collection that was bursting with color inspired by the images of Guy Bourdin, whose photography he\u2019s been thinking a lot about lately. In a bid to raise his growing international profile, Chavarria has inked a deal with Charles Jourdan, reworking men\u2019s and women\u2019s styles from the brand\u2019s archive. He\u2019s also been spending time with Bourdin\u2019s ad campaigns for the French brand, which were famously filled with bright, saturated color and surreal imagery. That statement color seeped straight into the spring 2026 collection, which had more womenswear than ever before. \u201cMy head of design, Rebeca Mendoza, is helping me define womenswear, and making sure that it always comes from a female perspective, because that\u2019s important,\u201d said the designer. Chavarria\u2019s women \u2014 sporting delightfully bourgeois bouffant hairstyles, and wide-brimmed hats, some adorned with silk roses \u2014 strutted like peacocks down the red runway in curvy shirtdresses with pointy collars, structured satin trenches and jackets with puffed-up power shoulders. Looks came in hot red and yellow, cooling mint green and sweet candy pink, and those colors weren\u2019t just for the ladies….<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":2845,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[2],"tags":[],"acf":[],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.seekyourlove.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2844"}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.seekyourlove.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.seekyourlove.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.seekyourlove.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.seekyourlove.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcomments&post=2844"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/www.seekyourlove.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/posts\/2844\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.seekyourlove.com\/index.php?rest_route=\/wp\/v2\/media\/2845"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.seekyourlove.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fmedia&parent=2844"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.seekyourlove.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Fcategories&post=2844"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.seekyourlove.com\/index.php?rest_route=%2Fwp%2Fv2%2Ftags&post=2844"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}