USA TODAY International Edition
The fashion ‘ do’ Chavarria always has in his closet
In a new series, USA TODAY’s The Essentials, celebrities share what fuels their lives. ⬤ Willy Chavarria is rejoicing this holiday season. ⬤ The designer, who has worked with everyone from Madonna to Kendrick Lamar and Travis Scott to Sam Smith, is still on cloud nine from his November CFDA Award win for menswear designer, one of the highest honors in American fashion. ⬤ “It was really just a time to celebrate,” Chavarria says. “It was a time to recognize the work that I’ve done and my team has done. Anyone that has ever worked with me or been a part of the vision has played into this business and this story that we deliver as a brand.”
Chavarria with his namesake brand infuses his designs – mixes of exaggerated suiting and streetwear, flourishes of femininity within masculine silhouettes, luxury and layman’s ensembles – with his Mexican American heritage and California sensibilities, bringing Latinidad to New York Fashion Week runways and beyond.
These are his clothing and celebratory essentials:
The inspiration behind Chavarria
Chavarria says his “own culture has very much inspired me” in creating his fashion brand.
“It’s been just intuitive for me to take elements of Mexican and Mexican American culture and make that a part of my design philosophy, and integrate the people that have inspired me – so Mexican American people – into my work. And on my team and my extended creative family, there’s a lot of Latin American people working together.
“When I first started my brand, and even now, it’s a mission of mine to show the many different facets of beauty that exist. I had never seen the type of people that I cast on the runway, or I’d never seen the type of people that I use for editorials, or just modeling and branding. So it’s important for me to show Latinos and see ourselves in the public eye in a very beautiful and elevated way.”
Chavarria’s drink to celebrate – and his go- to holiday gift
Chavarria, who has partnered with Tequila Don Julio for the brand’s global “Por Amor” campaign, keeps his drink of choice simple.
“I love ( Don Julio) 1942 on the rocks, that’s my jam,” he says of the premium tequila. “It’s like the perfect combo for all of these amazing events that have been happening. We had the Latin American Fashion Awards, we had the CFDA Awards, we had my runway show that was an incredible moment in the brand history. So all of these really incredible milestones I’ve been able to share with Don Julio.”
The designer also recommends an engraved bottle of Tequila Don Julio 1942 as the perfect personalized gift. “It’s in a beautiful box and then it has their name on it,” he says, also noting with a wink, “I do ( gift) a lot of Willy Chavarria because I get a discount there and the clothes are really good.”
The quintessential fashion piece Chavarria needs in his closet
Chavarria is a “huge fan of the blazer or the sport jacket.”
“That’s one of my favorite things to design as well. I feel like it can make you feel very strong in any situation. But it can also just kind of add like an elegance to any look. So I will throw on a great sport jacket with sweatpants and loafers, or I will throw it on with like ratty jeans and like 3-, 4- inch high heeled boots or a suit. I feel like the sport jacket is like the most iconic piece for me. It’s just that magic little piece you can throw on and pull it all together.”
Which celebrity would Willy Chavarria like to dress?
Though he’s dressed top names in entertainment ( and had them walk his runway), one superstar is still on his list: “I feel like I need to dress Usher.”
“For some reason, I just think that he would look really good in Willy Chavarria,” he says, getting excited at the prospect of being part of Usher’s Super Bowl halftime show rollout. “I’m going to make that happen.”
Chavarria’s daily self- care process and bedtime mantra
“I’m a big believer in positive affirmations and imagining what your life is going to be like so that you can grow into that. So before I go to bed, I also pray a lot, but I always envision how I want to be in the future. So it’s almost like a mantra. It helps me fall asleep to kind of clear my head of everything. And just think about where I want to live, how I want to be, what I’m going to be wearing when I’m an older man.
“And then when I wake up, the first thing I do is I give thanks. Before I start worrying about anything, I just stop myself and I give thanks for everything. And both those things really propel me through the day.”