As Senior Fashion & Style Writer at Vogue, Christian Allaire has built a reporting beat devoted to Indigenous fashion across North America. His work profiles designers, artisans, and community-led labels whose clothes carry history, protocol, and political meaning.

Allaire is First Nations (Ojibwe) and grew up on the Nipissing First Nation reserve in Ontario. His early exposure to powwow regalia, ribbon work, and beadwork shaped how he reads contemporary runways. He treats regalia, streetwear, and couture as connected forms of expression rather than separate categories.

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Events and designers on his beat

Allaire regularly reports from major Indigenous fashion gatherings, including the Santa Fe Indian Market in New Mexico and Indigenous Fashion Arts in Toronto. His stories highlight emerging talent alongside established names, with attention to sourcing, sustainability, and cultural ownership.

He has interviewed designers working in leather, quillwork, streetwear, and high fashion. His pieces explain how each garment reflects community values, from land-based materials to collaborations with elders and knowledge keepers.

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Books and related writing

Allaire explored similar themes in his young adult book The Power of Style: How Fashion and Beauty Are Being Used to Reclaim Cultures (Annick Press, 2021). His 2025 memoir From the Rez to the Runway traces his own path into the industry and the barriers Indigenous creatives still face in mainstream fashion media.

Browse his written work, see his books, or return to the Christian Allaire homepage.