NEW YORK (AP) — Christian Siriano barely had 48 hours to design his finale gown for his New York Fashion Week show. The iridescent green liquid fabric Siriano had ordered from Italy was stuck in customs for weeks before it finally arrived shortly before Thursday's runway show.
The designer of “Project Runway” fame may have been accustomed to executing his designs on a tight deadline but with months to design his other looks, he told The Associated Press, that the last-minute design brought a fresh wave of excitement ahead of his show.
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Designer Christian Siriano walks the runway at the end of his Fall/Winter 2026 fashion show as part of New York Fashion Week on Thursday, Feb. 12, 2026, in New York. (Photo by Charles Sykes/Invision/AP)
A model walks the runway during the Christian Siriano Fall/Winter 2026 fashion show as part of New York Fashion Week, Thursday, Feb. 12, 2026, in New York. (Photo by Charles Sykes/Invision/AP)
A model walks the runway during the Christian Siriano Fall/Winter 2026 fashion show as part of New York Fashion Week, Thursday, Feb. 12, 2026, in New York. (Photo by Charles Sykes/Invision/AP)
A model walks the runway during the Christian Siriano Fall/Winter 2026 fashion show as part of New York Fashion Week on Thursday, Feb. 12, 2026, in New York. (Photo by Charles Sykes/Invision/AP)
Model Coco Rocha walks the runway during the Christian Siriano Fall/Winter 2026 fashion show as part of New York Fashion Week, Thursday, Feb. 12, 2026, in New York. (Photo by Charles Sykes/Invision/AP)
“The best dresses come at the end because I’m really, really in it,” he said.
Unlike his previous shows, where Siriano decorated his venues in sync with this theme, this time around the designer pared down the atmospheric drama allowing his clothes to speak for themselves. For his latest collection, the designer experimented with texture and a variety of colors to create his surrealist dream.
“It was more of an idea of this fantasy dream, maybe like a Dali painting that can never be explained,” he said. “It really is this dreamlike world that hopefully everybody feels really beautiful in.”
Siriano’s fashionable crew of celebrity friends and loyal customers sat front row, including actors Leslie Jones, Uzo Aduba, Julia Fox, Natasha Lyonne, Whoopi Goldberg and rock singer Taylor Momsen.
The show opened with black and white structured looks before models emerged dipped in a sea of colors. They stopped along the runway to pose with their hair transformed into a surrealist swoop style, crisscrossed around their necks.
Siriano's collection reimagined red carpet silhouettes including eye-catching gowns with dramatic asymmetric necklines and exaggerated tulle sleeves or peplums. Even his black and white designs, featured shimmering fringe, alluring cut outs, feathers or delicate beading.
Siriano’s looks are not for the wallflower. The designer fashioned several revealing sheer looks.
In typical Siriano fashion, the runway was filled with models of all sizes and genders.
“We need to escape and be somewhere else … in a dream world,” he said. This will be a celebration of like, beauty, bodies, age and cultures and we need that.
Siriano’s standout looks of the night featured pops of color including a chartreuse lace cropped jacket and maxi skirt, and the bright green ombre bubble gown that arrived shortly before his show.
Siriano’s supermodel muse Coco Rocha closed the show in the ombre bubble gown. As Rocha theatrically posed down the runway, she locked eyes with guests. Celebrity guest Jones cheered on the model, yelling “drama” as she passed by.
“He makes you feel secure in his clothes,” Jones said of Siriano. “It doesn’t matter what size you are; he’s going to make you feel beautiful and that’s the essence of Christian.”
AP entertainment producer John Carucci contributed to this report.
Designer Christian Siriano walks the runway at the end of his Fall/Winter 2026 fashion show as part of New York Fashion Week on Thursday, Feb. 12, 2026, in New York. (Photo by Charles Sykes/Invision/AP)
A model walks the runway during the Christian Siriano Fall/Winter 2026 fashion show as part of New York Fashion Week, Thursday, Feb. 12, 2026, in New York. (Photo by Charles Sykes/Invision/AP)
A model walks the runway during the Christian Siriano Fall/Winter 2026 fashion show as part of New York Fashion Week, Thursday, Feb. 12, 2026, in New York. (Photo by Charles Sykes/Invision/AP)
A model walks the runway during the Christian Siriano Fall/Winter 2026 fashion show as part of New York Fashion Week on Thursday, Feb. 12, 2026, in New York. (Photo by Charles Sykes/Invision/AP)
Model Coco Rocha walks the runway during the Christian Siriano Fall/Winter 2026 fashion show as part of New York Fashion Week, Thursday, Feb. 12, 2026, in New York. (Photo by Charles Sykes/Invision/AP)
DAYTONA BEACH, Fla. (AP) — Casey Mears spun on pit road, got briefly stuck in the infield grass and missed a last-lap crash by mere inches. After all that, he finished eighth a qualifying race Thursday night for the Daytona 500, good enough to get him into “The Great American Race.”
Mears choked back tears three separate times after squeezing into the 41-car field as the highest-finishing “open” car in the first of two 150-mile qualifying races. Anthony Alfredo earned the final spot in the starting lineup in the second qualifier.
“I was worried when we got stuck. I was worried about going two laps down,” Mears said. “Actually got on the radio and asked all the guys to stay calm, said, ‘We still got a shot here.’ For sure when we were sitting in the grass, that wasn’t pretty.
“I can’t believe it. After all that, being sitting in position to go race the Daytona 500 on Sunday, pretty much the whole race I was thinking that was out of our grasp.”
Joey Logano of Team Penske won the first race and Chase Elliott of Hendrick Motorsports took the second. Both were already assured of spots in NASCAR’s season opener and will start on the second row Sunday.
Mears is driving for Garage 66, a team owned by former driver Carl Long with just 10 employees on hand in Daytona. The 47-year-old driver is in pursuit of 500 career Cup Series starts and received financial assistance from former NASCAR team owner Bob Germain to enter Daytona.
Mears, who last competed full-time in 2016, will make his 495th start Sunday. With his fate uncertain, his wife and 14-year-old son booked two separate plane tickets from their home in Phoenix. His daughter has a cheerleading competition in Las Vegas, and they were either headed to see her or to Florida to watch Mears in the Daytona 500.
“Couldn’t be happier they’re taking that flight to Orlando. Gosh, dang, man, got choked up. It means a lot,” he said. “It just means a lot. Especially now, you know what I mean? My kids were younger when I was racing. Even before I started doing this this last year, I’d asked my son about, ‘Do you remember this or that?’ He didn’t remember. He was young.
“To come back and do it now, my kids, the ages they’re at, they understand what dad did for a living is cool.”
Like Mears, Alfredo was also in tears after making the Daytona 500. It will be his third start in the race and he drives for Beard Motorsports, a team that only attempts to race at superspeedways.
“My career is a lot of ups and downs and you never know when you will get another shot to race on any Sunday, especially the Daytona 500, the Great American Race,” Alfredo said. “I’ve only been this choked up twice in my life: the day (my daughter) was born and when I made the Daytona 500... missing it last year has haunted me until this very moment.
“This is the only thing that could pull that black cloud over.”
Logano won the first Daytona 500 qualifying race when a crash in overtime cost Corey LaJoie the spot that went to Mears.
Logano in a Ford for Team Penske had control of the race when a caution for a five-car accident with four laps remaining brought out the yellow. Logano had the lead on the restart for the two-lap sprint to the finish and wasn’t challenged before the final crash ended LaJoie’s hopes and gave Logano his fourth victory in a Daytona qualifying race.
Logano is a three-time Cup champion who won the Daytona 500 in 2015.
“I do think we have a strong race car, obviously a fast race car, we proved that,” Logano said. “There’s definitely some things I want to work on, no doubt. It’s always like that. We have to have speed. We’ll work on some handling pieces, but I feel like we’re pretty close.”
Elliott, the 2020 NASCAR champion, has won a qualifying race three times now.
“A great way to get the blood pumping for sure on a Thursday night,” Elliott said. "Nice to get the NAPA Chevy a win. Not a 500. I’ve been here before and not the other one, so you have to kind of learn to take it a day at a time.
“A great way to start the speed week for our team. Proud of our effort, everybody at Hendrick Motorsports, the boss, from top to bottom. Good night. Looking forward to Sunday.”
The four drivers who failed to qualify for the 41-car field were LaJoie, B.J. McLeod, Chandler Smith and JJ Yeley. Two spots were earned in Wednesday night's time trials and went to Justin Allgaier and Corey Heim.
Kyle Busch won the pole in time trials as he attempts to win his first Daytona 500 in 21 starts.
AP auto racing: https://apnews.com/hub/auto-racing
Chase Elliott celebrates winning the second of two NASCAR Daytona 500 qualifying auto races at Daytona International Speedway, Thursday, Feb. 12, 2026, in Daytona Beach, Fla. (AP Photo/Mike Stewart)
Cars move on the track during the first of two NASCAR Daytona 500 qualifying auto races at Daytona International Speedway, Thursday, Feb. 12, 2026, in Daytona Beach, Fla. (AP Photo/David Graham)
Casey Mears speaks during a NASCAR Daytona 500 media day, Wednesday, Feb. 11, 2026, in Daytona, Fla. (AP Photo/Mike Stewart)
Joey Logano, (22) wins during the first of two NASCAR Daytona 500 qualifying auto races at Daytona International Speedway, Thursday, Feb. 12, 2026, in Daytona Beach, Fla. (AP Photo/Mike Stewart)
Joey Logano and crew celebrate a win in Victory Lane during the first of two NASCAR Daytona 500 qualifying auto races at Daytona International Speedway, Thursday, Feb. 12, 2026, in Daytona Beach, Fla. (AP Photo/Mike Stewart)
Cars runs during the first of two NASCAR Daytona 500 qualifying auto races at Daytona International Speedway, Thursday, Feb. 12, 2026, in Daytona Beach, Fla. (AP Photo/Mike Stewart)
Joey Logano watches the leader board during NASCAR Daytona 500 qualifying, Wednesday, Feb. 11, 2026, in Daytona, Fla. (AP Photo/Mike Stewart)
