Chic & Refined

High fashion is running on full power during SWAIA Native Fashion Week this May.

This year’s SWAIA Native Fashion Week will light up the City Different with a highly curated, more refined two-day format on May 8 and 9, offering attendees an in-depth experience and even greater chances to engage with designers and make purchases. Taking place at the Eldorado Hotel & Spa, Fashion Week celebrates Native voices in the fashion world and features five of the biggest names energizing the industry today: Patrica Michaels, Pamela Baker, Jontay Kahm, Lauren Good Day and Jamie Okuma.

Left: Designs by Sage Mountainflower on the runway during the 2025 SWAIA Native Fashion Week. © viisualphotography for SWAIA. Right: A model shows off Dancing Storm Designs by Livia Manywounds. © viisualphotography for SWAIA.

One of the main highlights of the event is the Native Creatives Market, where visitors will be able to buy designs from the artists firsthand. The market is free and open to the public and will be held on both Friday and Saturday, May 8 and 9, from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m., in the Anasazi Ballroom. “What I love about this year’s fashion week is that it’s way more intimate,” says Peshawn Bread, who is organizing Native Fashion Week this year. “It gives people a closer feeling of connection, being able to [meet] with designers up front.” Bread (Comanche) is a prominent writer and filmmaker who’s had a hand in dozens of creative projects.

On Friday evening is the invitation-only press and designer reception. And on Saturday evening is the ticketed gala, A Taste of Native Fashion, featuring the five designers who will each showcase their latest couture looks. The gala will be held from 6 to 8:30 p.m. Bread encourages attendees to dress up in their very best for what will be an exceptionally chic and elegant night.

Left: Designs by Kayla Looking Horse at last year’s fashion week. Photo by Veronica Huerta Photography. © viisualphotography. Right: Lauren Good Day’s designs are modeled on the runway at the 2025 show. © viisualphotography for SWAIA.

“I love that we have Native designers who have really been there at the beginning of the [Native fashion] scene and are continuing that scene,” says Bread. “We’re representing so many different regions of Indian Country…Patricia Michaels has contributed so much to our fashion community…I always think of her as a staple of Native fashion. Also Jamie Okuma, being the first Native American artist to ever show at New York Fashion Week. And seeing Lauren grow and bring in traditional clothing, designs and techniques into her designs, I really admire her.”

Left: SACRD THNDR by Alex Manitopyes on the runway at SWAIA Native Fashion Week in 2025. © viisualphotography for SWAIA. © viisualphotography. Right: A model shows off a handbag and clothing by Stevens & Snyder. © viisualphotography for SWAIA.

Bread continues, “We have always been here and we’ve always had these haute couture techniques. We deserve to be seen. We have a wide range of color palettes, materials and so many designs. It’s important for people to understand Native fashion. It’s beautiful to see the people who have broken into the mainstream and where we’re going to take it in the future…[SWAIA Native Fashion Week] is smaller this year but will have just as much impact. I think it will be absolutely amazing.” —

May 8-9, 2026
SWAIA Native Fashion Week
Native Creatives Market May 8-9, 10 a.m.-4 p.m., Anasazi Ballroom (free and open to the public)
Press & Designer Reception May 8, 6-8 p.m., Cava and the Chapel (invitation only)
A Taste of Native Fashion Gala May 9, 6-8:30 p.m., Grand Ballroom (ticketed)
Eldorado Hotel & Spa
309 W. San Francisco Street, Santa Fe, NM 87501
www.swaia.org

Featured Designers

Patrica Michaels
@patriciamichaels
www.patriciamichaelsdesign.com

Pamela Baker TOC Legends
@himikalas
www.toclegendshouseofdesign.ca

Jontay Kahm
@jontay_kahm

Lauren Good Day
@laurengoodday
www.laurengoodday.com

Jamie Okuma
@j.okuma
www.jokuma.com