What can’t a man wear? Designers push the boundaries at Paris Men’s Fashion Week

By Kati Chitrakorn, CNN

Paris, France (CNN) — If last year’s discourse over a pink sweater was anything to go by, it’s that attitudes to masculinity are still more fragile than one might think. In late 2025, a candyfloss-colored fair isle knit from J.Crew went viral when it was dragged into the center of a debate around whether “real men” could wear such a color. The firestorm was sparked by a post on X from conservative commentator Juanita Broaddrick, who said: “Are you kidding me?? Men, would you wear this $168 sweater?” The consensus was largely no – not because of the price tag but because it was viewed as demasculinizing. “More feminization of men. Stop it, J.Crew,” wrote one user. Another described it as worthy of a “Golden Girl.”

What might that crowd make, then, of the latest Paris menswear shows, where the clothes – which designers hope men will add to their wardrobes next fall – ranged from midi skirts to other separates in colors like burnt orange, dusty pink and magenta. It proposes a radical shift away from the neutral tones that generally tend to be worn by men, for their ability to be versatile and appear more sophisticated and timeless – qualities that were key to the “quiet luxury” trend that pervaded fashion in recent years. But who says red can’t be classic? That appears to be the view of brands including Japanese designer Ryota Iwai’s Auralee, Los Angeles-based Amiri, and Louis Vuitton, the French luxury label whose menswear line is designed by the creative multihyphenate Pharrell Williams.

While the designs shown on the catwalks are always more provocative than what one might widely find in the shops, the new propositions stand out amid the current climate where influencers in the “manosphere” (in other words, online misogyny), or those steeped in a “tradwife” lifestyle, have broadly rejected anything that veers away from traditional values and gender roles. There is also the eternal question of whether designers should create clothes for truly living in, or whether they should be encouraged to think big and present more complicated pieces that challenge everyday notions of style and taste.

For many years now, the heteronormative and gendered approach to fashion has been changing, with a more inclusive and fluid ideology emerging. See not only the runways, but also the red carpets where male celebrities from Harry Styles to Alexander Skarsgård have been bending gender rules. But if last year’s meltdown around a pink sweater is any indication, it’s that, for some male clients, an Issey Miyake boiler suit or a Dior brocade skirt might still be one step too far. Luckily, for them, there are still plenty of conventional alternatives to opt for instead.

See a selection of looks from the Fall-Winter 2026 shows.

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