Puerto Rican designers Lisa Cappalli and Gustavo Arango presented their collections simultaneously in show number 700 of San Juan Moda, held at the Hotel Vanderbilt ballroom in San Juan during the event’s current season, called Poder Sutil, which has run for more than twenty editions. Minutes before the show began, the two friends did something unusual for them: took the microphones to share a conversation with the audience, filled with laughter and applause.
Their friendship dates back long before they became references of Puerto Rican fashion, as their mothers worked together in the workshop of Millie Arango, Cappalli’s mother. After the talk, the runway show continued that dialogue: Cappalli’s creations appeared on the left and Arango’s on the right, with models crossing back and forth in a subtle choreography so the audience could see both closely.
Cappalli stayed true to her bohemian-meets-modern style, with lace, embroidery, asymmetric cuts, ruffles, and a palette of grays, blues and violets with black as protagonist. Arango used black with some white pieces and prints, working with transparency, layered fabrics, volumes and rich textures. As the finale, Denise Quiñones, Miss Universe 2001, modeled a white dress similar to the one she wore the night she won the crown.