Why Shay Mitchell Paired a Ladylike Suit With Dior's "Romantic" Fall 2026 Fashion Show

This is The Close-Up, where the biggest names in entertainment explain the story behind their latest personal style statement.

For Shay Mitchell, Paris Fashion Week didn't open with a runway, technically. Her first day began at a Barry's workout class hosted by Dior. (Seriously: The $3,950 Toujours Tote doubled as her gym bag.) But less than 24 hours later, Mitchell traded Red Room-proof athleisure for "elevated" Dior tailoring in the Fall 2026 fashion show's front row.

Mitchell and Dior aren't strangers: She scored an invite to the maison's Cruise 2025 show in Scotland, after all. But she'd never seen Dior in all its Parisian glory, much less under the direction of new creative director, Jonathan Anderson. Catching up via email from her flight home to L.A., Mitchell tells Marie Claire it was worth the journey and the gym class. The show "felt very Dior, but with a fresh perspective," she says.

Mitchell got to see another side of the new Dior woman at Anderson's second womenswear show—a whimsical one only enhanced by the lily pad-dense pond set up in the famed Jardin des Tuileries. "Jonathan has such a strong creative point of view, and I thought the way he brought together the garden setting, florals, and beautiful tailoring was incredible," Mitchell says.

When Mitchell received Dior's invite—two pocket-size recreations of the Jardin's green chairs—she gathered she was in for a "romantic" treat. So she reinterpreted the look of modern-day visitors in a ladylike skirt set. "Lately I’ve been drawn to strong tailoring and clean silhouettes," hence her fitted blazer and micro-mini skirt.

Not a single frill, ruffle, or appliqué interrupted the blazer and mini skirt's black-and-white herringbone fabric. Well, unless you count itty-bitty rhinestones that only sparkled when the Parisian sun—or mood lighting in her five-star hotel—hit them just right.

The suit signaled a minimalist shift in Mitchell's fashion show style. In late January, Marie Claire assumed she called herself a capital-M maximalist, judging by her intricately-beaded green top at Valentino's Spring 2026 Couture show.

Turns out, she was just embodying a character, just as she's done on Pretty Little Liars, You, and more. "Couture is a moment to step out of your comfort zone and really have fun with fashion," Mitchell says. "For ready-to-wear, I usually gravitate toward pieces that feel elevated but a little more effortless."

You can see this preference reflected in Dior accessories, like her black Bow Bag. The Spring 2026 style's defining feature is a magnetized leather bow, in place of a classic zip-top closure. It's the definition of the outfit-finishers Mitchell loves best: "pieces that feel put together but still confident and feminine."

Instead of the sky-high heels Mitchell typically wears at fashion shows, she chose Mary Janes capable of strolling comfortably to her front-row seat. (Jennifer Lawrence debuted Mitchell's croc-embossed pair at last October's Dior show.) A pale pink rose—perhaps from the bush Anya Taylor-Joy found outside her hotel?—became Mitchell's last-minute plus-one.

If Mitchell burst onto the runway half-way through the show, no one would've batted an eye. Between the timeless pattern and classic co-ord, her look fit in with Anderson's Fall 2026 takes on tailoring. Should Mitchell secure a fresh-off-the-runway set, she'd wear it almost identically to her latest look: "I’d style it in a simple way—great heels, minimal accessories—and let the piece speak for itself," she says.

This year alone, Mitchell has already launched three Béis collections, made her Haute Couture Week debut, and reunited with Dior's front row. It seems being a "big believer" in manifesting is still paying off. Whatever she's doing, she should definitely keep it up.

Photographer Paige Powell | Hair Stylist Jay Birmingham| Makeup Artist Angie Martinez | Location Le Bristol Paris