Styling / @hunterclem_
Makeup / @cultofkelby
Models / @violetchachki, @lowgy, @_santi_, @steffisghoul, iamyouseffe
Just in time for summer, drag superstar and fashion provocateur Violet Chachki is stepping into a new creative chapter with the launch of DARDO, her highly anticipated debut fashion label. While fans know Violet for her larger-than-life drag persona, DARDO offers a glimpse into the designer and visionary behind the corsets, rhinestones, and runway-worthy performances.
For Violet, whose birth name is Paul Jason Dardo, the brand has been years in the making. “I’ve been wanting to do a clothing brand for as long as I can remember,” she says. “I went to school for fashion design and dropped out to pursue drag. What appealed to me most about drag was that I could create outfits and wear them. I just love clothes and the confidence and armor they can create.” While drag became her platform, fashion was always the foundation. “Doing this brand has allowed me to put my vision on someone else besides me,” she explains. “I’ve basically already been doing this, just for myself and not producing it in quantity.”
DARDO’s debut seven-piece collection captures the aesthetic that has defined Violet’s career: equal parts glamour and fetish. Featuring trompe-l’oeil dye-sublimation prints on swimwear, hardware-inspired details, rhinestone embellishments, and even made-to-order lambskin sunglasses inspired by legendary fetish illustrator John Willie, the collection is unapologetically daring. “The visual identity is really the visual identity that I apply to everything, half glamour, half fetish,” Violet says. “I chose shocking pink as really the only color beyond black and white. I love the convoluted ideas around the color pink and the history of it.” The collection is designed for confident individuals who embrace self-expression without apology.
“I don’t think anything is for everyone,” she says. “DARDO is for anyone who is unashamedly themselves, somebody confident who knows what they want and goes for it. Someone who seeks pleasure, fun, and escapism in everything they do.”
Whether worn at the beach, pool, rave, club, music festival, or even the grocery store, DARDO brings what Violet describes as “a bit of erotic glamour to everyday pieces.” Influenced by fashion legends such as Bob Mackie and John Galliano, Violet is intentionally resisting traditional fashion labels. “I’m hoping that DARDO can become a demi-couture, ready-to-wear, streetwear brand,” she says. “I’m still figuring that exact part out. I don’t want to be confined by a label.”
More than a fashion launch, DARDO represents a personal evolution. “It definitely represents a new chapter for me as a creative,” Violet says. “Fans can expect to see more of the man behind the curtain going forward.” With DARDO, Violet Chachki proves that fashion isn’t simply an extension of her artistry, it may have been the destination all along.
