Christian Siriano Shares the Sweet Way a Friend's Mom Helped Him on His First N.Y.C. Thanksgiving (Exclusive) Sean MandellNovember 27, 2025 at 6:19 PM 0 Manny Carabel/Getty Christian Siriano on Oct. 21, 2025 in New York City. Christian Siriano revealed how a friend's mom helped him on his first Thanksgiving in New York City 20 years ago when he "had no money" The fashion designer says his Thanksgiving and Friendsgiving celebrations are still shaped by that special memory Siriano spoke with PEOPLE about his holiday traditions while onboard the Queen Mary 2 for Transatlantic Fashion Week Christi...
- - Christian Siriano Shares the Sweet Way a Friend's Mom Helped Him on His First N.Y.C. Thanksgiving (Exclusive)
Sean MandellNovember 27, 2025 at 6:19 PM
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Manny Carabel/Getty
Christian Siriano on Oct. 21, 2025 in New York City. -
Christian Siriano revealed how a friend's mom helped him on his first Thanksgiving in New York City 20 years ago when he "had no money"
The fashion designer says his Thanksgiving and Friendsgiving celebrations are still shaped by that special memory
Siriano spoke with PEOPLE about his holiday traditions while onboard the Queen Mary 2 for Transatlantic Fashion Week
Christian Siriano has opened up about a heartwarming Thanksgiving memory that still shapes how he celebrates the holiday two decades later.
The fashion designer, 40, spoke with PEOPLE while onboard the Queen Mary 2 during Transatlantic Fashion Week and reflected on the first year he spent the holiday in New York City.
"I do it all," Siriano tells PEOPLE of his Thanksgiving revelries. "I do two Friendsgivings. I do a Friendsgiving with actual crazy, wild friends, and I do another Friendsgiving with my friend's family that took me in when I first moved to New York, and I still do Thanksgiving with them every year."
Remembering that first NYC Thanksgiving, Siriano explains that he "had $20" to his name when a friend's mother insisted he take a taxi home from her Upper East Side gathering. "I had no money," he recalls. "And I swear my best friend's mom [told me], 'I'll give you $20,' because she [said], 'You need to take a cab home.'"
Siriano told the friend's mother, "You're right."
"I lived downtown at the time," he explains. "Oh, no one goes downtown," the friend's mother told him, adding, "I will pay for the cab."
"This was 20 years ago," Siriano notes. "I was like, 'Thank you so much.' And I'll never forget it. So I've had Thanksgiving with them forever, which is fun."
Siriano's love for his chosen family can be seen in his professional life as well, including during this year's Transatlantic Fashion Week, where he was joined by his longtime collaborator and close friend Coco Rocha. The supermodel, 37, walked in both of the designer's onboard fashion shows.
"It's been so fun because originally Coco wasn't even going to come on the ship and I was just going to bring other models," says the Project Runway mentor and winner. After he encouraged Rocha to join and assured her she could bring her family along, the "Queen of Pose" quickly signed on.
Christopher Ison
Coco Rocha and Christian Siriano onboard Cunard's Queen Mary 2 as they set sail from New York and kick off Transatlantic Fashion Week on Oct. 31, 2025.
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"It made it really nice," Siriano says of having her by his side throughout the voyage. "Of course, we hang out anyway, and go to dinners, and the kids come over. They just stayed at my house for a week."
Siriano adds that having Rocha and her family around amped up the joy in his shows. "I didn't want it to feel like stuffy fashion," he tells PEOPLE. "We just wanted to have fun."
on People
Source: "AOL Entertainment"
Source: Entertainment
Published: November 27, 2025 at 03:00PM on Source: ANDY MAG
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