Article: Reviving Tradition: The Guayabera Gets a Haute Couture Makeover in Salento
Reviving Tradition: The Guayabera Gets a Haute Couture Makeover in Salento
Renown Chef Donato De Santis- Husband of Style Star Mica Paglaya De Santis
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As a barware, lighting and home accessories design company, we at Thomas Fuchs Creative specialize in handmade goods. Every week we give you behind the scenes to the people, places and things that inspire us.
Before asking "what hat to wear with your guayabera", the real question is what GUAYABERA to wear with your hat and luckily for you Mica can supply you with options and answers for both your style conundrums.
Tucked away in the storybook hills of Salento, Italy, a quiet revolution in menswear is underway. Mica Paglayan De Satis, founder of the effortlessly chic boutique Casa Andina, has taken the classic Cuban Guayabera shirt and reimagined it through a lens of craftsmanship, cultural heritage, and couture sensibility.
The exact origin of the garment is unknown, although some stories attribute the shirt to the people of the Philippines who introduced the design to Mexico via the Manila-Acapulco galleon trade, from there spreading to Cuba and the rest of the Caribbean. Specifically, the design is believed to be from the lace-like white Philippine barong Tagalog, which has documented origins in the Philippines prior to the arrival of the Spanish.[3][4]
While the fashion world races to capture the next microtrend, Mica has chosen a different path—one rooted in legacy. Drawing on her family’s rich background in textiles in Argentina, she brings generations of knowledge into a single, refined garment. But this isn’t nostalgia—it’s innovation dressed in tradition.
Each Guayabera is handcrafted in Salento, where the rhythm of Italian life and artisanal dedication infuse every stitch. Repurposed lace borders, vintage tablecloths, and intricate appliqués are transformed into something entirely new. These aren’t just clothes—they’re heirlooms, wearable stories, and a soulful antidote to fast fashion.
By elevating what has long trended in digital circles—vintage embellishments, upcycling, and slow fashion—Mica offers a version that belongs in the same conversation as haute couture. Available globally through Casa Andina’s online store, her Guayaberas are worn not just as shirts, but as statements of identity, artistry, and refined taste.
More than a boutique, Casa Andina is a lifestyle—curated, cultured, and uncompromising. It’s easy to imagine this blueprint being replicated as a global shop-in-shop model: small, intentional spaces bringing local soul to an international audience.
Owner, Designer and Style Star Mica Paglayan De Santis
In a world saturated with mass-produced style, Mica Paglayan De Satis proves that true elegance lives in the details—and sometimes, in a small town in Salento.
Log on and pick up A GUAYABERA, a Hat, Pick-nik Basket, a Pareo and much much more.
Tap Link - CASA ANDINA
Have a great week,
MICHOU
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