Katie Holmes nails the red and purple combo that’s shaping up to be autumn’s boldest colour pairing
Wearing red and purple together without a second thought about style missteps, that’s exactly what Katie Holmes pulled off at a high-profile New York evening. Her outfit choice, far from accidental, confirms a chromatic trend that looks set to define the months ahead.
Why red and purple are the season’s winning duo
These two shades aren’t the first ones you’d instinctively reach for when looking to inject colour into an outfit. In fact, most people tend to wear them separately, as if putting them together risked tipping into overkill. Yet their pairing produces a surprisingly compelling effect: character, depth and a sense of playfulness that never crosses into excess.
The reason lies in their chromatic construction. Red is present at the base of purple, which creates a natural harmony between the two. The result is a combination that brings a mood-lifting energy to a look while preserving genuine elegance. It’s no coincidence, then, that both colours rank among the must-haves of 2026 and lend themselves particularly well to mix-and-match dressing.
Katie Holmes’s outfit, broken down piece by piece
It was at Michael Kors’s 45th anniversary celebration, held in New York, that Katie Holmes chose to wear this bold duo. Attending alongside Jason Bard Yarmosky, the American actress opted for a long purple satin dress by Michael Kors, featuring a round neckline and draped detailing that gently cinched the waist.
Rather than completing the look with black shoes, she went for square-toe heeled ballet flats from the brand’s autumn-winter 2026 collection, in red. That colour choice instantly lifts the purple dress and creates an immediate visual coherence between the two pieces. To balance these two vibrant shades, Katie Holmes simply tucked a white bag under her arm. Nothing more. Two strong pieces and one neutral accessory, and the silhouette finds its equilibrium.
This styling move illustrates a practical rule: when two intense colours meet, a single neutral element is enough to calm the overall look without dimming its impact.
On the runways and in the streets, a trend already well established
Designers anticipated this enthusiasm long before social media caught on. On the autumn-winter 2026-2027 runways, several houses played up this pairing. Chanel paired a ruffled red dress with a statement purple necklace. At Balenciaga, purple leather gloves accompanied a cherry-coloured draped dress. Celine, meanwhile, brought together a red jumper and a purple belt.
The ways to wear this combination are varied and accessible to every wardrobe:
- A purple blouse paired with a red skirt
- A cardigan and cigarette trousers in the two shades
- Coloured accessories to lift an otherwise understated outfit
- An aubergine waistcoat worn with flamboyant trousers
- A purple dress finished off with a pair of red heels
Celebrities had already embraced this combo before Katie Holmes. Dua Lipa turned heads at Cannes in a purple Ferragamo dress worn with red heels. Actress Zoey Deutch, meanwhile, made her mark on the streets of New York in an aubergine waistcoat paired with flamboyant trousers.
How to take inspiration from Katie Holmes’s style and make this duo your own
Katie Holmes offers a directly applicable lesson here: two strong pieces in red and purple are all you need to build a memorable outfit. Adding a neutral accessory, such as a white bag, keeps the vibrancy of the two colours in check without extinguishing them.
What the actress’s look confirms is that red and purple don’t require an entirely rethought wardrobe. A single piece in one of the two shades, paired with an accessory in the other, is already enough to achieve the desired effect. This autumn, these two colours are no longer keeping their distance.
