Michelle Obama's fashion tour de force
She wore American designers (Jason Wu, Thakoon) and European (Azzedine Alaia, Moschino), Japanese (Junya Watanabe) and J. Crew. Watching her in Europe, it became clear that getting dressed is much more than an official duty for Michelle Obama.
This is a woman who loves clothes.
When she met French first lady Carla Bruni-Sarkozy at the NATO summit luncheon in Strasbourg, France, on Friday, it wasn't much of a fashion smackdown after all. Both women stuck to their pet designers -- Thakoon for Obama and Christian Dior for Bruni-Sarkozy. No surprises there.
Obama's shiny rose print sheath dress hugged every curve and said, "I'm not afraid to show my sexuality." By contrast, Sarkozy's demure dove gray leather coat and dress, her gamine-like flats and structured purse, seemed designed to make her disappear into the palace decor, and perhaps disguise her wild child, fashion model pedigree.
The fit and color made the Thakoon dress Obama's best look of the trip, seconded by the Alaia suit (left) with articulated seams that she wore on Saturday in Strasbourg. (Bruni-Sarkozy's straight-line lavendar Dior coat and purple Chanel bag were pretty fab too.)
In Prague, Obama's white Moschino bow-front blouse, partly obscured by a belted black cardigan (below right), proved that sometimes the first lady would do better to leave the sweater at home. But in general, her clothes were an image-boosting hit.
She rose above the outmoded notion that an American first lady must wear only American-made clothes, and in doing so she helped underscore her husband's "we are all in this together" global message. Obama stayed true to herself, her signatures (triple strand pearls, low heeled pumps), and the designers she's had success with before, giving even wider exposure to a new generation of American talents.
But Women's Wear Daily reports that Seventh Avenue stalwarts such as Oscar de la Renta and Vera Wang are starting to get jealous. They have a point. If Obama is going to be a one-woman fashion bailout, she's going to need to start branching out. Oscar can make a beautiful floral sheath too.
--Booth Moore
For a photo gallery of Michelle Obama's European fashion tour, click here.
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Top photo: U.S. First Lady Michelle Obama, left, speaking with France's first lady Carla Bruni-Sarkozy before a luncheon at Rohan Palace as their husbands held bilateral talks in Strasbourg, eastern France, April 3. Credit: Pascal Segrette/Elysee Palace/Associated Press
Middle: Michelle Obama, left, and Carla Bruni-Sarkozy wave to media upon their arrival at Rohan Palace on April 4 in Strasbourg, France. Credit: Sean Gallup/Getty Images
Bottom: President Obama and wife Michelle Obama wave to the crowd at Hradcany Square near Prague Castle in Prague, Czech Republic, on April 5. Credit: AFP/Getty Images
My wife had a front row seat in Prague for Obama's speech. In 30 seconds, she was able to talk to the first lady and get an understanding behind her fashion choices.
She found out, “If you’re going to do a bow, I think it should be a BIG bow.”
Here is the link to the whole story http://bulldogmi.com/bigbowbymichelleo
Posted by: Dave | April 07, 2009 at 05:41 AM
Send her some of your cloths top designers.
Posted by: Renee | April 07, 2009 at 08:26 AM
If Vera Wang has made a habit of not showing her clothes with black models, she need not apply for the job of designer to Michelle O.
Posted by: Pat Davis | April 07, 2009 at 08:51 AM
I think it would be best if Mrs. Obama did not wear belts that cut her above the waist, as she wore with the big bow tie white blouse....it takes away from her streamlined look....she is tall and statuesque...lines should be kept simple. She's done well, otherwise.
Posted by: Janis | April 07, 2009 at 11:52 AM
Why should M.O. wear designers who have been sparing in their use of African-American and other ethnic models on the runway and in magazine advertising? If they want her business, American designers should take some marketing steps first.
Posted by: Clare | April 07, 2009 at 01:47 PM