politics and fashion

On her quest to make a relatively unknown designers known, Michelle Obama chose to wear a dress by designer Jason Wu, a 26 year old immigrant from Taipei and Vancouver to the Inaugural balls on Tuesday night. The dress was a floor length gown with flower-like detailing on the bodice and skirt. A spokesperson for Jason Wu said, “We did not know Michelle Obama was wearing the dress until the very last minute. ” It is unclear if Wu will be dressing Mrs. Obama for other events/ galas.

Photo credit: People.com/ Getty Images

This is a picture of the INCREDIBLE Loree Rokin earrings Michelle Obama was wearing at the “Kids Inaugural: We Are The Future” Concert on Monday night. Here are the deets:

White gold and diamond pave rectangle earrings with 12 green sapphire brios
1.09ct of diamonds
17.40ct of green sapphires

The cost of these little gems is $17,500. And yes, they were borrowed.

Hearing he was wearing Ralph Lauren purple label (thanks to my little insider for that info.!) Will confirm this as well…

I wrote about this on Twitter this morning but wanted to put it up on my blog as well. For the first time since Michelle Obama hit the media scene, I actually love what she had on- a canary yellow brocade shift dress and over coat by Isabel Toledo and a pair of green Jimmy Choo pumps. For those of you who don’t know who Isabel Toledo is here are three fun facts about her:

-She is Cuban and based in NYC.

-She is married to Ruben Toledo, an artist and collaborator.

-She was the creative director of Anne Klein.

… a couple of you (ok, ok a lot of you) have written in re: my post on Michelle Obama’s Loree Rodkin earrings. I do realize the Obamas probably have some money and therefore CAN afford $10,000 + accessories- but that’s not the point. What I was trying to bring to everyone’s attention is that she has been positioned as the “first lady of the people” wearing all those middle priced outfits (instead of Oscar de la Renta she rocked J Crew and H&M). So many fashion writers, editors and critics (including me) have been talking about Michelle Obama’s foray into fashion, but why did’t we talk about it when she was wearing the stuff everyone else could afford? Aren’t we overstating it a little when we call her a fashion icon  (for the record, I DON’T) and compare her to Jackie O? Do you only achieve “fashion plate” status when you start upgrading your wardrobe $$$ wise, AND if that’s the case, why is everyone giving Sarah Palin so much flack? Just sayin’…

PS thank you for all of your comments. The discussion is GREAT!

It seems like the new fashion trend in NYC is not booties and opaque tights for the ladies and skinny jeans for dudes but Obama gear. Between the “Hope” t-shirts and  “Yes We Can” pins and the Obama/ Biden tote bags, I am experiencing some major fashion fatigue (I am in Zurich right now so no one is wearing that stuff). The lovely peeps (and my former collegues) at Metro the free international daily asked me when I thought Bam fans will finally be over wearing all that election tchotchke. I said after the inauguration in January, but I just logged onto the Barak Obama site and it seems his gear is now on mark down. Maybe the Obama gear fad is going end sooner than I think…

Thoughts?

Malia Obama is ADORABLE,  but WHOA why did her parents Democratic strategists put her in a dress that retails for $110?? Really? In this economic climate?? I love how world leaders (Obama included) try to align themselves with the “working/middle class” but in secret eat arugula from Whole Foods and dress up in ultra luxe wear (PS I am not dissing WF or luxe wear, God knows I indulge in both waaay too often).  This dress sells at Neiman Marcus! ALSO, where are the Obamas getting all of these hi-fi clothes? In this Wall Street Journal piece,  Bernadette Reiss, co- owner of Biscotti (the label behind Malia’s red dress) says she plans to reach out and offer “style assistance” to the Obama daughters. Interesting…

I don’t understand why everyone is all over Sarah Palin’s case re: $150,000 wardrobe when Michelle Obama was wearing a pair of Loree Rodkin earrrings on Tuesday night that retail for $10,275! Don’t get me wrong, I am OBSESSED with Rodkin’s designs. During the press previews several of us lo-fi editors put on a couple pieces and pretended they were actually a part of our permanent collection.  And to be fair, It is unclear where Michelle Obama got these white gold and diamond triple dangles (were they given to her? Did she purchase them at ultra luxe Ikram in Chicago? Did she borrow from her sister-in-law or Joe Biden’s wife? ) but they definitely aren’t fake nor are they affordable… well for me anyway.

P.S. did Mrs. Obama hire a stylist? Just askin’…

I didn’t love the dress on her. BUT from a pure placement stand point, I am beyond thrilled for Narcisco. Something like this was exactly what he needed. Thoughts?

I REALLY don’t want to be that annoying person that tells you to go out and vote or who to vote for (this IS a free country) but there are a ton of retailers offering discounts on merch. if you venture to the polls today and get a sticker. Here are just some of the sweet deals:

Owl Lab Voting Discount: Bring in your voting sticker and recieve 20% off your purchase. Owl Lab is located at 20 East 12th Street, New York, NY 10003 Hours: 11am- 8pm

Tracy Reese Hope for Change Election Party from 9pm-12 midnight (Receive a 20% discount during the fete) Location: 641 Hudson Street in NYC.