Wednesday, January 21, 2009

Style Comes To Washington

Michelle Obama's Inaugrual Ball Gown will long be remembered as the gown that broke the mold. Looking back on past gowns, I can't help but wonder how much involvment The Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of the Latter Day Saints had in the design process. Michelle Obama looked fresh in a romantic Grecian one-shoulder gown by Jason Wu, a 26 year old Taiwan born, Manhattan based designer. Resplendent was the word I hoped to use to describe Michelle's gown but I wasn't wooed. I found the gown to be very youthful. However, I expected Michelle to use some of the sketches several designers had provided as inspiration for her gown (view the sketches here).

I laud Michelle's choice of giving Mr. Wu, a Parson's School of Design graduate a platform to showcase his work, but I was looking forward to seeing something more elegant. When I thought of a gown for Michelle, I imagined a gown with a defined waist in a bold color. Michelle got the memo on the waist line but the prize for color choice goes to Jill Biden for her smart choice of a red gown. An eggplant colored gown that combined elegance and simplicity would have been my choice as it would have highlighted the first lady's skin tone. Still, her choice was smart and refreshing a welcome change from the boring gowns of former first ladies.

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