First 100 days of first lady fashion

With looks from J.Crew to Jason Wu, Michelle Obama is worth watching

BY AUDRA D.S. BURCH

aburch@MiamiHerald.com

In her first 100 days in the White House, Michelle Obama has stylistically transformed what it means to be a first lady, with a cultivated, accessible look, from basic J.Crew tees to designer Jason Wu's dreamy inauguration ball gown.

In just a couple short fashion seasons, Obama has already inspired the I-word -- iconic -- gracing the covers of magazines from Vogue to People, and becoming the subject of at least two style books due out this year; the first, Michelle Style by Mandi Norwood, debuted Tuesday. A comic book biography and a website devoted to tracking her daily ensembles have already been launched.

And she has drawn the obvious, if not clichéd, comparisons to Jacqueline Kennedy. Not since Kennedy has a first lady's fashion sense been so widely deconstructed.

''Michelle Obama will be one of history's most vibrant first ladies. She has a distinctive style that every American woman can aspire to whether the consumer is a Target shopper or someone more likely to be found on Miracle Mile,'' said Carrie Feron, vice president of Avon, which plans to release a Michelle Obama style guide this year.

From the campaign trail to the inauguration to her first few months of being first lady, Obama's fashion sensibilities demonstrate a unique understanding of the force of imagery. She has carefully constructed hers as that of an independent, contemporary woman, wife, mother -- like her or not.

Perhaps, most powerfully, she comes across as human, subject to good and bad days. Sometimes her hair is wind-swept and her outfits are remarkably ordinary. Other days, she is camera ready, from flawlessly applied makeup to tailored dresses that flatter her body type.

Obama -- who passionately supports organic diets and assisting military families -- has shunned traditional White House costumes, opting for a modern cocktail of off-the-rack staples and couture wear. She has made a signature of sleeveless sheaths, even showing her toned arms in the official White House portrait -- generating a national discourse, however irreverent, on the first lady's right to bear arms.

She has embraced obscure, emerging designers and American designers such as Wu, and Isabel Toledo, who designed the memorable lemongrass dress she wore at her husband's swearing-in. But she has also fearlessly worn ready-to-wear basics that a recession-worn nation can appreciate.

So after her first 100 days, we give Obama's fashion policy a great approval rating.