Tuesday
Jan252011
Return to the Chic Sheath
Tuesday, January 25, 2011 at 9:12 PM 
Images by Jim Young / Reuters, Jim Watson / Getty Images
Mrs. O chose a classic, fitted sheath dress for the State of the Union address this evening. The look recalls Mrs. O's early Maria Pinto dresses circa 2008, though the designer of this dress proves to be Rachel Roy. The Rachel Roy silver silk shift dress is part of the designer's Fall 2012 collection. The First Lady kept accessories to a minimum, wearing drop earrings and a stack of lucite bangle bracelets, all by Kara Ross. Simple and chic.
Of note, Mrs. O is seated with the family of Christina Taylor Green, who was killed in the Tuscon, Arizona shootings earlier this month. The First Lady is also wearing a black and white lapel ribbon in honor or Rep. Gabrielle Giffords.
tagged Kara Ross NY, Rachel Roy
Kara Ross NY, Rachel Roy
Reader Comments (81)
Love it: Conservative yet elegant, with a touch of modernism with the bracelet and a touch of "her" with the bow pin. Just Lovely. I see why she prefers dresses to suits; they are her element.
Here is a linlk
http://www.gettyimages.com/detail/108331762/Getty-Images-News
And I must say: Hair and Makeup are on point. FLOTUS is BACK!
Simplicity at its' best!!! Luv, luv, luv!!!!
I prefer Mrs O in dresses than suits. She looks radiant tonight! I love the hair.
http://www.politico.com/index.html?refresh=1
I love everything about this SOTU look on the First Lady.
Wonderful.
Although she looks lovely, she always does in her sheaths, her outfit is missing that extra zing that make her Mrs. O. She is definitely moving to the center in her clothes. I wouldn't be surprised if we see her in one of whining de la Renta suits. Not!
Looks like she thoughtfully wore light gray to coordinate with Christina Taylor's mother and to also stand out, as she's expected to do here. I think she looks very pretty and very classy, as usual. And Dr. Jill looks lovely too.
http://www.gettyimages.com/detail/108331954/AFP
A better picture of the dress. It is so simple and tres, tres, chic.
Perfection. Perfect for the occassion - this is classic, and yet still Michelle. She just keeps getting better and better. Can't wait for tomorrow!
Simply beautiful. Sometimes less is more!
Gorgeous. I love the bracelets. She probably had to keep the outfit simple in order to coordinate the pin in honor of Giffords and the other victims in Arizona.
I think the lucite bangles give personality to a beautiful classic.
Ladies if you choose to go conservative, you need some sort of pop.
The chunky bangles does it for this look.
What color shoes do you think for this? Silver kitten heels?
LOVE, LOVE, LOVE! This is such an elegan and timeless look, yet it is not just grey, it is grey with a shimmer. Yet with this sheath she has accessorized with chunky lucite bangles to add a bit of pop, and interest to it. She exemplifies the modern american woman! She knows how to dress for her body, and i hope more women follow her lead, and dress more elegantly, and for their body.
BTW: It looks like a CALVIN KLEIN COLLECTION, OR ISAAC MIZRAHI, OR MICHAEL KORS Sheath.
ravishing.
simply ravishing.
when they put the camera on her, i IMMEDIATELY APPLAUDED.
*brava, brava*
a great fashion moment.
:lol:
She looks like she was wearing a jacket when she arrive?
http://www.gettyimages.com/detail/108331786
Love, love, love this elegant, soft, strong and sophisticated look. It's so Mrs. O and truly speaks volumes. Our President did a FANTASTIC job with the SOTU address!!! God bless our First family and God Bless the United States of America.
I bet De La Renta is having spasms! (smile)
ladywatcher, Or was it one her beloved sweaters? And do her shoes look like a steel grey 1" heel?
I really like this dress that Mrs. Obama chose to wear. The color was very complementary to not only the parents of little Christina Green, but also the forward thinking, optimistic words of Pres. Obama in the SOTU address.
I love Dr. Jill's attire also. She is always sharp!
Mrs. O. always shines in the classic sheath. The dress immediately brought to mind the Maria Pinto dress. Mrs. O. can wear a sheath like no other! I'm loving it! :-)
First Lady reallty looked stunning. I love the simple look she has tonite. We definitely should be proud of her.
Love our classy FLOTUS!
I love the winter white look with the lucite bangles. And her hair and makeup look flawless. I love the fullness of her hair.
True elegance......Mrs Obama is first class in this one, beautiful- no need for anything else beautiful
Just love the dress. It was prefect for tonight. The hair was done nicely also.
Wow, I'm so shocked that your readers are so down on Oscar de la Renta for saying she should wear an American designer. I would think the pain in the American economy was more widespread than that and they would think the criticism fair.
I do so love having a President and First Lady I believe in. I just thought all the FLOTUS fans who are your readers would appreciate the first interactive graphic from the White House website that shows Mrs. Obama's guests at the State of the Union. http://tinyurl.com/62ruzr2
MRS. OBAMA IS ELEGANT CLASSY AND ALWAYS LOOKS EXPENSIVE.. I LOVE HER JOIE DE VIVRE THAT COMES THROUGH EVERY TIME SHE STEPS OUT....I'M PROUD OF THE FIRST LADY.. SHE ROCKS JEANS AND EVENING GOWNS.. I LOVE HER HAPPY INNER GLOW.. THANKS, MRS O.YOU ROCK!!!!
She's poetry in motion. She represents herself, her husband and our country well.
Beautiful classy perfect.
When the camera focused on our FLOTUS, I gasped for air. Now, that is how you wear a sheath dress. (also my favoirte type of dress) And when your body is in shape and you know it, it just embraces every curve, every movement. All you do is stand, gracefully. She really wore this dress, the color(if you can call it color) was so warm, so calm, yet shimmering and said, here I am, Oscar, you do not know what to do with this even on your best day. I just loved the makeup and hair....the bracelets were on point. I just love how she just keeps me raising the bar for myself. Eating healthy and exercising not just to look good, but because it is good and FLOTUS wears it well. I am so proud of this woman, our POTUS and their family. God bless them and keep them safe in these times that we are living. She just glows!
Another home run for our stylish first lady...Beautiful & chic
The dress is a classic but unflattering on Mrs. O around the chest, especially when she was moving. Did anyone else think so? The pictures here look fine - but when she walked in, it just wasn't flattering. It bunched up.
Tammi: Look on Huff Post: She wore bronze metallic pumps that were perfect with this dress. She looks lovely.
I can see so much sadness on the family's faces. They must be thinking how much their daughter would have enjoyed being there.............
http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2011/01/25/michelle-obama-wears-rach_n_814071.html#230139
Huff Po has a really great picture with Mrs. O wearing a gray jacket/collared cardigan and yes silver kittens
Cute and elegant but a little bit too plain for me. Love the stack of bracelets though.
Loved loved her hair & she looked absolutely radiant!!!
Why can't the choice of color/outfit of Mrs. O stand on their own? I just think it detracts from Mrs. O style independent style when it is implied that she waits to see what others wear to "thoughtfully" coordinate her ensembles to theirs (on many occasion on this blog). While I do not doubt that FLOTUS is thoughtful and considerate of the occasions she dresses for, I think it more likely coincidence that she wears the same color and sometimes, yes, even style as that of her guests. Most of the time her outfits are planned well in advanced and I just cannot imagine FLOTUS or her people frantically on the phone trying to find out for example, what color Mrs. Green is wearing, so she can do the same. I believe she is much more secure and confident in her choices (good or bad--and in this case SUPERB) than we give her credit for.
Stunning, classic, appropriate, well-fitting, and personalized! Mrs. O helped put the spotlight on her guests and on POTUS with this look.
First lady Michelle looked beautiful just love the way the dress looked on her.
Does anyone know who makes the lucite bracelets? love them!
The disrespectful reference to Oscar Dela Renta one of the world's most revered designers was disgusting. I am very surprised that it was not edited from this site.
Strikes the absolute perfect fashion choice for the event and political circumstances. Lovely.
She looks AWESOME - i don't mind her signature high-waisted-skirt-and-belt, but i LOVE when she wears nice smooth lines.
OT, but I thought Boehner's tie was slightly curious, and Michele Bachmann desperately needs someone over 11 to do her eye shadow.
Perfection, yet again.
@thumper for once I agree with you! She did look stunning. The color of her dress shined like a soothing light,
@Somebody this dress is a tad looser than she normally wears her sheaths, but I didn't find it bothersome. Just gave her space to move.
Loved this dress. Definitely an improvement. Beautiful fabric in a simple design. She stood out in a sea of black and red, but not overly so. The accessories did not compete with the dress. I loved the earrings and would love more information on them!!! The bracelets still telegraphed Mrs. Obama's avant garde personality and the lucite one was a nod to current fashion and modernity. You got to see the loveliness of Mrs. O first instead of noticing the outfit first. Well done! However, having said this, I do still have to comment on the fit. Perhaps still an improvement on tailoring? More structure with undergarments? Nonetheless, she was beautiful!
Ruby2, I do my best to moderate comments on the blog, but beyond that, need help from the reader community. Please email me at contact@mrs-o.org with the specific comment and post you're referencing, and I will review. Thank you. Mrs. T
A total glam package! Mrs. O looks really beautiful.
A very timeless, elegant look. The dress is so versatile -- I can imagine Mrs. O wearing it with a flower pin or scarf and maybe those pink heels for Easter Sunday.
Mrs. T, you have certainly been working overtime this last week, so it's a good time to thank you, yet again, for this endlessly fascinating blog. Although I get a little twitchy when a few days go by without a new post, I hope you get a little break...as long as it's not too long.
The problem with off-the-rack clothes is that they do "bunch up" and they rarely fit the way made-to-measure clothes do. But if FLOTUS were to add a full-time tailor to re-jig all the off-the-rack clothes she wears to the "speculated" stylist (that got so much flack in a previous post), can you imagine the out-cry?
A living person wearing real clothes to real events is not a perfect, store-window mannequin. She is not on a photo shoot where things are pinned to perfection where the camera can't see--I speak from experience--and re-touched afterwards.
Don't forget that the very cameras we depend on to bring us these shots also add a significant distortion to the photo. The person and the clothing look heavier and bulkier than they do to the eye. Often the colour is also off. And if the angle is not quite right the tiniest person can look as big as a bus.
Given those facts, it seems a little surprising to me that readers of this blog seem to want what are essentially candid shots--albeit by professional photographers--to look like something from a page out of Vogue. I can't happen, folks. Not even for FLOTUS.
So understanding all that, perhaps we could agree to give that line of conversation a rest. There's always the Whiner Designer or the belts or funeral attire to have a go at. It's not like the fun will stop if we do.
Why do we keep making the conversation about Oscar De La Renta? He has given an opinion, as he is free to do. The First Lady has been in the public eye for a little over two years, and has worn a broad spectrum of designers in a wide price range. The First Lady, like any other lady, manages her budget based on the clothing that is available to her and what is affordable to her budget. Does Mr. De La Renta have personal knowledge of designers who have submitted clothing to her or know the extent of her budget? If he had a real concern, I would assume that he would have contacted the First Lady's office privately and offer his observations or assistance. All great designers are known to have discretion and respect for current and prospective clients, at least they did with First Ladies of the past. I guess this First Lady does not qualify for that treatment.