Our Charming First Couple

Photo via Flickr user eclectico63 / Paris Match

We've just come across this fantastic new behind-the-scenes photo from the Inauguration, recently published in Paris Match. It's such a sweet candid shot of the First Couple. And does anyone else see what we do? Mrs. O seems to be wearing a white jacket with her Inaugural Ball gown. After countless photos, this is the first we've seen a jacket in the mix (not counting the photo that captured President Mr. O's tuxedo jacket around the First Lady's shoulders).

A First Lady Fashion Week?

Photo via Flickr user The Heart Truth / Creative Commons

Photo via Flickr user The Heart Truth / Creative Commons

Before the March cover of Vogue was unveiled this week, recent fashion chatter has focused on whether First Lady Mrs. O might attend New York Fashion Week, which officially kicks off tomorrow. William Norwich (also of Vogue's Norwich Notes) wrote on wowowow.com last Friday:

"The hot rumor sweeping Seventh Avenue is that First Lady Michelle Obama and/or Jill Biden will attend a couple of shows during Fashion Week."

Mr. Norwich did go on to cite two factors that might deter Mrs. O from attending: First, concern that attending Fashion Week in such tough economic times will be perceived as frivolous. And second, that securing the tents at Bryant Park might pose too big a challenge for the Secret Service. It's worth noting that if Mrs. O does attend, she wouldn't be the first First Lady to do so.

Throughout her time in the White House, Laura Bush championed The Heart Truth campaign to raise awareness about heart disease in women. For the past several years, she has also attended the campaign's Red Dress Collection Fashion Show held as part of New York Fashion Week. Photos taken at the 2008 show are posted above. Were Mrs. O to attend Fashion Week, we have to think the Red Dress Collection would be one of her stops. As WWD reported last week:

"The [Red Dress] show’s real get would be First Lady Michelle Obama, who has yet to RSVP, according to show organizers."

The 2009 Red Dress Collection will debut tomorrow morning at 10AM, and certainly, we'll be on the lookout for our First Lady. As a woman clearly interested in fashion, we hope Mrs. O does attend - for her own enjoyment, but also for the recognition it would bring to a struggling industry. And for the "frivolous" concern? Critics should read Jeanne McManus's fantastic piece in the Washington Post today.

A Lovely First Lady

Photo credit: Saul Loeb/AFP/Getty Images

First Lady Mrs. O looked so lovely at the grand reopening celebration of Ford's Theatre last night. And her dress! We love the girlish silhouette created by the empire waist and full skirt, and the unusual pattern (a plaid made up of mini-houndstooth). This feels unlike anything we've seen Mrs. O wear in the past. Could it be Tracy Reese? We've confirmed the dress is not designed by Tracy Reese, which leaves this somewhat of a mystery. Any ideas?

Update: Thanks to reader Alexa, who relayed that the dress is designed by Isabel Toledo (as reported by ETOnline.com) Additional images can be seen at the Huffington Post. 

And as requested, here is the video from YouTube so that we can admire the dress in action:

Shaping Young Minds (and Style)

White House photo by Joyce N. Boghosian

First Lady Mrs. O made an appearance at Howard University today, speaking to a sold out auditorium of 250 students. As part of an event billed "Home, Work, Community: The Role of the African American Women As Change Agents," the First Lady touched on one of the issues she has professed to care most about - work and family balance.

"...and the one thing -- the one message that I have is for all of you struggling with this issue, is just remember there is no right answer. It took me a long time to figure that out. There is no one right way to do any of this. And the choices and the decisions will change, given your circumstances...."

For the event, First Lady Mrs. O was elegantly dressed in a scarlet red sheath dress. We've confirmed this is the Vonda dress from Chicago designer Maria Pinto's Fall 09 collection. To read Mrs. O's full remarks, click here.

A Day of Bows and Bears

Photo via Mary's Center

We were so busy celebrating Mrs. O's Vogue cover that we all but missed her very important appearance! First Lady Mrs. O spent time at Mary's Center for Maternal and Child Care today in her first official visit to a nonprofit organization. The center provides the most vulnerable families in the Washington, DC metro area with comprehensive health care, family literacy, and other social services. Mrs. O praised the center's efforts:

“Community health centers play an important role in providing for the health and well-being of millions of kids and families across the country and Mary’s Center has played a particularly important role for Washington’s Hispanic community.  At a time when so many families are struggling financially, places like Mary’s Center end up doing even more, and I’m honored to be here today to learn about this incredible organization that cares for so many of our new neighbors in the DC community.”

After speaking, Mrs. O read "Brown Bear, Brown Bear, What Do You See?" to a  group of toddlers in the Center's family literacy program. As always, the First Lady was appropriately dressed for the occasion, wearing gray wool trousers and an ivory tie neck top accessorized with two green bow pins. The pins, as moja31 has noted in the comments, were last seen with the red Narciso Rodriguez dress that Mrs. O wore for the second presidential debate. Video from Politico: