The First Look

WITH HER ON-POINT BABYGIRL PINK Oscar de la Renta scarf coat and suede Manolo Blahnik boots for the inauguration, as well as the strapless Reem Acra gown for the ball, the vice president’s wife, or SLOTUS, turned heads, even if she smiled too widely and too often. Baby­girl pink has become the colour code of female bossdom since Nicole Kidman’s soul and body-baring eponymous film stormed America.

Usha Vance, India’s contribution to the second Trump era, was the breakout star of the inaugural fashion game. Sure, there was a lot of conversation around Melania Trump’s boater hat, better suited to the Royal Ascot in England. Was it designed to pre­vent her husband from kissing her, or was it a fashion statement endorsing American milliner Eric Javits and helping to make America great again? Trump’s second presidential inauguration was an unveiling of what is being described as Euro Royal style, distinct from the Fox TV fashion of Trump’s first term.

FLOTUS stuck to black-and-white for the inauguration and ball, preferring the undertaker look at the former, designed by NewYork­er Adam Lippes, and harking back to her fashion model days with the latter, designed by her stylist, French-American Hervé Pierre.

The choices may have been monochromatic but they were bold. So, has dull DC style been replaced by a sharper New York vibe? After the parade of ultra-professional pant suits favoured by the Democrats, fashion stylists are already predicting the advent of big dresses, big Disneyfied hair, and perilously high heels. So much so that even Hillary Clinton took to embellish­ing her pant suit with a Peace on Earth brooch designed by Ann Hand, and false eyelashes. Kamala Harris played it safe though by wearing a pant suit, in black, which looked as fune­real, as she probably felt.

With Ivanka Trump dressed in emerald green Dior with a matching hat for the inauguration, and a twist on a classic Given­chy gown for the ball, it is clear that what was once a business empire now wants to position itself as an international dynasty with more than a dash of Hollywood glamour. The Given­chy gown was a nod to the one worn by Audrey Hepburn in Billy Wilder’s 1954 romantic comedy Sabrina, where the chauf­feur’s daughter becomes the lady of the mansion.

First Lady fashion has always set trends. Jacqueline Kennedy’s pillbox hat at the 1961 inauguration to her off-white silk chiffon sleeveless gown with a matching cape worn to the evening ball was modern, just like her husband’s presidency was meant to be. From Nancy Reagan’s Hollywood style gowns to Laura Bush’s no-nonsense librarian fashion, First Ladies are an important part of presidential symbolism. Hillary Clinton, before she became a permanent resident of Pantsuitland, struggled with both her hair and her clothes. It’s hard to believe but she wore a violet-beaded lace sheath gown with an iridescent blue velvet silk mousseline overskirt to the 1993 inaugural ball.

And that’s not the only time FLOTUS made headlines. Michelle Obama’s arms were as much a talking point of Barack Obama’s years in the White House as his healthcare reform. With her co­lourful dresses, her bare, muscled arms, and her well groomed hair, Michelle Obama evolved into a star, though it is interesting to see her reverting to her more natural hair and dare one say a faux fe­male rapper style now that her husband is out of office.

Will Melania Trump’s I’ll Take Manhattan style linger in White House during this term? Will Ivanka Trump’s European inspired fashion game conquer the Beltway? Perhaps it was instructive that LVMH chairman Bernard Arnault came to the inauguration with his daughter Delphine and son Alexandre. LVMH is the holding company for major luxury brands, from Dior to Givenchy, from Fendi to Bulgari, so the newfound friend­ship may well be consequential.

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