The WWD Sketches

Peter Som for Mrs. O; Courtesy photo via Women's Wear Daily

Fashion bible WWD rang their directory of designer friends with a dream assignment: Design an ensemble for Mrs. O to wear on Inauguration Day (Ball appropriate or otherwise). Judging by the vast number of responses, inspiration clearly runneth over. But interestingly, WWD reports that many of Mrs. O's current favorites and a few "majors" declined to submit sketches. Before we decode that tidbit, enjoy the gorgeous sketches submitted by the truly impressive cast of designers below.

Isaac Mizrahi Monique Lhuillier Carolina Herrera Badgley Mischka Betsey Johnson Chado Ralph Rucci Karl Lagerfeld for Chanel Diane von Furstenberg Koi Suwannagate Marc Jacobs Christian Lacroix Michael Kors Oscar de la Renta Zac Posen Tracy Reese Rodarte Rachel Roy Peter Som Elie Tahari Tuleh Kai Milla Nicole Miller Reem Acra Zero + Maria Cornejo Click here for the WWD article and slide show. And afterwards, we'd love to hear which designs get your vote.

The Designers Speak

Photo credit: Flickr user coutorture // Creative Commons

We were just catching up on a bit of weekend reading, and have come across what is hands down the best Mrs. O style read yet. "Next White House: Relaxed, Low-Key" from the November 6 print edition of WWDThursday interviews a handful of the biggest names in fashion for their thoughts on Mrs. O's style and what influence she'll have as First Lady. We haven't been able to find the full article online, but will share a few of the choice quotes below.

Maria Pinto: "[The Obamas] are modern. It's a refreshing, youthful, modern point of view that we've been desperate for." Pinto described Mrs. O's style as "very approachable. That's what people love about Michelle - she's comfortable in her own skin. She can go from J. Crew to designer."

Oscar de la Renta said this is the moment for "an American woman to mark her time." "Hopefully she will do that," he said. "It's not only about the way she dresses, but also the way she will conduct her life. She has an extraordinary opportunity to be an icon to a lot of different people. The eyes of the world will be on her. She will have a big impact."   

Donna Karan: "She is powerful, elegant and sophisticated. You see the woman first, she is not overpowered by the clothes. We expect a role model. She is a mother, a wife. She has all the attributes that matter."

Diane von Furstenberg said the future First Lady is "smart, engaged, beautiful and confident." "Her style is who she is ... and people will discover it little by little. Fashion is a reflection of our time and this is truly an exciting time."

Jenna Lyons Mazeau, creative director at J. Crew: "I love that she wears color and I love that she wears dresses. She looks feminine and dresses beautifully, but never overtly sexy. This is such an amazing time and they are such an inspiring couple that it would be a great honor [to dress Mrs. O for the inauguration], not just because she has great style, but also because she is probably one of the most important and inspiring women of our time. This is not just about getting our clothes on somebody, it's really about being a part of history. It's exciting to have somebody [in the White House] who seems to really care about clothes. She has a real personality and it comes through in the way she dresses."

And contrary to what InStyle magazine's Karina Szish suggested in the CNN segment on Mrs. O's style [see post below], Mrs. O may be an Oscar de la Renta kind of gal after all. The WWDThursday article also reports that "Obama has bought some of de la Renta's clothes at the Chicago boutique Ikram and he hopes to dress her during her White House days." Certainly though, Szish is right in suggesting that we'll see less of an Oscar de la Renta uniform than we have in the past. Speaking of which, we'd love to see a little DVF in the Mrs. O wardrobe mix.