Dress For Wedding

Remembering Michelle Obama’s 4 best fashion moments

Now that Michelle Obama has passed her baton as first lady onto Melania Trump, many of us are having style withdrawals. The former FLOTUS served up eight years of Black girl magic and major closet envy. Thanks to the power of the internet, we managed to collect 16 of Obama’s best fashion moments to take into the Trump administration.

Since she first took the inaugural stage in a stunning, one-shoulder, white flower embellished gown by then unknown designer Jason Wu, the First Lady of Style wowed us. Her unique yet classic fashion sense oozed a sophisticated elegance that was colorful and fun without being over the top. When the style icon wasn’t making it cool to be smart or hip to be fit, millions of women, young and old, looked to her for fashion inspiration. From ASOS, J.Crew and Target to Gucci, Versace and Naeem Khan, Obama made mixing high fashion with affordable look effortless.

Like former first lady Jackie Onassis Kennedy before her, much of what Obama wore set trends. When she spoke out or made an appearance, you weren’t only inspired to bring about change, we wanted to elevate our style game, too. Whether it was her trademark bright cardigans, bold patterned dresses or stunning evening gowns, every designer wanted to dress her and every woman wanted to dress like her. Some of the fashion industry’s top designers including Detroit’s own Tracey Reese, recently dished to Elle on what it was like styling the most visible woman in the world.

Tracy Reese: “She really wants to make sure that she spreads the love and gives opportunities to designers, not just large names but small names also. I think she really thinks about what she’s wearing where and when and why, and I was thankful that she chose that platform to show my designs,” Reese revealed. “She’s just an incredible role model to us all, to people of all colors and genders―she embodies true grace, true caring, true giving. … I think that she’s going to go down in history as one of the most incredible first ladies we’ve ever had the pleasure of having.”

Naeem Khan: “The first time I dressed Michelle Obama [was for the Indian state dinner]. When I was asked to do that, I really asked myself, Who am I? Where has my life been within the fashion world?” Khan gushed. ”FLOTUS is so kind and warm that being around her is like being part of a family. The first thing she does when she sees you is to give the nicest, warmest hug―and you feel like you want to do whatever possible to make her happy. It’s done genuinely―it’s not politically motivated. I would leave the White House thinking, I’d give my life for her, she’s so wonderful.”

Marchesa: “We always feel incredibly lucky when any woman chooses to wear Marchesa, but of course, it was a proud and humbling moment when the first lady of the United States chose to wear our designs―not once, but on several occasions! Michelle Obama exudes confidence and is always poised; she’s what we call a true Marchesa woman.”

Prabal Gurung: “Michelle Obama decided to consciously wear designers that meant something to her, to the nation, to the narrative. How many times have we heard: ‘Oh, it’s just fashion. It’s so trivial’? I get it all the time. But for her to make that constant statement for eight years about politics and fashion, we could not have asked for a better champion.”

Words can’t express how much we will miss turning on our TVs to revel in your poise and grace. Much like your legacy on education and empowering young girls, your epic style moments merging politics with fashion will live on. Thanks for the memories, Michelle.

junior bridesmaid dresses | yellow bridesmaid dresses

Melania Trump channels Jackie Kennedy in Ralph Lauren for Inauguration day

Melania Trump opted to channel Jacqueline Kennedy for her daytime look as she accompanied her husband now-President Donald Trump to his inauguration which took place this afternoon.

The couple attended St John’s church in Washington early this morning and then went on to meet with Barack and Michelle Obama at the White House before the Inauguration ceremony. Melania's pale blue suit was created for her by Ralph Lauren, America’s most famous and prolific living designer.

“With the historic swearing-in of her husband, Donald J. Trump, as the 45th President of the United States, the First Lady-elect will become America’s new First Lady wearing an American designer who transformed American fashion, Ralph Lauren,” a spokesperson for Trump announced this morning.

"It was important to us to uphold the tradition of creating iconic American style for this moment," Ralph Lauren said in a statement to the New York Times.

With its demure knee-length skirt and bracelet-length sleeves, the ensemble immediately recalled the ladylike yet simple look which was coined and made famous by former First Lady Jacqueline Kennedy. In fact, the suit seemed to have taken direct inspiration from the Oleg Cassini design which Kennedy wore for John F Kennedy’s daytime Inauguration ceremony 56 years ago in January 1961.

Lauren and Trump had, however, added some more modern elements to give Trump’s look a more updated feel. The double-faced cashmere jacket came with a raised shawl collar and cropped, wrap effect, serving the double purpose of shielding Trump from the 5 degree temperatures and adding a distinctive edge to an otherwise pared-back silhouette.

Melania accessorised today's suit with elbow length leather gloves and suede stilettos in a matching shade of icy blue while her hair was swept up into a chic up-do. The pastel tone of the suit provided a sophisticated contrast to Donald Trump's vividly red tie.

Ralph Lauren had been mooted earlier this week as the designer who was creating Melania Trump’s Inauguration wardrobe. While his designs are now considered to be American classics, the 77 year-old who was born in The Bronx, New York has spent his career pioneering a distinctive preppy, easy and elegant style. His $6 billion company has outposts across the world while the Polo horse emblem is globally recognisable.

During his Inauguration address this afternoon, Donald Trump announced that his adminstration would encourage everyone to "buy American and hire American", another hint that his wife will be supporting the American fashion industry during her time as First Lady.

During the Presidential campaign, Lauren became closely associated with Trump’s rival Hillary Clinton, creating a series of bespoke pantsuits for the Democrat candidate. Clinton also turned to Lauren for the beige pantsuit which she wore to today's Inauguration. Yet, Melania - who has historically favoured European designers like Chanel and Gucci - was already courting Lauren by choosing his ready-to-wear pieces which she purchased in store.

queeniebridesmaid | cheap bridesmaid dresses

Donald Trump Says Melania Never Asked Tom Ford to Dress Her

As a number of designers and stylists come forward about whether or not they'd dress Melania Trump, Donald Trump is making one thing clear: His wife, Melania Trump, never asked Tom Ford to dress her.

"[She] never asked Tom Ford, doesn't like Tom Ford. Doesn't like his designs. He was never asked to dress [Melania]," the president-elect stated while speaking with Fox & Friends' Ainsley Earhardt on Wednesday.

"I'm not a fan of Tom Ford, never have been," said Trump, adding that hotelier Steve Wynn called him up after Ford's comments to say he "threw his clothes out of his hotel."

While appearing on The View last year, Ford shared that he was asked to dress the First Lady-elect a few years ago, but declined.

"She's not necessarily my image," said the designer, who also identified himself as a Democrat who voted for Hillary Clinton. He added, "Even had Hillary won, she shouldn’t be wearing my clothes. They’re too expensive. And I don’t mean that in a bad way ― they’re not artificially expensive, it’s the cost to make these things."

grey bridesmaid dresses uk | sage green bridesmaid dresses

Today, it's estimated that one in three children growing up in New York City lives in poverty. In 1997, recognising how poverty restricts the possibility of disadvantaged children, Liz Hopfan, then a second grade teacher and volunteer for Free Arts LA, decided to bring the program to New York City. Over the last two decades, Free Arts NYC has brought free arts educations to over 30,000 children living in the city's underserved communities. Annually, the program currently serves 2,000 youths in upper Manhattan, the Bronx, and the city’s Lower East Side communities.

“We use art to help young people and families build the community, creativity, and problem solving skills, that serve as protective factors, to help buffer them against challenges that they run into," explains Free Arts NYC's Chief Program Officer Kai Fierle-Hendrick to The Creators Project. She adds, "Clearly there are a lot of systemic issues kids and families in our programs face. They struggle with income inequality, housing inequality, and educational inequality. Though, there are changes that need to happen, we are working in the now, and if that's their reality we [want] them to develop those skills of social and emotional coping to work through the challenges in their lives."

The official mission of Free Arts NYC is to “provide underserved children and families with a unique combination of educational arts and mentoring programs that help them to foster the self-confidence and resiliency needed to realise their fullest potential,” according to the organisation’s website. Free Arts NYC delivers on their mission by partnering with local community organisations to provide what Fierle-Hendrick calls “cradle-to-college” arts programming. Beginning with their Parents and Children Together with Art (PACT) program, Free Arts NYC offers children as young as three years old, as well as their parents, the opportunity to use art to enhance visual literacy, fine motor, problem solving, and communication skills. The long-term Arts Mentoring Program provides youths, ages six through 13, with regular opportunities to engage in visual arts projects at local community centers. Free Arts NYC also offers Museum Day programs throughout the city and pop-up art festivals that allow young children to explore artmaking.

Free Arts NYC’s Teen Arts Program provides students who are interested in a career in art access to museum and studio visits, arts internships, and artist-led one-on-one portfolio mentorships for students applying to arts high school or a Bachelors of Fine Art program. Last year, students in the program visited Dan Colen’s show at The Brant Foundation in Connecticut, where the artist spoke to the students about his track to becoming a professional artist. In 2015, the teen artists also visited Rashid Johnson’s studio where the artist led a discussion about his practice. Artist Christopher Wool gave Free Arts NYC teens a personal tour of his 2013 retrospective at the Guggenheim Museum. Free Arts NYC’s current artist partners include Richard Phillips, Sara Foldenauer, Amy Park, Pablo Medina, and Paul Villinski.

In allowing students the opportunity to seriously engage art and a range of artmaking practices over the course of their childhoods, Free Arts NYC not only empowers students to develop the grit and character skills needed to negotiate poverty, it also exposes a diverse group of youths to the arts, an unintended effect being that Free Arts NYC kids are building visual vocabularies that make art more accessible. The children engage art in ways that could lead to careers that might ultimately help diversify the field.

In the future Fierle-Hendrick wants to "continue to build really deep relationships with the communities we're in so we are doing that cradle-to-college work well.” She adds, "The arts are what makes us human. I think having the opportunity to live in that, to be human, and make something and put it out there in the world and say, 'I have this voice. Here it is.' And then have someone else look at it and receive it and validate that and say, 'Yes you do, and I'm listening to you.’ That's a really powerful experience that I think all young people should have."

black bridesmaid dresses | bridesmaid dresses uk

On Thursday morning, president-elect Donald Trump tweeted out a message thanking Linda Bean of the L.L. Bean brand for her support and urging his followers to buy L.L. Bean products. He then linked to Linda Bean’s lobster restaurant’s Twitter feed instead.

First of all, what’s L.L. Bean again?

It’s a Maine-based activewear and outdoor-gear brand. You may remember them from their ubiquitous monogrammed backpacks: If you grew up in New England, everyone in your elementary and middle school had one. Also the source material for the funny, yet wholly erotic Tumblr, Your LL Bean Boyfriend.

What does L.L. Bean even stand for?

If you guessed “Linda Linda Bean,” well, you’re actually pretty close. It’s short for “Leon Leonwood Bean,” who founded the company in 1912. Linda is his granddaughter, and she still has partial ownership of the company and sits on its board; she is often described as “L.L. Bean heiress Linda Bean.”

Why was Trump tweeting about L.L. Bean anyway?

Like nearly everything Trump tweets about favorably, Bean directly benefited him in some way ― and something tells me he’s not strapping into his L.L. Bean boots on the weekend for relaxing and contemplative nature walks. Last week, the Associated Press reported that Bean donated $60,000 to the political action committee Making America Great Again LLC; the limit to individual donations was $5,000. This news sparked calls for a boycott of L.L. Bean, specifically from the #GrabYourWallet movement, which added them to their list of companies to avoid.

How’s Linda Bean reacting to this?

On a Fox and Friends segment, Bean said she wouldn’t back down and called her detractors “hard-core bullies out on the West Coast.” Bean has long been a financial supporter of Republican causes and even ran for Congress twice, unsuccessfully.

What about the rest of the company?

On January 8, executive chairman Steve Gorman posted a message on the company’s Facebook page saying they were “disappointed to learn” about the #GrabYourWallet boycott and urging customers to look beyond Linda Bean’s actions. Here’s a bit of it:

Our owners, employees, and customers hold views and embrace causes that are individual and diverse. We are united by our love for the outdoors and our guiding principles established back in 1912 by Leon Leonwood Bean himself who believed “do unto others” was not just a saying, but a way of life. We fully acknowledge and respect that some may disagree with the political views of a single member of our 10-person board of directors. Like most large families, the more than 50 family member-owners of the business hold views and embrace causes across the political spectrum, just as our employees and customers do. And as every member of the family would agree, no individual alone speaks on behalf of the business or represents the values of the company that L.L. built.

With this in mind, we are deeply troubled by the portrayal of L.L.Bean as a supporter of any political agenda.

pink bridesmaid dresses | coral bridesmaid dresses