Eight years and thousands of outfits later, Michelle Obama has made a mark on fashion like no First Lady since Jackie Kennedy.
Not uncomfortably thin, in her 40s when she landed in Washington, D.C., and a Harvard-educated lawyer, Obama has shed pretty much every preconceived notion about what it takes to be a style icon during her time in the White House.
Mary Byun, the writer behind the blog Mrs.O and the book Mrs. O: The Face of Fashion Democracy who has been dutifully chronically the FLOTUS's style choices over the last eight years, says she was fascinated by Obama’s fashion choices from the moment she stepped onto the world stage in 2008.
“I was watching the Democratic National Convention, and I found myself absolutely captivated by Michelle," she says. "It was so striking to see a powerful, strong woman dressed with a very feminine, almost romantic sense of style.… She looked so polished and feminine and also delivered this really powerful and impactful speech…. From there I went from captivated to basically obsessed.”
Byun wasn’t alone thanks to Obama's ability to draw attention to her fashion choices. While Nancy Reagan largely wore James Galanos, Barbara Bush opted for Arnold Scaasi, and Laura Bush and Hillary Clinton both relied on Oscar de la Renta, Obama hasn't played favorites with designers, mixing her wardrobe with leading designers like Jason Wu and Carolina Herrera and affordable fashions from J.Crew and Talbots the way, well, a real woman would.
She's also proved she knows how to use fashion as a tool—to cement diplomatic relationships by wearing designers from countries such as India and China during official state visits and White House dinners, and to champion small American businesses by celebrating up-and-coming design talents.
What truly made Obama such a powerful style icon during her time in the White House, though, was the wink that her clothes made to women everywhere: You too can look this good.
She validated fashion trends like cinching one's waist with a belt or mixing and matching patterns, and gave women everywhere the confidence to try these trends too.
Prabal Gurung, one of her favorite designers over the years, summed up Obama's style this way to Glamour: “She’s unapologetic about being a woman, embracing femininity, she loves fashion but it doesn’t dictate her."
Along the way Obama has also helped to sell a lot of clothes. David Yermack, a professor at New York University's Stern School of Business, tracked 189 outfits Obama wore from 2008 to 2009 for a study published in Harvard Business Review and found it was worth about $38 million to a company to have Obama wear their clothes.
Here, seven particular ways Obama changed the idea of First Lady fashion and altered how American women shop and dress in the process.
1. She Wore the Sleeveless Dress.
Who would have thought that a simple sheath could cause so much controversy? Well, that's exactly what happened when the First Lady wore an eggplant-colored Narciso Rodriguez dress to her husband’s first address to Congress. There was instant chatter about the choice—especially her bare arms—with people debating whether it was a bold fashion choice or a First Lady faux pas (the general consensus seems to now be that she looked wonderful).
Over the course of her time in the White House, the sleeveless dress became Obama’s go-to fashion choice—whether she was championing her Let's Move campaign at a White House event or receiving a dignitary for tea.
A colorful fitted dress by Rachel Roy contributed to one of Obama's most iconic fashion moments when she wore it to a military ceremony in 2009. Roy told Glamour, "[Mrs. Obama's] style and choices set a tone that fashion is reflective of your personality and that you can have fun with it.”
2. She Went for Statement Jewelry.
Not a lot of women are bold enough to throw on an oversized bejeweled necklace, statement earrings, or even a brooch and know that this is all it takes to look utterly fabulous, but Obama has statement jewelry down. During her time in the White House, she has gravitated towards adventurous jewelry choices by Tom Binn, Fenton, and Erickson Beamon, and some of her best style moments over the years have included jewelry.
Karen Erickson of Erickson Beamon told us: “She encouraged all women to express themselves through jewelry…[and by doing so herself,] the First Lady exhibited rare style and grace.”
3. She Put Away the High Heels
Obama has famously stayed away from sky-high stilettos during her time in the White House, opting instead for kitten heels, ballet flats, and even occasionally sneakers (when the situation called for it).
Whether she was stepping off of Air Force One in a flirty dress and ballet flats or wearing gladiator sandals on a tour of the U.K., she showed women that you don’t have to wear high heels to be stylish.
It’s likely no coincidence that the fashion runways went in this direction during Obama’s time in the White House, with ballet flats, intricate flat sandals, and sneakers being the choice of the style set over the last eight years.
4. She Mixed High/Low.
Obama, who came into the White House during the worst economic downturn since the Great Depression, felt like a breath of fresh air on the fashion scene largely due to her affordable fashion choices—from a $34 H&M dress to a $199 cream Talbots sheath. Sure, women know she has some of the most expensive designer dresses hanging in her closet, but she also shops like an everywoman and knows a great bargain when she sees one.
5. She's a Print Master
Wearing prints has oftentimes felt like a fashion challenge—that is, until Obama came on the scene. Choosing everything from florals to geometric prints, Obama is every bit a print master. While previous First Ladies largely wore items in solid colors, Obama showed women how much fun fabric can be, utilizing this trend like a pro.
A few of her printed style hits over the years? A yellow floral Kenzo dress from a trip to Japan, an Altuzarra paisley dress from a visit to Marrakesh, and a colorful Alice & Olivia number from a trip to Cambodia.
6. When In Doubt, She Belted.
Obama seems to rarely leave home without wearing a belt (a runway trick that instantly gives women a waist). With her Alaia corset belt that seemed to be her sidekick during the 2008 campaign to the J.Crew bejeweled one she wore with both a Thom Browne coat and a strapless Naeem Khan gown, Obama knows how to work a belt like no other.
7. She Made Cardigans Cool
Before Obama came onto the world stage, most women considered the prim cardigan something their mother would wear. Over the last eight years, Obama has worn a cardigan everywhere—on the cover of Vogue, on The Tonight Show With Jay Leno and even to meet the Queen of England. (Not everyone was a fan of that last choice; Oscar de la Renta told Women’s Wear Daily in 2009: "You don't…go to Buckingham Palace in a sweater.")
Regardless of the opinion of fashion insiders, real women couldn't get enough: That sweater, from J. Crew, sold out within hours after Obama was photographed wearing it.
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