Wednesday
Jan202010
Pretty in Plum
Wednesday, January 20, 2010 at 5:44 PM 
Image by Jason Reed / Reuters
The first lady attended an event to honor National Mentoring Month in the East Room of the White House this afternoon, wearing a plum colored skirt and jacket, paired with a printed blouse and Sonia Rykiel belt at the waist.
Update: Mrs. O wears a double-faced wool skirt and jacket from Talbots. Both pieces are still available and on sale, here and here.
tagged Sonia Rykiel, Talbots
Sonia Rykiel, Talbots
Reader Comments (51)
LOOKING GOOD...I luv her...sigh : )))
she always looks good....this site is a pick me up
thanks Ms T...happy new yr to all Mrs O lovers like me!!!
I love the Obama's (Obama 2012)~ I am not sure I am loving this dress. It seems a bit too mature for her. Still she radiates in the color!
What a beautiful suit...gorgeous color! Spring is just around the corner....
I saw the live stream of this event. And not only was Mrs. O beautiful, but she was the rockstar mentor of the event.
If you haven't checked out the new video on whitehouse.gov of her taking her mentoring program on the road in Denver with some of the female cabinet and celebrities, you have missed a treat. Grab a few kleenex and be prepared to think about your life differently.
I know I am going to follow the advice in this video and find me a mentor (even though I'm 30) and be a mentor. That has always been the missing ingredient in my life.
Bravo Mrs. O.
BTW...I love the belt!!!
I like this, but I would like it better on her if she was 60. I think this is more fitting for someone Jill Biden's age as opposed to Mrs. O. It's a beautiful skirt suit, but I would like it better on an older woman.
And can I just say that as someon in the anti-belt club, I love that it's on her natural waist and not her rib cage. In fact, we haven't seen an oddly placed belt in a very long time.
Love the color and the printed blouse. I love that Mrs. O chooses to wear vibrant colors--so positive and optimistic.
I guess the First Lady can't win for trying. Throughout last year we heard "why won't she wear suits?" Now she wears it and its "too mature"? I am baffled.
It is a lovely suit. Great color.
Talbots double-face wool suit? It is lovely on her!
Somehow this look is a tad aging. Mrs O's still perfectly radiant, and it's a beautiful suit but somehow... I'm not feeling it. But hey, mentoring is the focus, so way to go Mrs O.
Looove this color on her - but I do not like the style of the jacket.
this picture doesn't do her any justice. i see it live on tv and it was magnificent. i love her speech on curbing child's obesity.it was pitch perfect
Not a fan of this suit, regardless I would love to cut my hair in Michelle's style but I've spent so much time growing it out, I do not want to cut it at this point.
@chrystelle I thought the same thing. The suit is much brighter than this picture shows. It was radiant live. Whomever took this photo must of caught a shadow.
Love the color, hate the jacket. It's a little matchy-matchy. But the blouse is really beautiful, as is the decorative seam on the skirt. But the best is her hair! Her hair! Will have to bring a photo to my stylist and copy ASAP!
This is too much plum for my taste. I like the blouse and the belt, but would prefer a black skirt. The top stitching on the skirt makes it look wide.
I'm going to search for other photos, per chrystelle.
I think I might like the outfit better without the jacket.
It's a sweet suit, but looks a tad dowdy in this photo. I think that's because Mrs. O is still in a stooped posture after walking out with her arm around this little boy's shoulder. He's a cutie, isn't he?
There are more flattering pix & video.
I'm not mad at the whole suit being plum because I love colors like this ;-)
They have video on whitehouse.gov if you guys want to see it in movement.
@Chrystelle, I saw the last few minutes of the program on television and you're right, this picture doesn't do this suit justice at all. It reads a bit dull in the picture but it really was a rich tone. I liked the way the silver and plum print in the blouse really bought the suit together. I also like how the belt buckle apparently allows the wearer to insert co-ordinating fabric in it, makes for a customized look. The 3/4 length sleeve looks good on FLOTUS and women with long arms, but not on me. Mine are considerably shorter and to me I look awkward wearing that sleeve length. This would not work on me, but on our Michelle, it's a winner.
nice
If you all get a chance check out the white house gallery, year in pictures by the white house photographer... so neat.
http://www.whitehouse.gov/photos-and-video/photogallery/first-year
Especially the first lady and the kids with Bo playing in the snow, the president in a snow fight with Rahm and the president carrying his daughter up the elevator after running into her.
@Briana, I agree. It really is a nice montage.
Mrs.T can u post the video of the first lady so people who don't necessarily follow politics but love her can see what she is up to besides always dressing very well. thanks.
simply BEAUTIFUL! Her make-up was very nice and the color of her skirt suit just popped. I don't think it looks old at all, I think she looked very young and refreshing.
Plum is one of my favorite colors so i love the suit on her. I also love the blouse she paired it with and i especially like the detailing on the skirt. I am also pleased to hear it is from Talbots. I don't think it looks aged on her. The woman is 46, not 36 or 26 and so I think this is age appropriate. Anyway, I am 30 and even though I wouldn't buy this suit, if I got it at the right price, I would wear it without fear of looking aged. I really think this is one of those suits that transcends different ages. My sister who is 31 and sometimes shops at Talbots for her suits would wear this. Their sales are amazing and when they have extra 75% off their already reduced items... I once got a dress there for $7 which was originally over $200. Her hair looks great today. They added more weave and it looks fuller so i like it better. Some disagree but it looks pretty obvious to me. We can agree to disagree.
oh no..why did she cut her hair :-(
too mature for her. im hoping 2010 is her best year yet!
I just loveeeeeeee this look
When Mrs. O was wearing her hair swept back so sculpturally, some photos of her reminded me of the famous bust of Nefertiti. When I first glimpsed this photo, I flashed back to Diana Ross' sleek hairstyle from the early '60s. Anyone around here old enough to remember that?!
I liked the short flip Mrs. O had very early in the campaign. I thought it captured her energy and spark. Now I'm wondering if her current cut could be styled in a flip, or if the ends are too beveled for that.
The blouse is very pretty. I bet this suit would also look terrific with a long-sleeved black turtleneck and black boots. Go, Mrs. O, we are loving your black boots, even if we aren't boot wearers ourselves!
Yes.
Finally, a working women. Not a parting gal!
I love the whole look especially the belt and blouse.
How very lovely is Mrs. Obama in her 'pretty in plum' outfit! I really like her blouse, It reminds me of a soft, jewel-toned, water-color palette, that gives the somewhat conservative suit panache!
@briana. Went to the site and watched video. Thank you!
This belt was featured on pg 174 of Mrs T's fabulous book. The belt buckle in that photo looks orange and today it looks plum colored. Don't know if its just the lighting or if you really can insert fabric in the buckle to customize it. Anyway this is a belt that I (also an anti-belter) really like both times.
Briana, thanks for the link - the pics are fabulous.
http://www.whitehouse.gov/photos-and-video/video/raw-video-first-lady-surprises-tour-visitors
Wow ... this link is great - and I love that she took a pic with the family of 10 ... good stuff.
Pretty color on her, but, frankly, I AM 60 and I wouldnt wear this--looks too old for me!
She sneaked a belt in there! Good for her!!!
This picture doesn't do her look justice. She looked really pretty. Nice fit, vibrant color. Just watch the videos. I caught the president's speech where she was sitting on the stage. The video stayed on through the end, and followed her politicking with the crowd. She is LOVED. People were reaching out to her, wanting to sneak a picture with her. I don't think the suit looked old at all. In my profession I see a lot of women in suits, and my goodness I could tell you all about old lady suits. LOL. I'm talking 3/4 length skirts, straight jackes with 4 buttons...lol. I see some truly bland suits on almost a daily basis.
I love the color, but the suit looks dowdy on her. I don't like the fit of the jacket, and the blouse is not helping. I'll pass on this look - thanks, but no thanks.
I admire Lady Obama...She just makes me so proud that she's showing the world that a co-co brown woman has got it going on!!!..
Looks, Brains & Class!!!!!
I just spend 46:50 minutes of my lunch hour looking at some amazing video of the First Lady greeting visitors at the White House yesterday so lovely. Enjoy
http://www.whitehouse.gov/photos-and-video/video/raw-video-first-lady-surprises-tour-visitors
She spoke to the Department of Commerce today in a really cute bias cut gray dress with button detailing and three-quarter length sleeves!
http://news.yahoo.com/nphotos/Michelle-Obama/ss/events/pl/050108michelleobama
She is always so full of life!
Hey you guys there are new pics of Mrs. O today at the DOL on yahoo. Here is one:
http://news.yahoo.com/nphotos/slideshow/photo//100121/480/0be7a63994b244429
1e714fded98b00f/#photoViewer=/100121/480/0be7a63994b2444291e714fded98b00f
I am thinking this is a dress, but I am not sure. I cannot find a full length pic. I am liking it though!
Inspired by that comment, I watched it too. It was quite emotional, seeing the responses from people when they saw the First lady. Excitement, shock, awe. I know I'd just cry probably. I love how many people commented on how beautiful she was - IS - and how happy they were to have the Obama's in the White House. Wonderful.
I agree she is channeling Diana Ross and Diana Ross SO would not shop Talbots! LOL! Yes, this outfit is a bit aging.....I'm in my 50's and I wouldn't wear it. Funny, awhile ago when I described another outfit as making the FLOTUS look "matronly" it seemed to set off a firestorm of vitriolic retorts. But it seems to be the general concensus here that this is not a fab look for our young FLOTUS.
Hello all !
Mrs T do you remember the green dress she wore last year... You can finally see the full lenght pic here :
http://www.instyle.com/instyle/package/general/photos/0,,20253745_20334800_20719407,00.html
Enjoy !
i wish folks would consider using url shorteners like snipurl.com or http://tinyurl.com/
LOVE HER SUITE SHE WEAR FLATS IN SAW THE WHOLE THING AND SPEECH AND MR OMAMA SPEECH LAST NIGHT ON THE VIEDO FROM THE WHITE HOUSE WEBSITE GREAT SPEECH THEY SAID.
Suits (in this case a jacket and separate matching skirt) are not mature. Not in the old lady sense. I see smart 20somethings dressing in them every day. Very chic. It's all about the design, color and fabric.
This raspberry is a pretty color, but the jacket does not fit properly - too small. Have a look at the Talbots photo linked in Mrs. T's intro. This is supposed to be an easy-fitting rather boxy jacket - the shoulder extends a bit. In Mrs. O's case it is too small - other photos show the sleeves and shoulder binding her at the armhole. .
The vinyl belt makes the whole outfit look inexpensive. This skirt is beautifully finished without a waistband - it requires no belt.
I tried this jacket on at Talbot's. It is a beautiful color and it is very much on sale now...$75 for the jacket. Call your nearest Talbot's and they will send it to you.