Florida Orange
Monday, November 22, 2010 at 5:25 PM 
Image by Hans Deryk / Reuters Pictures
Mrs. O was in Miami this afternoon to speak with elementary school students at Riverside Elementary School. The purpose of the first lady's trip was to launch a new initiative to put 6,000 salad bars in U.S. schools over the next three years. Mrs. O has support from The National Fruit and Vegetable Alliance, United Fresh Produce Association Foundation and Food, Family, Farming (F3) Foundation on the new effort.
For the appearance, Mrs. O paired a floral top with an orange pant suit (seen in June 2010, here) and vintage Hattie Carnegie silk flower pin.
Update: Mrs. O wears a floral striped tulle top (seen here) and pant suit, both by Jean Paul Gaultier. Gaultier certainly seems to have an increasing presence in the first lady's wardrobe lately!
Hattie Carnegie, Jean Paul Gaultier
Reader Comments (33)
I really like this pantsuit with the floral top (rather than the white blouse in June). It's perfect for this occasion - Mrs O stands out for her audience and she is grabbing their attention with her enthusuiastic, effervescent style and her compelling message about healthy eating and healthy living. Mrs O really owns these bright colours and the pin is a perfect accessory. Love this look as a 'pop' of colour to lift the mood as winter approaches.
Perfect colour on Mrs O. You have to have confidence , attitude and a lot of appeal to make this colour. Michele O. has all this and more.
Oh, that's just a beautiful color and the suit has a bad cut (bad...as in good).
fabulous. Don't see her in pantsuits very often, so it's a nice change and the color just pops...and it matches her Let's Move logo! Love the pin, love the blouse.
I like the color but thought it looked better with the white blouse, especially the white collar. This neckline of this top doesn' t really suit a tailored jacket. Also the pants seem to be tighter than they were in June.
I think it works for the occasion. Students LOVE bright colors and she is delivering an enthusiastic message and energizing the students. I can't wear orange (it wears me), but it looks good on her and I really like the blouse. I wonder if she is wearing the matching shoes as she did in June?
Wow, just too much Orange.
Maybe that suits the Florida people but it just look too much like a costume.
Char
Scrumptious color! She looks Wonderful; I love everything here.
Fantastic! On any other person this would have been a no-no. On her, it is just beautiful! Unexpected, tropical explosion, classic.
Simply sensational !
I really like the color and cut of the jacket, and I have always liked the brooch. The pants are too tight.
Here is a beauty of a photo of Mrs. O with the children:
http://www.whitehouse.gov/photos-and-video/photogallery/november-2010-photo-day
First Lady Michelle Obama joins students for a Let's Move! Salad Bars to Schools launch event at Riverside Elementary School in Miami, Fla., Nov. 22, 2010. (Official White House Photo by Chuck Kennedy)
She is making a difference. Her outfit even looks like a delicious salad! Vegetables make you feel good, look good, and give you energy to do your best in class and at work. She is trying to bring a happy ending to the tragedy of greedy agri-corporations funneling junk into the school system for decades.
This outfit is perfect for kids and veggies! So much fun. I would be careful talking about too tight pants...the podium is in the way and she might just need to adjust from sitting down. Also, the top on the saks site is not asymmetrical like the top she is wearing...just an observation.
Loves it!
Lovely color; Mrs. O is wearing the suit well, i.e., the pants are not too tight - they fit.
The pants are too tight, they should not be pulling like they do.
In video of this event, you can see that the pants are not too tight.
Anyway, orange is not a color I gravitate towards, but Mrs. O looks great in it.
I inherited a couple of Hattie Carnegie pieces from my mother....timeless and wonderful. Glad to see her wearing vintage!
Great color choice -- orange -- for Florida!
Not loving this look at all...and the pants are too tight! (We have a rule at our fittings...if it's creating a smiley...size up or change it!)
I think Mrs. O looks good in vibrant colors. The pin reminds me of what I wore in the 1960s, sort of a fun throwback to those days.
I do wonder, however, what the justification is for her to be jetting around the nation on this mission. What is the cost to taxpayers of her popping into a school or two, then going to a Broadway show? I don't think the cost is worth the effectiveness of these personal appearances. How many kids, really, are getting to see Mrs. O? A couple of hundred? Even a couple of thousand is not enough justification for this expense, especilally mixed in with Broadway shows and other fun stuff. It looks like fun stuff justified by a few public appearances. Not the right message to send.
MRSOBAMA TOP IS NICE AND HER HAIR IS NUCE HER JACKET WITH A FLOWEW IS NICE BUR HER PANTS ARE TO TIGHT ON HER
@Anonna
I don't think Mrs. O's goal is to spread her message child by child. That would be a pretty slow way to do things! But these trips are covered by the local and national media, which pick up the message and disseminate it widely in a community and a region. So, yes, while only a few hundred kids may get to see Mrs. O in *person*, the message goes beyond that one school or speech.
First Ladies in recent years have never just stayed home. I remember, maybe it was a year ago or a little bit longer, some criticism of Mrs. O that she didn't have a "cause." I wonder, if her cause was something that you supported more wholeheartedly, would you begrudge her the trips? Or, would you feel better if she just did the fun stuff like a normal person would and skipped any "justification" entirely? Because unfortunately, the entourage is going to be with her regardless. She and the president went to New York on their anniversary, I think it was, and there was some screaming about that.
I don't think we can reasonably say she should never leave the White House. I like Washington fine, I live here, but sometimes you want to get out! :-)
Anyway, I like this suit and the t-shirt underneath; I think I like this styling better than the way she wore this in the link Mrs. T. provided.
Anonna,
I absolutely agree with Christina. Why shouldn't she go to a Broadway show and support the arts? Why shouldn't she and the President for that matter, go out socially from time to time? Should they stay put in the White House until the economy improves? I think not.
Ladies, one of the messages this new first lady is sending is this, "EMBRACE COLOR". Judging from some of the comments here (and previously), some of you are too "buttoned-down" in your outlook. You need to loosen up a little bit and have some fun with your clothes; that's what the first lady always says about her take on fashion. Have fun! Maybe that's one of the reasons why she always look so comfortable in her clothes regardless of whether it's a "hit or miss" in some eyes. I embrace her outlook, some of you need to take a page out of her book.
The justification for her jetting around is that our nation is tragically obese. Reaching and teaching children the joys of healthy eating at a malleable age is preventive medicine. Hello, is anyone home? A patron of the arts should patronize the arts. Anonna, you know this. And you know that you would be taken to task for your comments. Take your mess elsewhere.
I'm trying very hard not to be political here on this matter. Anonna's remarks could be considered as an individual pondering, if the exact sentiment she expresses, in near identical terms, were not so prevalent towards both of the Obamas on numerous other sites. To my way of thinking, that bespeaks a concocted story.
Also wanted to mention in case some of you who might be interested do not know, the Obamas were interviewed by Barbara Walters last night. I read that it is to be aired on ABC Friday night at 10 pm ET.
After the Let's Move event, Mrs. O attended a posh DNC fundraiser in Palm Beach. It seems like the children's events are usually tied to some other purpose on the same trip.
This shows a respect for the cost of these activities.
Anonna, your message has undertones of political commentary, this is a fashion blog.
Additionally it's (traveling) never been an issue for the previous first ladies so why would or should Mrs Obama be under a microscope? Sorry bad economy isn't a justification because even during difficult times the Executive ranch has remain "presidential" as it were.
I don't want my president this one or any of them representing America with the best.... I am worth it.
Mrs. T, not sure if you saw this, but Michelle Obama when in NYC went to go and see broadway play Fela! on Thursday (which is a REALLY REALLY good play and I recommend it to everyone!). Here is a picture of her outfit, iv seen her wear it before.
http://www.nydailynews.com/news/national/2010/11/18/2010-11-18_michelle_obama_drops_into_harlem_pal_center_to_do_some_pushups_squats_and_jumpin.html
Here is a new photo with Malia - posted just six hours ago - taken at Martha's Pantry food bank.
http://www.daylife.com/photo/0cjQbNzcbD1bk?q=michelle+obama
I don't think anybody ever looked better in orange.