Sparkle and Sequin
Sunday, December 5, 2010 at 11:35 PM 
Image by Kevin Lamarque / Reuters Pictures, Jim Watson / Getty Images
The President and First Lady attended the 2010 Kennedy Center Honors this evening, honoring singer and songwriter Merle Haggard, composer and lyricist Jerry Herman; dancer, choreographer and director Bill T. Jones, songwriter and musician Paul McCartney, and producer, television host and actress Oprah Winfrey. Hooray!
Mrs. O looked absolutely stunning in a scarlet floral sequined gown, designer TBD. Any guesses?
Update: The first lady was dressed in Naeem Khan last evening, wearing a scarlet colored sleeveless gown with matte crushed sequins in abstract wind blown roses on scarlet tulle. On the accessories front, Mrs. O chose earrings by Bochic, made of rough brown diamonds and 14K oxidized white gold.
Bochic, Naeem Khan
Reader Comments (106)
Delightful, delicious, delovely
This is the BEST one or two gowns I have EVER seen on Michelle! It fits perfectly, and she looks comfortable in it. On the other hand, Oprahs corset belt is alright, but what is with the 2 white tails hanging out from it. Looks like she tied the bow of her blouse underneath her belt. Strange.
I would love to see the shoes she choose. Anyone care to guess the color? silver?
Char from Seattle
glammie - you made me laugh out loud!
Mrs. O got an A plus last night.
Just when you think it couldn't get better, she stuns us once again. Wow! love the O's. My president is looking dapper as well.
A+ Indeed!
WOW! Our Michelle looks superbly stunning! This dress is a winner and quickly becoming my favorite. Thanks Mrs. T for the close up of the earrings. My gosh, they are beautiful. Our FLOTUS looks so good that you can almost forget that there are other people in the room. All of them looked nice, but our Michelle.......well she looked spectacular!
Awesome + gorgeous = can't touch this!
wow, she looks amazing, I want that dress!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
The close of those earrings - Divine! Brown diamonds WOW! Stunning indeed.
Wow.......I love this look and this dress.Michelle looks gorgeous .The president looks good as well.
First Lady Mrs. Obama looks splendiferous! God Bless America!
I dont usually comment, but Wow. That was some kind of fabulous.
Not too much, yet lovely! And that reddish color is somehow unusual and very well contrasted with the lining beneath.
Just.......WOWZAH!!!
Mrs. T, sorry to add to your work, but is there anyway to find out about the cocktail ring she is wearing? Or at least get a closup of it? I suspect it looks smashing. Thanks
Terrific look and a great choice for the holiday !
I am glad someone has money to spend and is having a good time.
Thank you fo the First Lady for delighting so many of us, near and far, with such a gloriously womanly, and, yes, subtly sexy, look.
She has always given off the aura of a woman, who revels in being a woman, and it is truly inspiring!
She leaves me speechless in this beautiful gown! I admire and love them both!
picture perfect!!
Kirti, sorry to hear about your predicament (I am assuming this based on your comment), but it won't help you to begrudge other people's happiness. Trust me, I know. It only makes you feel worse and plus it's just not a good look to be envious of others. I hope your situation improves soon.
With all sincerity, Nyon
Oh, yes. This is my new favorite. I LOVE it!!!!! Only a woman with her confidence,
natural beauty and flawless skin could pull this off. Fits her perfectly and is SO
flattering! It is absolutely gorgeous!
Mrs. Obama looks fantastic. On the other hand, Oprah, despite all her wealth, looks like a fashion disaster.
Busting out of the top of the blouse and shirtails hanging out of a belt which is very unflattering to her body type. She can do better than this.
Kirti, hope things look up for you soon. The president just agreed with the republicans so that things can get better for people like you. I was unemployed for a long time so I know how dismal things can be but if you are employed but don't have much for fun, be thankful that you do have something and know that others are in a worse situation. If you just begrudge the fact that the first lady looks good with her great figure in her lovely gown, well I don't think you can do anything about that. So try to cheer up, somehow.
Oprah's white "blouse".....no words. All the money in the world and she couldn't hire a stylist? Cause she sho nuff needed one! Didn't Steadman or her BFF Gayle have the guts to say, "Um, you're not wearing THAT are you?"
Beautiful dress. She looks stunning. I think a red velvet stole to keep her warm might have been a nice accessory.
Come on, now, no need to be so "catty" about Oprah's outfit! While I myself thoroughly dislike what she is wearing, we know full well that if the outfits were reversed and Mrs. O had worn Oprah's "blouse" and corset getup, many of us would find it "fabulous," "fashion-forward," and "innovative." Again, no need to put one person down to elevate another, especially when it comes to two successful, prominent, and lovely African American women.
Nora is right, and also, I can't see Oprah's dress well enough in that picture to get an idea of what the whole ensemble looks like.
PERFECT!!!!!!!! I LOVE THE OBAMAS. MRS. OBAMA, YOU LOOK BEAUTIFUL AND SO CONFIDENT. I LOVE THAT.
This blog is not about Oprah’s choices. Neither one of these ladies are strangers to the internal workings of the press or public perception. They are also friends. Although Oprah is one of the honorees, the eyes of the world are primarily on President Obama and Mrs. O at these events. It’s entirely possible that it may have been a very conscious and deliberate choice of the part of Oprah to allow Mrs O to shine, instead of participating in some pseudo –who’s dressed best –contest. I totally agree with Nora and Christina. It’s really not necessary to pit these two very accomplished and beautiful women against each other…in any setting.
@Nyon….I loved your response to Kirti. I don’t know if her comment was genuine or intended to provoke, but your response was warm, genuine, and epitomizes what the holiday spirit is all about. Your kind and sincere words could very well have the power and impact to make a difference with Kirti and perhaps other readers who are feeling down and disenfranchised during yet another dismal holiday season. Peace to all!
the dress is little too much for her I think and the drop earring is not her style!
It’s entirely possible that it may have been a very conscious and deliberate choice of the part of Oprah to allow Mrs O to shine, instead of participating in some pseudo –who’s dressed best –contest.
Hmmm ... it's possible but I don't see why Oprah would do that? That would be like letting your MiL outdo you at your wedding.
I suspect that women of that ilk -- the mountain movers and sheroes -- don't assign as much importance to their wardrobe as their fans do. They are far too busy working on their causes and passions close to their heart. There's no way Michelle is at home, obsessing over her natural waistline and whether or not to adorn it with a belt even a fraction of the amount we do. Likewise for Oprah, she probably liked what she saw in the mirror and left it at that.
I was thrilled for Oprah to receive that award ... she has done amazing things with her show and her influence is unparalleled ... and that smile on her face showed that she was thrilled as well. I'm sure she brought a camera crew along and I can't wait to see the behind the scene highlights on her show.
@Asereht, Thanks, I'm not sure if Kirti is being real or not. Either way, I felt that it needed to be said and if it was a statement to provoke discourse, then I thought I would just kill her/him with kindness ;-)
Christina, you can get a close look at Michelle Obama's dress and also Oprah's outfit on Huffington Post. Most people are agreeing: Home run for the FLOTUS, epic fail for Oprah. It isn't anything personal, ladies, it's fashion, remember? Although Oprah's outfit is made of expensive material the blouse itself is ill-fitting and awkward looking. Her breasts are pushed almost up to her neck when she is sitting down.....VERY awkward looking! Diana Ross was there and she looked pretty messy. Jennifer Hudson on the other hand knocked it out of the park. Gwen Stefani was fashion forward in canary yellow. Julie Chen looked pretty in purple. Check out some of the other outfits on the page....some were hits, some were misses.
I fail to see why some people posting on this blog seem to have difficulty looking at outfits at events with a detached eye and just comment on how something looks, agreeing to disagree based on how something fits and looks alone. It has nothing to do with race or politics. Sometimes ensembles work, sometimes they don't. Michelle's did, Oprah's didn't IMHO.
This is a fashion blog, right? Oprah is an honoree sitting 2 seats away from the First Lady so her outfit is relevant and I don't think it is "catty" to voice one's opinion. For those of you who say an opinion about Oprah's outfit is "pitting" one against the other, grow up! I love Oprah and all she stands for, I just don't like her outfit, simple as that!
http://2.bp.blogspot.com/_nh4DXS3IeKE/TP1Fyj05EVI/AAAAAAAAAcw/zrF-rJD6NZQ/s1600/x610-1.jpg
Open toe shoes that match the color of the gown...
@Lisa H
Thanks for the shoe information. It amazes me how some of you can find the smallest detail somewhere on the web. Thanks to all who keep us informed.
Char from Seattle (and going to NYC tomorrow for Christmas shows and sites)
BRAVO to "Ann" and "Canyongal", thanks for saying what needed to be said!!
I don't think Mrs O would mind this Elizabeth Edwards remembrance today:
"In her book, Edwards also pondered her legacy for her children."
"I do know that when they're older and telling their own children about their grandmother, they will be able to say that she stood in the storm...and when the wind did not blow her way and it surely has not, she adjusted her sails."
She adjusted her sails, indeed! A wonderful and brave woman.
God's Speed, Elizabeth! I know you are resting in His Everlasting Arms right now.
That gown looks youthful and regal at the same time!
what a knockout!
@manolo blahnik -- you're just mad because you dldn't like Mrs. O's shoes. LOL
As for pitting Oprah against Mrs. O -- the point that I particularly agreed with re: Nora's statement was that if Michelle had been wearing the outfit Oprah chose to wear, some people WOULD have been going all crazy about how lovely and awesome it is, and it's great and it hugs her figure etc. etc. I've been at this site from the beginning, I've been reading threads since the beginning, I know how it goes. And if one person would have said "eh, I don't like it, I think Michelle has looked better" then there would have been Hell. to. pay.
But whatever. It's really not that important. I'm not the comment thread police.
Canyongal has never been known to defend Mrs Obama - never! She might pay her the occasional complement, but she's never gone up in arms over an attack on Mrs Obama or her style -
So let's not pretend that this attack on Oprah is coming from any of the regular posters who would typically take offense at Mrs Obama being criticized.
Not even worth responding to it's so off target.
My guess is that Oprah chose this outfit in an attempt to harmonize with the other male recipients dressed in black and white tuxedos. Why I think it was a poor choice is that she seemed to be uncomfortable in it: frequently readjusting her posture, holding her head unnaturally high, and fluttering around with her blouse and ribbon. That was at the White House. Did not see any video of her at the Kennedy Center.
As to them exchanging outfits, the problems that Oprah was having would not exist with Michelle and I doubt Oprah could pull off such a form fitting dresss successfully at this point.
The First Lady, Mrs. Michelle Obama looks ABSOLUTELY STUNNING AND BEAUTIFUL! As a woman I am so very very Proud of her and her achievements and there is more to come! She stands out really well in whatever she does and whatever she wears! Blessings to all those designers.
The last few comments above speak for themselves, so I rest my case . . . :-)
Sexy, elegant, stunning, amazing! Mrs. O has got it all with this look. I want those earrings.
It's good to see the First Lady in clothing that isn't too tight. This gown is elegant. I like the cranberry color on her and it makes her curves look good. Some are tired of the sleeveless look,but it's traditional for wealthy people to show lots of skin in winter eveningwear. It proves they have the money to heat the place they are in.
I have to agree that the comeback is way too severe for Mrs. Obama. I suspect she is growing her hair out and is stuck in the awkward stage. I'd think her hairdresser could come up with something better than this arrangement that looks like the feminine version of Al Sharpton's signature do.
Overall, a nice look. Poor Oprah looks awful, like a bartender who has to wear a back support belt. Who is guiding her choices? They should be fired.
this is absolutely stunning! one of her best