The Scoop on Meredith Koop

For those interested, this is a must read:

"At the White House, A New Shopper in Chief" [The Washington Post]

Comments

[M.M.]

I never knew Meredith worked for Ikram. Ikram's business must be booming, so Meredith was assigned to take over FLOTUS basic shopping needs.

[Mrs. CC]

It was an interesting read indeed! I feel sorry for this unflatteringly (IMHO) attention to Ms. Koop- time for a new hairdresser.

[M.M.]

Also, I hope FLOTUS wears what she wants in London, and does not allow people to influence what she wears to major events/trips like Latin America, and London. Also, I like Rachel Roy's responses to the journalist questions about who she works with at the White House/ the money issue, because it shows she has respect for her famous client. However, I was shocked by the details that Koop's hairstylist and other designers gave in the article, because that will likely lead to them no longer doing business with the East Wing.

[Boazwife]

I thought that was a good article providing interesting background info on Ms Koop, the only negative I come away with is that Ms Koop should find a new hair colorist, that Vera was way too talkative. I did, however, like the discretion that Rachel Roy used. It all serves to add that much more excitement to following the fashion and style of our Mrs. O, I literally cannot get enough information, so thanks Mrs T!!!

[meta]

Very interesting article, Mrs. T. If I were in Mrs. Obama's inner circle, I would not utter a word about her habits to anyone. I know it's easy to open up to your hairdresser about many personal matters but I think Ms. Koop has a special obligation not to be divulging anything about Mrs. Obama personal life. Case in point, I was very taken aback by how chatty the hairdresser was to a major newspaper. She must have known there would be some blowback to Ms. Koop. I hope she figures out sooner rather than later that she should be a LOT more discreet. Same goes for all the designers who dress Mrs. Obama. I think Rachel Roy has it right.

[Marcus Perry]

Whoever is Mrs. O.'s wardrobe point person, is of no importance to me. I simply hope the First Lady's fashion philosophy and style don't fall victim to "fashion political correctness" or "American fashion imperialism"--as seemed implicit in the criticism of that FABULOUS! red dress by de la Renta and von Furstenburg.

...And there's a cruel irony about "American fashion (designers') suffering" when one thinks about most of America's famed designers' clothes are largely made in "Third World" countries for pennies on the dollar--and being sold to American consumers for a mint.

[Nora]

I know Oscar DLR is "persona non-grata" on this blog, but it seems that even he cannot escape FLOTUS's ubiquitous influence on the style of our times. Check out his Pre-Fall 2011 and I dare anyone to dispute that the collection seems Mrs. O inspired. From the classic sheath dresses, the full skirts, elegant coats over dresses to the kitten heels, the draping of the evening gowns, the bows, the 50's silhouettes, and the bold color combo . . . and oh, the belts, Mrs. O is everywhere :-) Let me know what you fellow bloggers think.

http://www.oscardelarenta.com/?folderId=/collections/runway/pre-fall2011

[Kathie]

@ Nora - I agree completely! I could see Mrs. Obama wearing almost all of them (as unlikely as that actually is to happen).

[Christina]

I thought the same thing about Ms. Koop's hair colorist -- say goodbye to your client, lady. But who knows, maybe she was cleared to speak about this (??) That would be very, very odd but weirder things have happened.

I want to know how the reporter found the colorist, though! That's some excellent reporting right there.

[Layo G]

Perhaps Ms. Koop may want to say less to her hair-dresser! Certainly one thing she forgot to pick up at her time with Ikram --> discretion is key when dealing with high profile individuals!!

[Charlene in Detroit]

Once the hairdresser reads this article, especially Rachel Roy's comments, it will be clear to hear why she is now the ex- hairdresser to Ms. Koop. Wow, she was comfortable in shariing information that up until now was unobtainable. I hope it was met with the approval of Meredith, through our Michelle.

Hey Nora, we were discussing that same thing on the last thread. It seems that most of Oscar's designs has FLOTUS written all over them. She would look soooooo good in his ballgowns. Oh well!

[M.M.]

Also, Meredith needs to learn to keep quiet about her dealings with FLOTUS, especially the financial aspect. She gives a lot of details about her boss to a hair stylist. Heck, the White House has yet to report that FLOTUS is even attending the Kentucky Derby.

[sugar lump]

Finally, the Washington Post is investing in investigative journalism!

[Charlene in Detroit]

@ Mia Monte, you are sooooo right! If that is indeed true, that tidbit could be a security risk not to mention all kinds of political turmoil. There's a reason that "loose lips sinks ships" is more than a catchy phrase, don't you think?

[Christina]

The story suggests that the hairstylist and Meredith Koop are actually friends as well. Perhaps ex-friends at this point, but I hope not. No job is worth losing a true friend, even if she's a total blabbermouth. :-)

[Kels]

My goodness. Looking at Oscar's collection, he's BEGGING for Mrs. O to wear his stuff! It's like he took all of her famous outfits, changed a thing or two here and there, et voila! A collection fit for a First Lady.

Too bad she's not interested! LOL

[M.M.]

@Charlene

Your so right. Furthermore, the article compares her job to Reggie Love's job, and I have heard that guy never gives up truly personal details about POTUS. "We" do not need any FLOTUS-gates over clothes. Anyway, I am interested to see if Meredith pulls Latin designers, for the Latin American trip, and if FLOTUS wears Latin inspired clothing on the trip.

[willet784]

Nora, thanks for the link to OLDR's website. The opposite of love isn't hate, it's indifference. OLDR has totally swagger-jacked the first lady. He doesn't hate her; he is obsessed with her if this collection is any indicator. Everything in this collection looks like something the first lady has already worn. I haven't seen any past collections, but this one is too much like Michelle's style to not indicate her profound influence on him. Everything, except for the last 6 gowns, which look like the dowdy confections he used to design for former First Ladies, bears Michelle Obama's style on it. It's frightening.

http://www.oscardelarenta.com/?folderId=/collections/runway/pre-fall2011#lookId=35&
This, for example, looks like the J Crew outfit FLOTUS wore during the election on Jay Leno

http://www.oscardelarenta.com/?folderId=/collections/runway/pre-fall2011#lookId=27&
This, looks like an outfit she wore when disembarking to England.

http://www.oscardelarenta.com/?folderId=/collections/runway/pre-fall2011#lookId=3&
This, looks like FLOTUS' Mossimo outfits, especially the one she wore while dancing with the children in India.

[operafanatic]

I think blaming the hairdresser for Ms. Koop's unprofessional indescretions is unfair. I don't care how good the colorist is - Koop should walk in, sit down, get her color done and keep quiet. There is no excuse for this kind of chit chat and the expectation that anyone would keep quiet about it. Koop is in a role that demands an extraordinary amount of descretion. If she can't manage it, she should be out - pronto. Shame on her.

[BookWorm]

I live, and work, in Washington ... and the talk here is that Ms. Koop pulled a "palace coup" on Ikram ... and stole her client, Mrs. O ... Ms. Koop is viewed as a too young, too "white" stylist, who is taking Mrs. O in directions ill-suited to her tremendous style sense ... I am not at all happy with how this has played out ... Ikram has been loyal to Mrs. O, and has done wonderfully by her in all style choices ... Ms. Koop has, I believe, used Ikram to her own benefit, and will use Mrs. O likewise ... that's the general sense from the K Street salons that I, and my friends, patronize....

[BookWorm]

oh my, look what I just found ....

"Meredith Koop really IS Michelle Obama's stylist: Aide 'advises on First Lady's wardrobe and makes purchases on her behalf'"

Daily Mail (UK), 2/22/2011

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/femail/article-1359694/Meredith-Koop-really-IS-Michelle-Obamas-stylist-Aide-advises-First-Ladys-wardrobe-makes-purchases-behalf.html

[BookWorm]

I apologize for the multiple posts, I'm new here, and haven't yet figured out how this wonderfu site is set up ....

I thought you might like to have the link to Ms. Koop's salon, Immortal Beloved ... http://www.immortalbeloveddc.com/index.html

and some other articles ...

Obama's secret style weapon
Politico, 4/15/2010
http://dyn.politico.com/click/printstory.cfm?uuid=0eb39fac-057a-4ce9-a8fe-20fa2dc6b2f8

Vera Chamberlin -- FaceBook
http://www.facebook.com/people/Vera-Chamberlin/1252076061

Vera Chamberlin -- Twitter (this stuff is juicy)
http://twitter.com/VeraChamberlin

[Jestina ( London, England)]

I agree with you, Marcus. The hypocrisy is glaringly obvious. For years, American designers have exploited cheap labour all around the world, paying a worker in the Third World pennies for a garment that sells for hundreds of pounds at home.

Like you, I don't care much for the specifics of Mrs O's stylist/assistant, I just hope that she doesn't feel like she has to bow to pressure and turn her clothes into something political.

I've watched the Obama since the campaigning days and know that no President & First Lady have ever been scrutinised as much as they have. What they wear, eat, say, where they holiday - everything. It's hard to please everyone. I just hope that Michelle Obama continues to be a strong woman and ignore the naysayers.

P.S By the way, Oscar is definitely begging Mrs O to wear his designs. The whole Pre Fall collection is a nod to the First Lady.

[boazwife]

I agree with Nora and Kels about the Oscar collection it does look as if Mrs O was his muse.

[Godiva]

You cannot believe everything you read! I'm surprised you all took this article as face and "investigative." It's sensationalism. Go back and read Jason Horowitz's article on Robert Gibbs. He is not a journalist with integrity. I don't believe this article is reporting straight fact at all!
Congrats to Koop for being so accomplished a young age. Mrs. O has been looking fab lately. That, you cannot deny!

[Sandi]

Maybe this is why she wore the McQueen dress....smarter than all the haters?
http://dallasmorningviewsblog.dallasnews.com/archives/2011/02/obama-finally-b.html

[SoccerNana]

@ Sandi,

Interesting analogy!

[Astorian]

If that really is Vera Chamberlin's Twitter account (see BookWorm's comment), I would be surprised if a) it were still up in 24 hours and b) if Vera still had a job in 24 hours. The tone and content is antithetical to the image this White House, and MO, strive to project.

[Lael]

Thanks for the Vera Chamberlin Twitter link, @Book Worm. Did anyone else notice that she Tweeted a link to the Post's article? She seems to think her interview was appropriate! I bet she'll get a ton of clients now, at the cost of losing a high-profile one.

http://twitter.com/VeraChamberlin

And the article did seem to make a big deal about nothing. It makes sense that Koop would take over as Ikram's business grows. It's hard to imagine that FLOTUS would sacrifice or put in jeopardy her relationship with Ikram, I'm sure it was all consensual and appropriate.

[Mica]

The Kentucky Derby mention made me cringe since due to my knowledge her appearance there hasn't been announced yet.

The hairdresser's loss (meaning surely her job of doing Koop's hair) is our gain in that we got to learn details we'd never learn otherwise.

I'm assuming she wasn't authorized to talk to the press & Koop assumed that given client privilege she wouldn't dare repeat the info she tells her.

Honest mistake for someone I'm sure was just venting in what she thought was a safe space. Hope this doesn't put a strain in the relationship between Koop & Mrs O.

[Christina]

@Godiva:

"You cannot believe everything you read! I'm surprised you all took this article as face and "investigative." It's sensationalism."

But what in the story seems unbelievable? The underlying story is that Mrs. Obama has an aide who helps her select clothing. The other parts of the story -- that Mrs. O pays for the clothes, that some of the clothes may not be as expensive as what "regular" people have to pay, seems pretty realistic.

Now, whether Meredith should have been so chatty and whether her stylist should have been so blabby...eh, both of them should learn to zip it, this is true. I suspect they're both pretty young. But really, at the end of the day we're just talking about clothes, not the launch codes to our nuclear arsenal.

[a MI Mom]

Apropos of nothing, here is a feature from HuffPost Style I enjoyed and thought some of you might, too: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/ari-cohen/the-top-ten-ways-to-stay-_b_826343.html What a charming woman! I think Mrs. O would agree with #2 & #7 and I'd love to try #9 myself.

[THC]

Where are the updates?? Medal of Freedom event? Vail?

[Jadee]

In the words of Andre Leon Talley, "Dreckitude!" Discretion: look it up, study it, review it, and apply it.

[Lisa H]

I agree with Godiva to the extent that the colorist's story seems a bit sensational.
Everyone else is tight-lipped, but SHE knows everything? Doubtful.
But, that's just my opinion.
On another note, I know there have been no public appearances, Mrs. T.,
but I am SO going through Michelle Obama Image Withdrawal!
Do you think this is intentional, with all the scrutiny on her stylist/clothing?
Or maybe she just has the flu or something..................................Peace and Love!

[IVA]

This is gossip time folks! This Koop person is about to be shown the door. The one thing about the Obamas is that they have a core group that they are loyal to, but if you mess up, you get put out the core. Koop is simply a young person with a new job that's got her excited and she talked too much to someone less than trustworthy...she'll learn this lesson the hard way I presume.

So tacky...your hairdresser is blabbing about one of your clients, who is also the first lady of the United States. In my line of work I have many clients, some well-known in the local community, and I would be horrified if my client's business was being told to newspapers, etc. She really must be horrified and embarrassed.

The only other thing I can think of, in terms of what's behind this article, is that Koop is in fact making a power play and going for the jugular, in terms of officially pushing Ikram out of the picture since she feels like she's established herself enough to deal directly with the designers. So the "loose lips" from her hairdresser is really something planned by Koop to draw attention to her and cause Ikram to want to separate from the drama??? Who knows. Either way, it seems like a strange move if folks are trying to look after and serve Michelle Obama. This isn't a bad article, per se, but it certainly isn't necessary and helpful to her overall image and in keeping the focus on what the president is doing and her initiatives for anti-obesity, volunteerism, and military families

[M.M.]

I don't think this article has done Meredith any good, mainly because it seems that the East Wing wanted Meredith's identity to be kept on the low, and now the public knows a lot about her and what her job is. Plus, other major news outlets like ABC has picked up this article.

[Patient]

If I were Mrs Obama - I'd get rid of Ms Koop. Even if the friend/stylist embellished - it was still too much. Mr Love NEVER EVER EVER betrays a confidence, and you NEVER EVER EVER hear of ANYONE that knows Mr Love say anything about the President - and it's how it should be for Mrs.Obama as well.

[runnergirl]

Of course, she needs help she is no longer a private citizen! Can you image FLOTUS taking a shopping trip to Nordstrom's?! Let"s be REAL! This is not a put down on Mrs.O she has no choice. I just hope she continues to dress as she pleases. She needs to just keep being herself and not fall under the pressure of the excessive scrutiny. I don't remember any FLOTUS dealing with this amount off criticism or praise regarding their wardrobe. What is this about? I never heard Oscar de la Renta or Diane von Furstenberg criticize Clinton, the Bushes, Carte,Ford, ETC! Let's focus on Mrs. O's Lets Move! initiative and each one of us should try to help a local military family. That's what I plan to do this year. I will always be a BIG supporter of the Obama family. Having said all of this I can't wait to see what she will be wearing in the months ahead!!!!!!!!!

[Mrs. T]

@THC, I haven't seen any images of the First Lady from either event, and thus have not posted. There is a short video clip from the Medal of Freedom ceremony, which I can post, but it does not show much. Please know I do stay on top of these things!

[Mrs. T]

Now a comment to add to the discussion above. I must admit that I was shocked that the hairdresser talked. And surprised that Meredith Koop blabbed to the hairdresser in the first place. Even if the subject is rather innocuous, and the comments were made innocently, it just seems very careless. At the same time, that's a bit unfair of me to say, as I am truthfully glad someone got to the bottom of it.

I do think the story clarifies a bit about what is happening behind the scenes. For me, this role, whether occupied by Ikram Goldman or Meredith Koop, is of interest and consequence as it requires selecting and editing options that are presented to the First Lady. I do wonder, honestly, if Ikram would have had the experience and foresight to predict the potential media backlash that would surround the McQueen gown. Would it even have been an option were Ikram still at the helm of Mrs. O's wardrobe?

Thanks everyone for the insightful comments.

[IVA]

Gosh...I'm sure this is not the way the White House wanted this to go down...

Here's ABC news's take on the story.

http://abcnews.go.com/Politics/Obama/secret-stylist-michelle-obama-outed-hairdresser/story?id=12981774&page=1

Man, Koop has GOT to be a goner for this. Taking phone calls re: the first lady's clothing WHILE she's getting her hair done? Seriously? This is not some "Devil Wears Prada" movie - this is the real deal...big time players and power. You don't handle coordinating for someone like Mrs. O from the chair of your hairdresser. OMG. This is just so careless and stupid from Koop that's it's unbelievable and I have to assume there's more going on behind this relative to Koop and Ikram.

[meta]

I personally think Ikram did a really fantastic job managing Mrs. O's wardrobe selections. Fit, style, fashion forward, personality - all well-suited to who Mrs. O is and how she conducts herself. I especially applaud the formal wear. Truly stunning. I hope their relationship is still in tact.

[meta]

IVA, yikes. I think the one thing you never do as support staff is become the story and make headlines.

[IVA]

I agree, meta. I hope that whatever the status of Ikram is, the relationship is still positive. I think she did a fantastic job, and given the need for the Obamas to play the game 10xs better than their predecessors, I appreciated Ikram's discretion and respect for the Obamas - as individuals. I remember reading an article about how the only thing Ikram ever did that showed her relationship to the Obamas was send an email during the campaign asking for people to donate to the campaign and support the president.

I have to believe things are still good between them and this misstep is all from Koop forgetting herself.

[M.M.]

I don't think the relationship between FLOTUS and Ikram has turned bad. Especially, since FLOTUS hired Meredith who according to the article was suggested as an "in house" shopper by Ikram.

Also, I think if the Koop story gets in larger it will be bad for her. Especially since Desiree lost her job solely because the West Wing adivsors felt that 2009 mishap became too, according to an article by Johnathan Alter in July 2010. One thing that I have learned about the West Wing/East Wing, is that they do not like stories that have nothing to do with politics become headlines.

[M.M.]

@Mrs. T

I feel that the Alexander McQueen dress would be something Ikram would have thought of and showed FLOTUS as an option to wear for the event. Ikram usually chose "funky" clothes for FLOTUS to wear. I remember that unique multi-color FLOTUS wore in London in 2009. Furthermore, as I reflect on FLOTUS evolving style I think that Ikram knows what FLOTUS likes a little better, eventhough of course FLOTUS still has the final say on what she wears.

However, like "IVA" mentioned, Ikram never divulged about FLOTUS clothing choices to anyone. Ikram always respected her famous client's privacy.

[ladywatcher]

@Nora and Kels. ODLR's collection is totally Michelle Obama. Look at the pics 1 & 3, red shoes with a fuchsia bow that is so MO. She would also look stunning in # 10 & 18. Oscar annoyed me so for criticizing her for wearing a cardigan to meet the queen. I wonder what he would have said if she had worn a little linen frock similar to the queen's, would she have been able to return to the US?? That said he does design exquisite clothes and he has finally figured out, I guess, that he better design what she likes. belts and all!! MO doesn't seem to be vindictive, perhaps she will wear some of his clothes when she travels to the UK.

@operafanatic I totally agree with you Ms. Koop. She should learn from Ms. Goldman and SHUT UP!

[McKinley]

There was talk of Mrs. O's hair stylist, Johnny Wright, starring in a reality show. The show never came to fruition. Wonder why? I bet money that Mrs. O offered her fabulous hair stylist a polite hand-on-the-hip/hell-to-the-no. He would bump curls in Mrs. O's mane no longer if he strutted in the spotlight.

Mrs. Koop, dear, keep your mouth shut and fly under the radar.

[desertwind]

It's interesting.

But... story's tone is a bit *****, no? Real fashion rag style.

Remember! ... Discretion is the better part of valor. Something one often learns the hard way.