The first lady of fashion

There is nothing like the gratification that comes from seeing a celebrity you really like on the cover of a magazine.

In a sea of washed-up celebutantes with nasty cocaine habits, it is so utterly refreshing to see someone respectable staring back at you in the self-checkout line at Kroger. 

This past week’s late-night run for coffee filters and Twizzlers led me to one of this month’s cover girls from Glamour magazine, the electrically chic First Lady Michelle Obama.

Sharing the front page with pop singer Rihanna, the two exceptional people are being
celebrated as “Women of the Year,” an annual honor dished out by the magazine to those who have shined in the past year.

Obama’s accessible appeal has her pegged as the real woman’s fashion icon, and after an endless string of uptight pantsuits, she is possibly the chicest woman to grace 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue since Jackie Onassis.

She shops at J. Crew and the GAP: if she were any more accessible, she would be doing appearances at local shopping malls.

Most important to her style persona, Obama knows her body shape and what looks good on her. She often picks dresses with higher set necklines but fitted bodices to show off her shape. She sticks to empire or natural waistlines and fuller a-line skirts, a flattering 1950s throwback silhouette.

She is not afraid to play with color either, often seen in bright hues or prints that pop. Most fall-appropriate are her technicolor pea coats in a rich variety of tones.

Obama pieces her outfits together with immense precision. She has mixing structured items with feminine pieces down to a science, taking not-so-old-lady cardigans and pairing them with sleek staples.

A favorite combination of mine, mixing ultra feminine with ultra chic, is done superbly by Obama who generally opts for sheath dresses and girly cardigans – so “Mad Men.”

She is also a fan of waist-cinching belts, adorning cardigans and adorable jackets with a wide variety of them. Obama frequently chooses ones with cutouts or embellishments to spice up her look. Nobody said modest had to be boring.

Her cream-colored inaugural ball gown by up-and-coming designer Jason Wu tapped into the emerging trend of one-shoulder tops and frocks, pointing out the First Lady’s style smarts. Anyone who did not swoon during the Obamas’ first dance to Beyonce’s performance of “At Last” with her in that dress needs to check their pulse.

First ladies typically look like clones in monotone, opting for an old-fashioned pantsuit where a modern accent would work much better. Michelle Obama combines the old and the new without compromising her originality for the sake of tradition.

A big plus is that Obama is the ultimate recessionista, mixing designer classics and inexpensive accoutrements. She is not afraid of taking slight risks but never goes so avant garde that she becomes unrelatable.

The glamorous Michelle Obama is the perfect candidate for “Woman of the Year” not only for her accomplishments but also for her fierce new role as a style icon.