Michelle Obama Speaks at Unity Health Care..

First Lady Michelle Obama (wearing a Givenchy belt) speaks during a visit to Unity Health Care's Upper Cardozo Center June 29, 2009 in Washington, DC. Mrs. Obama visited Unity’s Upper Cardozo Health Center in D.C. and announced the release of a whooping $851 million in grants to address pressing health center facility and equipment needs and increase access to health care for millions of Americans. The money was made available by the American Recovery and Reinvestment Act. More and more Americans join the ranks of the uninsured due to the economic downturn and skyrocketing health costs.



First lady Michelle Obama is pictured before her remarks during a visit to Unity Health Care's Upper Cardozo Center in Washington June 29, 2009. At the facility Obama announced the U.S. Government's support for the renovation and modernization of the health center, funded through the American Recovery and Re-investment Act.

A White House Hawaiian Luau [VIDEO]

First Lady Michelle Obama (wearing a Tracy Feith dress) applauds while standing on stage with daughters Sasha and Malia while President Obama spoke during the luau for members of Congress and their families June 25, 2009 at the White House in Washington, DC.



[photos via Getty Images]

Pres. Obama and First Lady Michelle Serving the Community.. Together [CUTE VIDEO]

President Barack Obama and First Lady Michelle Obama (wearing a Lanvin blouse and Puma sneaks) greeted volunteers during the United We Serve volunteer event June 25, 2009 at the Fort McNair fitness center in Washington, DC.

Michelle O. Covers Ebony Magazine's July/August 2009 Issue..

Michelle Obama, along with Halle Berry, Alicia Keys and Tina Turner all cover Ebony Magazine's Summer July/August 2009 Issue. They will be featured in "The It Factor: 25 Women Who Make Us Sit Up and Take Notice".

Michelle Obama Launches Service Initiative [VIDEO]

"This summer the president and I are asking you to make time and do your part," FLOTUS says, "and I promise you won't regret it." - First Lady Michelle Obama

Michelle Obama Speaks About the Importance of Volunteering and Service..

First lady Michelle Obama (wearing designer Rachel Roy) applauds the audience following her speech to the National Conference on Volunteering and Service in San Francisco, California June 22, 2009.



Michelle Obama delivered a speech to the National Conference on Volunteering and Service in San Francisco, California June 22, 2009.

Michelle Obama Announces Summer Service Project in San Francisco [VIDEO]

Scroll down for video footage from this event..


First lady Michelle Obama greets students after helping to construct playground equipment during her visit to Bret Harte Elementary School in San Francisco, California June 22, 2009.

via The Caucus Blog:
First Lady Michelle Obama plans to urge Americans to participate in a summer of service by volunteering their time and energy to help the needy.

The initiative, which is called United We Serve, will encourage ordinary people to work on projects that focus on improving the nation’s schools, health care system and the environment, among other things.


Michelle Obama and California's first lady Maria Shriver speak to students prior to helping them to construct playground equipment during Obama's visit to Bret Harte Elementary School in San Francisco, California June 22, 2009.

The first lady, who has made community service a priority, will launch the project on Monday when she travels to California to join Maria Shriver, the wife of Gov. Arnold Schwarzenegger, to help construct a public playground in San Francisco.

[Michelle O. wearing a Suno top, photos via Reuters]
Several cabinet secretaries – including defense, education, homeland security – will also participate in community service projects around the country on Monday. The Obama administration hopes they will encourage people to embrace the United We Serve project, which will run from June 22 through Sept. 11.

Defense Secretary Robert M. Gates plans to spend time with wounded soldiers at Walter Reed Army Medical Center here, Housing Secretary Shaun Donovan will help rebuild a home in New Orleans that was destroyed by Hurricane Katrina, and Attorney General Eric H. Holder Jr. will visit the Police Athletic League in Philadelphia, where he will talk to young people and play basketball.

President Obama announced the initiative in a video message distributed by the White House earlier this week as he called on people to identify and work on community needs. His administration has created a Web site — www.serve.gov — to help people find local opportunities to volunteer.

“The challenges we face are unprecedented in their size and scope, and we cannot rely on quick fixes or easy answers to put us on the road to recovery,” Mr. Obama said in his video message.

“In this new century, we need to a build a new foundation for economic growth in America,’’ he added. “Economic recovery is as much about what you’re doing in your communities as what we’re doing in Washington — and it’s going to take all of us, working together.”

Michelle Obama: Making Cardigan Sweaters Popular Again...

via the WSJ:
The versatile twin set enjoyed long-lived popularity during the 1990s, when women doffed business suits in a casual era. But eventually, women got bored with the matchy look, leaving cardigans to stand on their own.

Perhaps as a result, cardigans got a new groove, reviving shapes such as boleros and shrunken shrugs. More recently, designers brought back the classic waist-length button-front silhouette, which flatters everybody and can cheaply update clothes that women already own. Cardigans these days are bursting with stripes, florals and those ever-popular animal prints, as well as vibrant solids. Choose snug styles with high armholes that fit a bit like a blouse with the top buttons open; you can add necklaces or scarves if you like.

Whenever you're layering printed cardigans, it's safe to stick with a solid T-shirt or tank -- or an of-the-moment sleeveless ruffled blouse. If you're keen on combinations -- florals, bold graphics, and stripes, for example -- study the mix-and-match knack of labels such as Etro. Also, try a cardigan with pushed-up sleeves over a sleeveless dress -- a signature look of the first lady.

Washington Post: Michelle Obama is the New "Claire Huxtable"

So far, the first lady has chosen to be a food bank volunteer with an outsize entourage and an education activist with the largest soapbox imaginable. But Michelle Obama also fills a role that is not of her choosing but that may, in fact, be the most influential: She serves as a symbol of middle-class progress, feminist achievement, affirmative-action success and individual style.

And she has done all this on the world stage . . . while being black.

Time and again, observers grasp for adjectives to describe Obama's combination of professional accomplishment and soccer-mom maternalism. It's no wonder so many eye her with awe and disbelief. Or why a minority still view her with suspicion. There have been few broad cultural precedents for what she represents.

The last similarly accomplished and wholesome black woman to enter the homes of TV audiences -- both black and white, in small towns and big cities -- was Clair Huxtable, the matriarch of "The Cosby Show." It is a cultural comparison more apt than the one made to Jackie Kennedy, which is rooted in little more than the two first ladies being mothers of young children and their affection for sleeveless dresses.

Continue reading this article here.

Isabel Toledo: Fashion From the Inside Out [VIDEO]

On nymag.com’s The Cut blog, New York fashion director Harriet Mays Powell takes a private tour of the "Isabel Toledo: Fashion From the Inside Out” exhibit with Toledo (a Michelle Obama favorite), her husband Ruben, and Dr. Valerie Steele, director of the Museum at FIT.



Such ingenuity in her basic draping skills! Love... I'm gonna get there :-)



Michelle Obama in the now famous Isabel Toledo lemongrass ensemble worn on President Obama's Inauguration Day.

First Lady Michelle Obama Promotes Volunteerism [VIDEO]

[photo via Reuters]
First lady Michelle Obama smiles as she delivers the keynote address at the Greater DC Cares philanthropy summit and awards luncheon in Washington, June 16, 2009.

Michelle Obama's Healthy Eating Campaign Continues...

First lady Michelle Obama holds a bean harvested from vegetables grown in her garden at the White House in Washington June 16, 2009.



Michelle Obama (in a floral sweater from The GAP along with a pair of Puma sneaks) talks with students from Bancroft Elementary School as they harvest vegetables from her garden at the White House in Washington June 16, 2009. Read more about the students helping out with the White House garden from the HuffPo Pool report.


[photos via Reuters]

Michelle Obama shells peas with fifth graders from Bancroft Elementary School in the kitchen after they harvested some of the vegetables that they planted in a garden on the South Lawn of The White House in Washington, Tuesday, June 16, 2009.

New Trend Emerging: Inviting The Obama's to Your Wedding...

The Council of Fashion Designers Honor Michelle Obama [VIDEO]

The Council of Fashion Designers of America's special tribute award went to the first lady, considered a new player in this world.

Noting her "meteoric rise as a fashion icon," CFDA president Diane von Furstenberg said Obama had "a unique look that balances the duality of her lives" in her roles as trusted adviser to her husband, President Barack Obama, and busy mother to their two daughters.

Although she was missing from the crowd at Alice Tully Hall at Lincoln Center for the Performing Arts, Obama's presence was felt throughout the star-studded ceremony, which included Heidi Klum and Blake Lively, both wearing Michael Kors, and Bradley Cooper in a Calvin Klein suit.

It took host Tracey Ullman less than two minutes in her opening monologue to mention the new first lady of fashion. As complimentary as she was, though, Ullman, a Brit, did say Obama shouldn't have worn a cardigan to meet Queen Elizabeth II.

Obama accepted her award via a pre-taped video speech. Wearing a crisp white button-down shirt and two strands of pearls, she honored fashion as an American "art form" with "ingenuity and craftsmanship that contribute so much to our economy and culture."



Read this entire article here.

The Obama Ladies Enjoy Monday Afternoon Jazz at the White House [VIDEO]

Scroll down for VIDEO of Michelle Obama's Introduction...


First lady Michelle Obama (who is looking mighty refreshed after their European vacation..) sits with daughters Sasha and Malia during the White House jazz studio event, part of the White House Music Series, in Washington June 15, 2009. Some 150 students participated in classes led by jazz experts including Wynton, Branford and Ellis Marsalis.



Jazz trumpet player Wynton Marsalis performs during a jazz workshop for students hosted by first lady Michelle Obama at the East Room of the White House in Washington, DC, on June 15, 2009.



Michelle Obama (in an Erickson Beamon brooch, Azzedine Alaia belt and Jimmy Choo heels) introduced the White Houses music series which featured artists of all ages. The series began with the Jazz Studio followed by country and classical music events this summer and fall.

[photos via Getty Images]

Michelle Spends Some Quality Time with Bo...

First lady Michelle Obama walked the family dog, Bo, on the South Lawn of the White House in Washington, Sunday, June 14, 2009 after returning from her European trip. I'm sure Bo was excited to see Michelle and the girls once they all returned home.

Michelle Obama's Friendly Bond with the Queen of England...

via HuffPo:
First came the hug, then a guided tour of Buckingham Palace. First Lady Michelle Obama, on a visit to London last week, got permission from Queen Elizabeth II for a guided tour of the palace with her daughters, Sasha and Malia.

They were shown around the queen's official residence and its gardens and the queen herself greeted them afterward, according to a royal source who spoke on condition of anonymity because the meeting was private.

In April, during a visit to Britain with her husband, Michele Obama made a warm impression on the queen _ so much so that the monarch strayed from protocol and briefly wrapped her arm around the first lady in a rare public show of affection. The first lady also put her arm around the monarch.

The Obama's Make Washington D.C. a Hot Spot Again...

Michelle O. wearing Basso & Brooke
via People
There's a new couple in the White House and seemingly overnight our nation's capital – a town known for filibusters, not fun – is suddenly a magnet for Hollywood starlets, reality TV shows and high-profile idealists wanting to get in on a little high-minded action. Here's a look at some of those beguiled by the Beltway:

Dating in D.C.
After splitting from The Office nice guy John Krasinski, Parks & Recreation star Rashida Jones, 33, has been hanging with President Obama's 28-year-old speechwriter Jon Favreau. "It's not serious," a source reveals, but they are an item. Meanwhile, taking a break from her doctor duties at the Oceanside Wellness Center, Private Practice star Kate Walsh, 41, has been spotted cuddling with another young administration hotshot, Sean Smith. How's this for a title? Smith, 38, is Deputy Assistant Secretary for Public Affairs for the U.S. Department of Homeland Security.

At Your Service
Swapping his SAG card for a seat in the White House, former House resident Kal Penn will make Washington home when he joins the Office of Public Liaison, working to get the Obama message out in the world of the arts and the Asian-American Pacific Islander. "The opportunity to serve in a capacity like this is an incredible honor." the actor, 32, told Entertainment Weekly.

The Housewives Are Coming
Hoping to mirror success in New York, New Jersey, Atlanta and Orange County, Calif., Bravo is taking its trash-tastic Real Housewives franchise to Washington, casting from a pool of "cultural connoisseurs, fashion sophisticates and philanthropic leaders." Not to be left out, MTV has announced the Real World will be taking up residence "in the heart of where history is made," in the words of the network's president of programming. Production begins later this summer. And come this fall, 20-something social butterflies will be the focus of a CW docu-series titled Blonde Charity Mafia. Think Gossip Girl goes to Georgetown!

The Coming Out of the Nation's "Second Lady", Jill Biden...

I ♥ Jill Biden too...
Jill Biden has come into her own in her new role as the nation’s “second lady.” Biden has always been a reluctant participant in the public sphere. But lately, she is more visible than at any time since her husband, Vice President Joe Biden, was sworn into office.



She doesn’t have nearly as high a profile as Michelle Obama, but Jill Biden is also a bit of a celebrity. She draws autograph-hungry crowds and turned a $450, red patent leather handbag by a little-known designer into a must-have simply by being photographed carrying it.

The first lady has been one of Jill Biden’s strongest supporters. They lunch together fairly regularly and have worked on military family issues together.

Biden told People Magazine, “[Michelle and I] talk about girl things like, ‘Where did you get those shoes?’ as well as issues.”

Read this interview in its entirety (the more substantive parts... WELL! This IS "Michelle O. STYLE", lol) over at Politico.

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Michelle, Sasha, Malia and the First Granny too! Do Some Shopping in Paris..

First lady Michelle Obama waved as she left a clothing store after she and her daughters (and her mom!) went shopping in Paris on June 7, 2009.


Michelle in a Tracy Feith dress
What better way to celebrate your birthday than a mini-shopping spree in Paris? And that’s just how First Daughter Sasha Obama celebrated her eighth over the weekend. Mom Michelle Obama took a little break from official business in France to get in some mother-daughter time with her two girls. After a Sunday brunch en famille with French president Nicolas Sarkozy and his wife, Mrs. Obama took the birthday girl and her sister Malia to the Bonpoint flagship store in Paris’s 5th arrondissement, where a source tells us Mrs. Obama “bought three complete outfits for Sasha because it was her birthday.” And while Bonpoint is a favorite of Hollywood parents like the Jolie-Pitts and Tom Cruise and Katie Holmes, Mrs. Obama learned about children’s retailer from another stylish source: fellow First Lady — and former model — Carla Bruni Sarkozy. [via People.com]



Michelle Obama and her girls travel to London and visit the set of Harry Potter.
Michelle Obama and her girls see The Lion King in London.

The Obama's Check out the Pompidou Center in Paris...

First Lady Michelle Obama and her daughters Malia and Sasha (and the President too [not pictured]) arrived at the Pompidou Centre modern art museum on June 7, 2009 in Paris. The president was due to fly back to Washington later today, but the rest of the family is expected to stay on in Paris for a short private visit. On Saturday night the visitors were cheered by huge crowds as they visited the Gothic splendour of the Notre Dame cathedral, and then went on to dine privately in a traditional bistro, La Fontaine de Mars.[photo via Getty Images]

Happy Birthday Sasha!

Happy Birthday to the littlest Obama who turns 8 today...

The Obama's Have Their Date Night in Paris at La Fontaine de Mars..

President Barack Obama took time out from diplomacy Saturday, whipping the family off for a private tour of the famed Notre Dame cathedral, followed by dinner in a traditional century-old bistrot, La Fontaine de Mars. 

Just back from a D-Day commemoration on the site of the Allied landing, Obama and his family received a hero's welcome in Paris as crowds swarmed outside the city's Notre Dame cathedral and a restaurant in the shadow of the Eiffel Tower.

Crowds of Parisians wait to catch a glimpse of The Obama Family.

Thousands of cheering Parisians lined bridges over the River Seine as the motorcade swept from the cathedral to the restaurant, desperate for a glimpse of Obama, his wife Michelle, 10-year-old Malia and seven-year-old Sasha. Sasha turns eight on Sunday, and earlier that day they had another tourist stop on the calendar, a visit to the Pompidou Centre of modern art in Paris before it opened to visitors.

La Fontaine de Mars dates back to 1908 and specializes in rustic dishes from France's southwest region of Bordeaux Perigord and the Basque. Foie gras, duck and cassoulet are on the menu, although the White House has not said what the president and first lady chose.

The Obamas shared the restaurant with other diners, and other restaurants on the winding Rue St. Dominique were filled. Police, some in riot gear, lined the street. Crowds pressed behind barriers at the end of the street to glimpse the first couple, and about 100 people gathered there burst into applause as the Obamas left the restaurant. Clusters of people at street corners held up cell phones and cameras to snap pictures.

After dinner and a ride along the quai on the Left Bank of the Seine River, the Obamas returned to the U.S. ambassador's residence, where first daughters Sasha and Malia awaited them. Earlier in the day, Sasha and Malia joined their parents on a visit to Notre Dame Cathedral, where a children's choir sang and the president lit a candle. They climbed the stairs for a view of the city from the roof of the 12th century Gothic church. The cathedral was closed to the public during the first family's visit.

The first family's motorcade traveled to the cathedral along the Boulevard St. Germain, where hundreds lined the street hoping to see them.

[via AFP, MSNBC and AP Photo]

They Meet Again! Michelle Obama & Carla Bruni-Sarkozy Both in Belted White Dresses in Paris..

French first lady Carla Bruni-Sarkozy, right, and U.S. first lady Michelle Obama (in a Narciso Rodriguez dress, Michael Kors coat and Givenchy belt), react, during an arrival ceremony at the Prefecture of Caen, northwestern France, Saturday, June 6, 2009. Obama and Sarkozy will attend ceremonies Saturday marking the 65th anniversary of the Allied D-Day landings in Normandy.





President Barack Obama is greeted by French first lady Carla Bruni-Sarkozy as French President Nicolas Sarkozy greets first lady Michelle Obama during an arrival ceremony at the Prefecture of Caen, northwestern France, Saturday, June 6, 2009.





So what are they wearing?Bruni-Sarkozy's outfit, which also included a swingy black cashmere coat, was signed Christian Dior _ her favorite label. Also true to form, Mrs. Obama's dress was by Narciso Rodriguez (and Michael Kors coat), one of the stable of American designers she champions.

Britain's Daily Telegraph said photos of the two striding side-by-side on the red carpet at Saturday's commemorations were "surreally interchangeable with shots from a catwalk show. ... They could almost have been modeling some designers' collection named 'First Lady Spring 2009.'" [via HuffPo][photos via Reuters]

FLOTUS, Sasha and Malia Arrive in France...

First lady Michelle Obama waved as she left the Eiffel Tower in Paris, Friday, June 5, 2009. Barack Obama arrived in France for Saturday's commemoration of the 65th anniversary of the Allies' D-Day invasion in France.[photo via AP Photo]


[Michelle wears a Rick Owens jacket and a Prova scarf, photo via HuffPo]
The first lady and the Obama daughters (and first granny Marian Robinson too!) visited the Eiffel Tower in Paris Friday evening, Agence France-Presse reports. “A crowd of excited well-wishers shouted her name as Michelle stepped out of a Chevrolet, waved to the onlookers and led her children into the famous Paris landmark by a side entrance in the south pillar.

“The Mayor of Paris, Bertrand Delanoe, was on hand to welcome her. “After a 30-minute tour of the monument, the family left the tower just as its famous sparkling lights lit up the Paris night sky.”

The Obama's Plan To Do Some Sightseeing in Paris...

The First Family is going to Paris on vacation. Malia, 10, and Sasha, 7 (who are out of school for the summer...) will jet to France with Michelle Obama on Friday June 5th to meet up with President Obama, MSNBC.com reports. President Obama is currently traveling around the Mideast, and gave a widely lauded speech in Egypt. The trip marks the first international excursion for the girls since their father became president.

President Obama will fly back to Washington, D.C. Sunday, but Michelle and her daughters will stay in Paris for a week to sightsee. I can't wait to see the pictures! Stay tuned...

*UPDATE*
President Obama arrived in Paris France earlier on Friday afternoon June 5th [VIDEO]. First lady Michelle and his daughters will meet up with him later.

Paris Eagerly Awaiting Obama Visit...

Not since the Kennedy era has an American first lady - and in tow, her presidential husband - been so eagerly awaited in Paris. French newspapers have speculated the Obamas - and possibly their daughters, Sasha and Malia - will dine atop the Eiffel Tower during their upcoming visit to Paris. Located on the second level of the 1,024-foot-tall tower, the Jules Verne restaurant boasts commanding views over Paris and a menu by one of the world's most celebrated chefs, Alain Ducasse. A restaurant spokeswoman declined to comment on the possibility the Obamas would dine there, citing client privacy. [source]


First Lady of France Carla Bruni Sarkozy & First Lady Michelle Obama in an Azzedine Alaia jacket
The French press is also atwitter over whether there will be a rematch of the "duel of charm" that pitted Michelle Obama in a glamor contest against Bruni-Sarkozy during the Obamas' first official visit to France in April. That fashion face-off, on the sidelines of a NATO summit in the French border city of Strasbourg, was widely considered a tie, with both first ladies' wardrobes garnering praise by international observers.



"Michelle scored big points with the French when she wore a black Azzedeine Alaia dress," (above) said Thomas, referring to the Tunisian-born, Paris-based designer known for his slinky dresses. "She's really clever in embracing French designers," as well as the young American designers she champions. Michelle Obama's elegant personal style and natural charm have won her comparisons with Jackie Kennedy, who captured France's heart when she and President John F. Kennedy made a celebrated official visit to France in 1961.

In an interview ahead of the Paris trip, Obama praised France, saying the American people love all things Gallic. Asked what he liked about the country, Obama responded, "Let's see, we have the food, we have Paris, we got the south of France, Provence, the wine." Obama said he had traveled through France during his college days and that a return trip to the southeastern region of Provence was long overdue, though he acknowledged his French was rusty. "I studied it in high school and I just forgot it," he said, adding "Michelle, I think she speaks a little French."