Michelle Obama Will Be on Vogue Cover

America's just upset that she looks so good

(NEWSER) - Michelle Obama has taken some heat for hitting the beach and sporting a Gaultier dress in Spain over the weekend. One columnist even called her a “modern-day Marie Antoinette.” But they’re missing the point, according to Daily Beast fashion writer Kate Betts. “The real issue is not hotel room rates or whether the first lady is politically tone-deaf,” she argues. “The real issue is that Mrs. Obama is not playing the traditional White House hostess role.” More»

Jason Wu creation joins Museum of American History collection

(NEWSER) - The Museum of American History got more fashionable today when Michelle Obama donated the evening gown she wore to the 2009 inaugural balls to the First Ladies Collection. "I am very honored and very humbled, but I have to say that I'm also a little embarrassed by all the fuss being made over my dress," Obama said of the Jason Wu design. "To say that she has changed my life is really an understatement," Wu told Politics Daily . More»

For celeb designers like Timberlake, recession means hard times for fashion lines

(NEWSER) - The latest casualty of the economic crisis: celebrity clothing lines. “Every D-level celebrity who thought they could make a quick buck by designing a handbag or whatever is going to disappear,” Vogue editor Anna Wintour tells the Wall Street Journal. “And I think that's a good thing.” Wannabe-designers including Jennifer Lopez, Lauren Conrad, Heidi Montag, and Nicky Hilton have had to call it quits on their collections due to disappointing sales. More»

(NEWSER) - Last January, Jason Wu was a relatively unknown designer, employing six designers and selling his clothes in 10 stores. Then Michelle Obama chose to wear his white, one-shouldered gown, to the inauguration. That event made Wu, the Wall Street Journal reports. Now Wu sells his designs at 40 stores, including Saks, Neiman Marcus, and Harrods, and he employs 10, plus a personal assistant. More»

(NEWSER) - You know it's a slow week when news outlets track down "experts" to discuss the effect Michelle Obama's shorts will have on the White House, writes Belinda Luscombe for Time. The thing is, the shorts she wore on Sunday as she stepped out of Air Force One actually are important. “She just didn't look particularly good,” Luscombe continues. “Her arms are much admired. Her legs are just, you know, legs.” And that’s a good thing for the rest of us. More»