Michelle Obama Promotes Women Designers

By Staff

Tuesday, January 20, 2009, 13:37

Reportedly Michelle Obama is going to utilize her position as the US first lady to promote lesser known women designers from the minority community. The First Lady fashion designer club is expected to be more diverse and expanding.

The profession is known to be dominated by white males, but the Mrs. Obama has shown encouragement to new generation designers like Maria Pinto, who is a Chicagoan and and Thai native Thakoon. Pinto is rumored to be the leading choice for the First Lady's gown at the inauguration ball.

"Michelle Obama would seek to bring new designers like me with her over the next four years." as quoted by Nick Verreos, a Hispanic women's designer.

Since the year 1960, the First Lady designer club has been an exclusive one, mostly comprising of male white designers. They have included Oleg Cassini (Jacqueline Kennedy), Adolfo (Nancy Reagan), Arnold Scaasi (Barbara Bush), and Oscar de la Renta (Laura Bush). Hillary Rodham Clinton's choice was the only woman: Donna Karan.

"Mrs. Obama is comfortable in her own skin and does not need the old guard of designers to complete her message of youth and energy," the paper quoted Treena Lombardo, fashion market director for the fashion industry's W magazine, as saying. AGENCIES