First Lady Fashion Smackdown

Just as the candidates have opposing views on the issues, potential First Ladies, Cindy McCain and Michelle Obama, have opposing views on fashion.


Cindy's look is all about classic, tailored pieces with bold colors. Michelle favors less constructed styles, jewel tones and floral prints.

When Cindy McCain hits the trail, for example, it's often in a skirt suit like the fitted tweed pencil skirt and blazer she wore over a black turtleneck. We found a similar look at Express for $250, which is not a bad price for a suit, especially one that looks just as good when worn as separates. I'd wear the jacket, which, by the way, has really nice piping detail on the lapels, with jeans and boots and the skirt with textured tights and a sweater.



When she's going for glam, Cindy often turns to Oscar de la Renta, the same designer worn by First Ladies Laura Bush and Hillary Clinton. De la Renta designed the turquoise skirt suit with a trapeze jacket Cindy wore at the RNC. While the campaign wouldn't confirm the retail price of Cindy's outfit, de la Renta suits are typically in the thousands. We found a similar light blue suit at Loehmann's. The look isn't exactly my style (Im not really a pearls girl) but I was impressed at the price tag: $99! (Pearls not included).

Michelle, on the other hand, favors sleeveless cuts that are less constructed. Her elegant purple Maria Pinto shift even had a bit of early 60s Jackie O to it. We found a similar belted Michael by Michael Kors dress for $160 which could easily work for day with a sweater and flats or night with black patent stilettos.

Michelle's also big on floral prints. Everyone took notice when she wore that elegant black and white Donna Ricco on "The View" over the summer. At the DNC she moved on to an "acid" floral by young designer Thakoon Panichugul (Bergdorf Goodman $1,250). We found a similar short-sleeved shirt-dress at Elie Tahari for $398 (available at Macy's). These deconstructed florals remind me of one of Monet's Water Lillies, and the style is everywhere this Fall.

When it comes to first ladies and fashion, everyone naturally thinks of Jacqueline Kennedy. And for good reason. But the truth is, each First Lady had her own signature look that worked for her and her era in the White House. Check out our First Lady of Fashion countdown and see if you agree. And after that, learn about all the issues at news.yahoo.com/elections and make sure to vote on November 4th.

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