Forever FLOTUS Michelle Obama strutted onstage last night for the final stop of her book tour, wearing super-fab, thigh-high, glitter boots from Balenciaga that elicited an audible gasp from the audience. Well… I imagine there was a gasp. And probably some fainting. I don’t know, I wasn’t there. But I know I certainly needed some smelling salts when I saw the pictures online this morning.
During the event, the former First Lady explained (to host Sarah Jessica Paraker that during her time in the White House, “I did know that my clothes were making a statement, I knew that was the case. So we decided why don’t we use this platform to uplift some young new designers who normally wouldn’t get this kind of attention, because you can change their lives, which is one of the reasons why we chose Jason Wu for my inaugural gown.”
via Vox:
Obama made a point to buy all of the clothes she wore as first lady, but that likely wouldn’t have mitigated criticism of such an extravagant pair of boots. Wearing the Balenciagas while in the White House likely would have led to charges of insensitivity, as many Americans don’t even earn $3,900 in a month.
Now that she’s no longer first lady, the boots are far more than a sign of excess. Her memoir, which chronicles her rise from Chicago’s South Side to the White House, is about how she arrived, and the Balenciagas symbolize how far she’s come. Women over 40 are told to play it safe with fashion and African Americans who flaunt their wealth, including Obama herself, tend to be criticized for not showing humility. But the former first lady has thrown to caution to the wind.
“Now, I’m free to do whatever,” she told Parker, adding that there was no real message behind the boots. She simply liked them.
“They were just really cute,” she explained. “I was like, ‘Those some nice boots!’”
Yes, they are. They have already sold out, btw, since pics of Obama surfaced this morning. Take THAT, Miss “I Don’t Really Care, Do You?”
(via Page Six; Photo Avalon)
