COMMANDER IN CHIC: WHAT IT SAYS (AND WHAT IT DOESN'T) MELANIA TRUMP IN HER ALEXANDER MCQUEEN $ 2,500 MILITARY JACKET
The first lady has appeared at the Republican National Convention with a message of redemption but an unpatriotic style: a McQueen design with war overtones that the model Kaia Gerber had already worn.
If they didn't want an army, they shouldn't have given us uniforms. To paraphrase June Osborne (or Offred, in The Handmaid's Tale), if Melania Trump didn't want to lead her own army, she wouldn't have donned a $ 2,500 military jacket to address the world from the Republican Party National Convention, held in the White House, which has proclaimed her husband a candidate for the presidential elections next November in the United States.
The staging is as follows: walking through the exterior porch of the presidential residence, dressed in military green and on high heels, the first lady walked firm and determined before a row of patriotic flags and in front of a good number of photographers moments before giving one of the very few speeches he has given in the last four years (more than his voice he is usually known for photographs of his initiatives, such as the recent remodeling of the White House rose garden, or his Be Best campaign with the early childhood education). Once at the lectern, she cited words such as "battle" (against the Covid-19 pandemic) and "invisible enemies" (the disease) in strong support for her husband, President Donald Trump. Four years ago, her speech was overshadowed when it was revealed that she had plagiarized phrases that Michelle Obama had given eight years earlier. This time, Melania wanted to get all the artillery out of her.
The photo and the message, both overflowing with epic, have confronted two digital armies on social networks: the one who tries to defend his heroine from those who witness her photogenic show with astonishment.
The jacket in question, inspired by the classic military pattern with loops on the shoulders and patch pockets on the chest, belongs to the Resort 2020 collection of the British firm Alexander McQueen. Belted with a tight wide belt, and accompanied by a pleated back pencil skirt and crocodile skin stilettos from Parisian Christian Louboutin, all in the same military green hue, Melania's image was powerful, striking and photogenic. In social networks they have already baptized her, many with sarcasm, others with admiration, as "commander in chic", in a play on words between "commander in chief" and "elegance". At this time, the jacket (which at the time of Melania's appearance was discounted in the brand's online store almost at half price, at $ 1,469) has sold out.
The first reading of Melania's outfit (who is possibly the most obvious reference that fashion decisions are political) speaks of strength and will to lead, but the truth is that this image admits much more depth. Analyzing the image of the first lady, it is not by chance that she wears very expensive clothes (only a millionaire would wear a 1,000-euro Balmain blouse to plant vegetables in her garden, as Twitter already pointed out three years ago) or that she bears European signatures. Although her husband made “America, First” the slogan of the campaign that earned him the presidency (and has made protectionist decisions with American companies on numerous occasions), in the public image of Melania Trump America it is, rather, “ second ". The shoe brand that fits the most is Christian Louboutin (like last night's heels it has a very extensive collection of red soles) and its leading brands for important occasions have been Givenchy, Dior, Chanel, Dolce & Gabbana or Gucci, as well as McQueen, among the who has selected eye-catching garments that went viral. All of them belong to European companies.
To be fair, Melania also wears some American brands, like Ralph Lauren (the firm that designs the clothes of the American dream), like that sky blue outfit she chose for her husband's inauguration as president in 2017. However, allusions to Jackie Kennedy did not wait and since then she has hardly dressed the American designer for minimally relevant occasions. She has also been seen wearing garments by Michael Kors or Carolina Herrera (of Venezuelan origin but living in New York), but she draws attention to the lack of patriotic representation in a character that she has deliberately decided to make the dress for fashion. her.
