Fashion special: Dressing up Michelle Obama, the First Lady of style

Michelle Obama at the CommanderinChiefrsquos Ball honouring US service members and their families at the Walter E Washington Convention Center January 21 2013 Washington PicAFPUS President Barack Obama in white shirt watches Michelle Obama dance during a cultural event at The Holy Name High School in Mumbai November 7 2010 PicAFP Gaurang Shah designerA gown woven in jamdani on khadi mdash a classic style with intricate woven detailsThe design is lsquobirds of paradisersquo which accentuates the good looking feminine side of the power ladyThe beautiful traditional handwoven jamdani khadi gown with varied colour tones immediately brings the attention to the wearerrsquos faceI believe this allseason ecofriendly fabric will be the perfect Indian wear for the most stylish first lady Illustration by Gaurang Shah Pernia Qureshi stylistMichelle Obamarsquos style is truly groundbreaking I would like to style her in feminine but strong outfits while playing around with colours and patternsDue to the cold wet climate of New Delhi dressing her in comfortable and appropriate silhouettes is a mustSome of my choices would include feminine asymmetrical dresses from Neha Taneja and elegant embellished tops by Rohit Gandhi and Rahul KhannaFor a more laidback appeal I would suggest long maxi dresses from Bungalow 8 which would look perfect on her It will be great to see her in an Indian avatar adorning an opulent saree by SabyasachiAnupama Dayal designerMichelle Obama is a designerrsquos dream to dressBeautiful elegant tall with a wonderful and gracious personality She will look like a goddess in a sareeEven other Indian garments like the sharara kameez salwar kameez etc will work beautifully on the icon of our timesThe colours I would use would be ivory reds and other strong Indian colours Varun Bahl designerA contemporary Indian outfit like a saree gown in textured fabrics in pale pink or pistachio green would complement her perfectlyThe sareegown is a mix of both Indian and western sensibilities and would be easy enough for her to carry off Another outfit that I would like to see Michelle Obama in would be a longsleeved floorlength anarkali with a Chinese collar in tones of pearl and beige with gold and deep red zardozi workThe fabrics would be a blend of raw silk and heavy chiffon keeping in mind the cold weather her numerous official engagements and to allow her to move freelyShe could either wear this look with or without a dupatta or even drape a pashmina shawl Shyamal Shodhan designerA saree would flatter her appearance and would be appropriate for the Republic Day Parade visitIt can be of a nice jewel tone such as ruby pinkish or winepink worn with a variation in the usual style of draping Neeta Lulla designerI would dress her in a kneelength sheath skirt with a jacket or shirt dress in khadiThis will look elegant and stylish and it suits our humid climate Ritu Kumar designerThe outfits should reflect both the traditional and classical sense of the textiles of India as well as the aesthetics of the handlooms of Benaras that India is famous forI would give her a tanchoi indigo blue and gold sari A black and grey woven tunic with antique zardozi neckline teamed with a crinkled divided lehnga in black with a crinkle chunniBrocades in fuchsia and orange red colours would also work well as a short dress enhanced with solid jerseyThe weaves of Varanasi would also underline the need to revive our handloom heritage and make a great statement for the constituency of Prime Minister Narendra Modi and his pledge to save river Ganga Rohan Arora footwear designerShe is a very chic person and since she will be attending the Republic Day parade I would like to design nudecoloured jootis since itrsquos winter embellished with gold zardoziEven Kolhapuris could be styled well Payal Singhal designerI would love to dress her in our signature chintz print silk dupion circle skirt with a nice white shirt and statement gold jewellery