In 2014, White House fashion drama looked like this: “Obama Shows Off Sad Beige Suit for Summer.” It was a simpler time when the president’s dad jeans and casual khaki suits were considered the lowest of the sartorial lows from a First Couple who famously set the bar high.
By comparison, headlines in 2017 looked more like this:
“Melania Trump and the Chilling Artifice of Fashion.”
“Here’s Why Steve Bannon Wears So Many Shirts.”
“How to Salvage Your Garbage Personal Brand In 30 Days Like Anthony Scaramucci”
“Treasury Secretary’s Wife Bragged About her #HermesScarf on Instagram”
“Hope Hicks, Tuxedos, and International Cover-Ups”
In a year where almost nothing made sense (literally: our president was often incomprehensible), what the inhabitants of the White House wore on the outside was often our best clue toward understanding what the hell was happening on the inside. For Steve Bannon, that may have meant a lot of body sweat. But for everyone else, especially the women of the White House, fashion choices seemed to reflect much more than just taste. When Melania wore heels to visit hurricane-ravaged Houston, or when Ivanka chose a flowered kimono-style gown for dinner with the Japanese prime minister, they seemed to be telling us how they felt about their relationship to power and gender dynamics.
With an administration that’s so obsessed with outward appearances, no wonder there were so many fashion moments to discuss this year. Below, we gathered the 25 most-discussed looks, plus every take that was written about them.