Kamala Harris fashion as President

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:One of my least favorite looks/color/cuts on Kamala Harris.

LOL Tan suit memories of Obama.

But yes, that color is not the best for her.

She seems to wear this color a LOT. Several SOTU addresses with her sitting behind Biden in her horribly oversized and unflattering brown blazer.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:JL Dreyfuss on Veep and Robin Wright on House of Cards had great wardrobes. Maybe she can borrow some of their stuff.

I think I already said this in this thread (or was it another) -- I ADORE the Veep clothes, but JLD is a tiny little person that is probably a size zero. What works for her is not going to work for KH, who is curvy and athletic build. Also, if you google any of the actual JLD outfits, they are incredibly expensive (which is possibly why they look so great). Maybe KH has that kind of coin, but I suspect she would get a lot of flack if people found out she was wearing a $6,000 dress or a $2,000 shirt to a campaign rally. JLD probably also had a custom tailor and a whole staff of people for the show that adjusted everything -- not sure that's practical for a politician on the move. I think KH does really, really great for a working woman who is flying around the country giving on her feet rallies. (I would not be wearing heels if I were her, that's for sure!)

+1 they are celebrities, their body type etc is totally different. RW is beyond stunning and her clothes on the show are perfection. But it's a bit ice queen that I don't think would work in this context.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:PP that's really interesting -- I think you might be right about the affirmative choices and I think it's a little unfortunate. I agree with her advisors that she should stick to conservative, very basic stuff so there's no risk of a major fail (like that HRC yellow tunic pantsuit). But I think she could mix in blue, a purple blazer, a red blazer, and it would give the whole campaign more energy. Part of what she is trying to communicate is energy, and a color could do that if used as a minimal pop -- e.g., a blue suit with just a white shirt. A purple blazer over black pants with a black or white shirt.

She could also borrow some of Nancy P's broaches for her jackets -- Nancy knew how to work a broach! But generally I like KH's jewelry -- keep it simple and classy and not too big or too much. It's feminine and draws the eye but not in a distracting way. I think the chunky gold necklace really makes the tan suit much better than it otherwise would be.

I’d leave the broaches for the 80 yr olds. KH can still with pearls and good ol’ flag pin.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:JL Dreyfuss on Veep and Robin Wright on House of Cards had great wardrobes. Maybe she can borrow some of their stuff.

+1
Totally different body types than KH though.

JLD & RW are tiny!

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:She is really sticking to neutrals so far on the campaign trail -- black and gray and white and tan and beige. It feels very much like a purposeful choice -- she has previously mixed in blues and purples with her campaign clothes.

She also seems to be leaning into slightly more masculine coded clothes. That asymmetric high neck blouse she wore for her first presidential campaign appearance is the most feminine thing she's worn -- everything else has been pretty free of feminine details. Her feminine touch is her jewelry but she has a strict wardrobe for it that's pretty traditional -- classic necklace in pearls or gold and matching earrings. She even eschewed the necklace when she wore the asymmetrical top. The lapel pins are also coded as masculine -- they are like the lapel pins many male politicans wear and do not look like a decorative brooch or a feminine pin.

I am curious to see how people respond to this sartorial approach. Other female presidential candidates have embraced color and more feminine details. Even Hilary wore a lot of bright colors on the campaign trail. I think it was viewed as a benefit for women to be able to stand out in that way since men are not "allowed" to wear a red or purple suit. But I guess there's also a risk there that people will reject it as different from what they know -- presidential voting choices tend to be very emotional and almost primal and Hilary's run really revealed how many people (men and women) have some deep-seated misogyny that stokes anger and rejection at feminine coding in a presidential candidate.

I think Harris' approach so far has been partly driven by her existing personal style but also there maybe a tactical campaign choice to avoid putting her in anythng that highlights the fact that she's a woman or that she is black (or that she is mixed race for that matter). Obviously people know these things about her but I wonder if they are trying to subtly avoid provoking internalized misogyny by keeping her as neutral and masculine coded as possible.

To be clear none of this is judgment (or approval). I am very intersted in fashion as communication and interested in how this translates for trailblazing female candidates. Ignoring fashion because you think it's sexist to discuss a female candidates clothes is ignorant in my opinion. Her fashion will impact her candidacy just like it will impact any man's candidacy. The difference is that male candidates have access to a prescribed uniform for being president and women don't. Discussing fashion and Harris as a candidate is one way of discussing how gender and gender coding impacts this election and Harris' chances and reception by the electorate. It's interesting.

If you are intersted in this kind of fashion analysis I highly recommend the book Queen of Fashion: What marie Antoinette wore to the Revolution. There's also a biography of Georgiana the Duchess of Devonshire that incorporates a lot of the same analysis -- women have used fashion and presentationa has political tools for a long time. It's not frivolous BS. Politics is about communication and fashion is a form of communication.

Here’s some blue from earlier this week!

[Anonymous]

Her jackets are TOO along! I would like to see a jacket on her that ends at her hip vs 3 inches into her legs. Her jacket lengths make it look like she is wearing a hand-me-down.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Her jackets are TOO along! I would like to see a jacket on her that ends at her hip vs 3 inches into her legs. Her jacket lengths make it look like she is wearing a hand-me-down.

She looks like she's wearing her husband's suits about 90% of the time.

[Anonymous]

She’s short/petite. Agree with pp, suit jacket should hit at hip to elongate her legs. Heels are too high IMO. 3-4 inch heels for comfort and shorter jacket to elongate. She can wear any color. She wore a pale blush suit early summer and looked stunning.

Gotta say, she looks incredible au naturel at 59
https://images.app.goo.gl/Ah16vprgbtrvEtgg8

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:She’s short/petite. Agree with pp, suit jacket should hit at hip to elongate her legs. Heels are too high IMO. 3-4 inch heels for comfort and shorter jacket to elongate. She can wear any color. She wore a pale blush suit early summer and looked stunning.

Gotta say, she looks incredible au naturel at 59
https://images.app.goo.gl/Ah16vprgbtrvEtgg8

I totally disagree about "any color." She looks awful in shades of brown/beige/tan/orange. I have similar coloring and those are not the colors for us!

[Anonymous]

I like her jackets and I wonder how old the people saying “shorter jacket” are. Those of us over 50 typically have a little pregnancy belly and if the jacket is too short, it pops out in the belly and doesn’t hang right. The length she wears is perfect to cover the belly and flatten it.
At least she’s not wearing those supper long jackets that hit at the thigh like Hilary did. Those looked ridiculous and made her look so short.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:I like her jackets and I wonder how old the people saying “shorter jacket” are. Those of us over 50 typically have a little pregnancy belly and if the jacket is too short, it pops out in the belly and doesn’t hang right. The length she wears is perfect to cover the belly and flatten it.
At least she’s not wearing those supper long jackets that hit at the thigh like Hilary did. Those looked ridiculous and made her look so short.

Menopausal belly, yes. Longer jacket means she doesn't have to think about it.

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:Presidents don't do fashion. They need to project stability and security, which is the antithesis of fashion.

Kamala Harris is a good dresser. Not the best (Jackie Kennedy and Melania Trump occupy first place jointly), but good enough.

Looking forward to the First Husband dropping off a suit at the National History First Ladies Collection!!!

Heads of state certainly can, even if our prior presidents have not.



https://everythingzoomer.com/lifestyle/style-beauty-grooming/2015/10/22/pierre-trudeau-a-look-back/

[Anonymous]

Anonymous wrote:

Anonymous wrote:I like her jackets and I wonder how old the people saying “shorter jacket” are. Those of us over 50 typically have a little pregnancy belly and if the jacket is too short, it pops out in the belly and doesn’t hang right. The length she wears is perfect to cover the belly and flatten it.
At least she’s not wearing those supper long jackets that hit at the thigh like Hilary did. Those looked ridiculous and made her look so short.

Menopausal belly, yes. Longer jacket means she doesn't have to think about it.

Over 50, want my butt covered

[Anonymous]

The jacket she wore today looked like a bell. The video of her walking in it is even worse.

[Anonymous]

You can see the oversized bell shape at the end when she's walking to the plane and (very weakly) saluting the soldiers.

https://www.msnbc.com/deadline-white-house/watch/pete-buttigieg-on-the-gop-they-long-ago-walked-away-from-being-the-party-of-family-216163397633