Daily Times

For a fledgling first lady there’s a lot riding on her inaugural gown. Obviously the name of the game is looking smoking hot. Hell, with the eyes of the world upon you, who wouldn’t want to be the belle of the Inaugural Ball?

No one knows what Melania Trump will wear tomorrow (Friday), but we suspect she’ll have been planning her outfit ever since Trump won the presidency in November. But it’s not just as easy as choosing a pretty frock.

The ball is the First Lady’s moment to step out onto the world stage and demonstrate her style. What she wears plays an integral part in shaping her public appearance for those four years to come.

Nancy Reagan got it wrong in 1981 when she wore a white beaded lace James Galanos one shoulder evening gown. The country was in the midst of a recession and it was deemed too lavish. Rosalynn Carter’s frugal antics backfired, and she was criticised for not taking her position seriously enough. Hmm!

Interestingly, we all know Trump’s a billionaire, he bangs on about it enough, so Melania won’t have these constraints. So we can pretty much assume Melania is going to be blowing the GDP of a small nation on her gown. Not confirmed, but a common assumption that’s about as reliable as ‘a Donald fact’.

Michelle Obama , the ultimate fashion player, scored points by a. opting for an American designer and b. choosing one that was relatively unknown.

So Melania could opt to wear a dress by an up and coming American designer? But something tells us she won’t. It’s far too subtle a message for an administration that’s all about being bold, brash and bling.

There’s also the issue of who would want to dress Melania? Once an accolade designers fought for, but suddenly not quite as enticing as it once was.

To prove my point on the ‘bling thing’, the Trump administration has planned three official inaugural balls, so Melania could be deciding upon multiple outfit changes. She would be the first First Lady in history to do so. But this is a year of firsts right?

This administration is going to be a whole lot of things that I don’t have adjectives for. All we can do is sit back and watch, it’s going to be one heck of a ride.

To get you in the mood here’s a look back on some of the First Ladies’ fashions dating from 1909 to 2013.

Michelle opted for Jason Wu again in 2013, this time she wore a striking sleeveless red, chiffon and velvet gown accessorised with a diamond embellished ring by jewellery designer Kimberly McDonald and a pair of Jimmy Choos.

FLOTUS looked stunning in the scarlet red statement halter-neck gown.

Michelle established herself as a style icon and was adept at using her style to convey political messages. Wu told The New York Times it was “an honour” working with her.

Michelle kept her dress choice a secret until the evening of the ball. She was applauded for her decision to wear this white, one-shoulder, chiffon dress by Jason Wu, who up until this point was revered within the fashion industry but didn’t have international reach. This undoubtedly launched Wu onto the world stage, and demonstrated that Michelle was a First Lady who was going to modernise the White House.