It’s a state visit that’s estimated to cost more than £18m and involves a welcome from the Queen, Prince of Wales and the Duchess of Cornwall, lunch with Prince Harry, tea at Clarence House and a Buckingham Palace state banquet - and that’s just day one for President Trump and the First Lady. There’s a giant baby blimp on the horizon, and the Together Against Trump protest is scheduled for tomorrow afternoon. This means that, as well as packing her Queen-facing clothes and white tie ballgown, FLOTUS might try and send some sort of subliminal message with her outfit choices.
You see, it’s customary for the First Lady to showcase the design talent of the country they’re visiting. Michelle Obama chose Christopher Kane and Roksanda, for example. For their visit to the UK in July 2018, Melania arrived in a fitted beige power dress by Roland Mouret, a French designer who’s based in London and shows at London Fashion Week. She then, however, departed from tradition by wearing a primrose-yellow gown by J Mendel, a Russian house that was founded in 1870 and now has its flagship in New York. Make of that what you will.
So far, the only British designer present has been Burberry, as Melania wore a pussybow blouse from the brand on arrival in the UK. Since then, there's been a mix of controversial designers – a Dolce and Gabbana look, despite the criticisms the brand recently for an allegedly racist advertising campaign – and fairly surprising choices, such as the red gown Melania wore to host dinner for the Prince of Wales and Duchess of Cornwall, made by Meghan Markle's wedding dress designer Clare Waight-Keller for Givenchy.
What do the next few days hold? Will there be an equivalent of that Zara jacket, emblazoned with the words "I really don't care, do u?"? Time will tell.
SEE: Every Outfit Worn By Melania Trump In London – Decoded
All of the FLOTUS's outfits decoded
1 of 7Melania Trump in The Row
Another repeat outfit was this flared coat from The Row, the label founded by Mary-Kate and Ashley Olsen. After facing criticism for her wildly expensive choice of clothes (like the $51,000 Dolce jacket she wore) it looks as though Melania is attempting to appear more frugal. Although that's possibly a word unfamiliar to her husband, which also possibly explains the multiple bankruptcies.
2 of 7Melania Trump in a Givenchy gown
In the midst ofa row over whether or not Trump had indeed called Meghan Markle 'nasty', Melania chose to wear Givenchy, the label responsible for creating Markle's wedding dress. Could be a complete coincidence, of course.
3 of 7Melania Trump in a Celine coat
For a morning appointment at Downing Street, Melania wore a Celine coat that she's actually worn before. I know, imagine! Perhaps she was channeling the royal family's own penchant for recycling outfits?
4 of 7Melania Trump in a Dior gown
Dior was Melania's choice for a state dinner at Buckingham Palace. Please don't talk about the gloves. Mind you, we wouldn't want to touch Trump's tiny hands, either.
5 of 7Melania Trump in Dolce and Gabbana
Just when things looked like they were going fairly well, Melania made the slightly questionable decision to wear Dolce and Gabbana, a brand which is no stranger to controversy. Recently, the duo were accused of racism thanks to an advertising campaign that seemed to enforce racist Chinese stereotypes. What a perfect choice, therefore, for a woman probably looking to keep controversy on the DL, given her husband's, er, personality. Some also suggested this look was an homage to one of Princess Diana's ensembles. Given the lewd and frankly disrespectful comments President Trump has made about Diana in the past, this is all just very confusing.
6 of 7Melania Trump in a Burberry blouse
On her arrival in the UK, Melania chose a printed Burberry blouse and pencil skirt to face the strong winds, which were presumably organised by protest groups unhappy with the fact that the Trumps are here at all...
7 of 7Melania Trump in a Gucci dress
In case we were in any doubt, Melania Trump is on her way to London. How do we know? Because she's wearing Big Ben on her Gucci dress, of course! Displaying all the nuance and subtlety for which the Trumps are so renowned, Melania took literal dressing to new levels as she departed the US.