With symbolism running rampant on Inauguration Day, the soon-to-be president and vice president made subtle nods to the country in their fashion Wednesday.
President-elect Joe Biden matched a navy suit and navy overcoat from American designer Ralph Lauren, the same designer of First Lady Melania Trump’s powder-blue suit in 2017.
His wife, Dr. Jill Biden, wore an ocean blue wool tweed coat and dress from emerging designer Alexandra O’Neill, who founded her own luxury womenswear label, Markarian, in 2017. She matched her outfit with a blue mask and wore her hair in soft waves.
Vice President-elect Kamala Harris similarly chose two up-and-coming artists for her look of regal purple: Baton Rouge native Christopher John Rogers and South Carolina’s Sergio Hudson, both Black designers.
Second Gentleman Doug Emhoff also went with a Ralph Lauren suit.
The COVID-19 pandemic has canceled the traditional presidential balls, where fashionable outfits are more celebrated, leaving the new First and Second Families with fewer options for highlight moments.
Former First Lady Melania Trump, a former model, found trouble finding designers to dress her early in her husband’s presidency, with more than half a dozen, including Marc Jacobs and Tom Ford, refusing to work with her for her inauguration outfit.
