Sarah Palin's fashion sense

A screen shot of Palin’s address to the Alaska Independence Party earlier this year shows the offbeat style that she displayed as governor. Here she pairs a periwinkle parka with a lime-green flowered scarf and a matching green necklace. Photograph: YouTube

Then just a few weeks ago Palin ditched the shell suit for Valentino silk for her debut at the Republican convention. The price tag of her oyster-hued jacket: $2,500. She paired the coat with a black pencil skirt and black peep-toe heels. Photograph: Larry W Smith/EPA

The Alaska governor showed her first inklings of sartorial savvy on the day she was introduced as John McCain’s running mate way back in August. Palin, 44, took to the stage in red peep-toe heels by Naughty Monkey, a shoe designer whose sexy sky-high heels are a favourite of Paris Hilton. Cost? A mere $100 Photograph: Mario Tama/Getty

While on the campaign trail with McCain, Palin has turned to neutral tones, often with three-quarter-length sleeves to beat the heat. She has been working behind the scenes with a style team to refine her look without projecting the appearance of designer-label elitism Photograph: Robyn Beck/AFP

Before her style consultants Palin felt more at home in an oversized denim shirt and jeans Photograph: Heath family/AP

As she settled into her new role, the vice-presidential hopeful started letting her hair down – literally. Palin’s hairdresser has said she devised the governor’s signature updo to project a more professional image, but letting her locks loose gives Palin a friendlier look. Photograph: Joe Raedle/Getty

Sarah Palin, or Sarah Heath as she was then, appears in her high school yearbook dressed in a football top with Farah Fawcett flicked hair Photograph: Rex Features

It was back to the updo on September 5 when Palin joined McCain at a Wisconsin rally in a striking striped suit with French cuffs. Her choice of quilted jackets for campaign rallies creates a stark contrast with the bold silks in Crayola hues that Cindy McCain usually dons. Photograph: Morry Gash/AP

The $150,000 hasn't just been spent on Sarah's image - the whole family has benefitted. Here Piper Palin totes a Louis Vuitton bag costing around $650 Photograph: Eric Risberg/AP

Palin has been known to make some sartorial mistakes: she wore these complicated beaded earrings at a campaign rally early in September. The earrings didn’t match her ruffled-collar suit. Photograph: Robyn Beck/AFP

Despite her recent pricey ensembles and updo, Palin looks most comfortable at her most casual. She often wore unglamourous flat slip-ons while working in Alaska, and she shows off a cheeky t-shirt slogan in this photo from her college years: “I may be broke but I’m not flat-busted.” Photograph: Courtesy of the Heath family/AP