Michelle Obama's daring fashion choices may ignite debate—but they also bring style back to the White House. Kate Betts on the 10 best-dressed first ladies of all time.
Kate Betts is a contributing editor at TIME magazine and until this year was also the editor of TIME Style & Design, a special supplement to the magazine. Previously, Betts was the editor in chief of Harper's Bazaar and the fashion news director of Vogue. She is the author of the book Everyday Icon: Michelle Obama and the Power of Style, due out February 2011.
As the Obamas arrive in Indonesia, Kate Betts looks back at how Michelle's style choices in India measure up to Jackie's famous 1962 trip to the subcontinent—when she took first lady fashion global—and finds that Mrs. Obama is lifting style diplomacy to a whole new level. Plus, see pictures of both women's trip wardrobes.
At least one Obama is still popular. In a string of campaign appearances, Michelle Obama pulled out the fashion artillery to say: 'We're not backing down.' Kate Betts decodes fashion's political language.
Once, Halston was synonymous with iconic design and the sexiest women; then came mass-market and what some describe as "the curse." Kate Betts on a glamorous, but jinxed life in fashion.
After 25 years making beautiful clothes for modern women, Donna Karan has finally found her light. Kate Betts on the legendary designer's remarkable career.
Photos of the first lady frolicking in Spain wearing Gaultier are sparking media outrage. But critics fail to see the powerful message her appearance carries for young women, says Kate Betts.
Thirty years since Her Majesty’s last visit to New York, the only thing different about Queen Elizabeth’s look is her whiter mane. Kate Betts pays tribute to her unwavering devotion to pastels and hats—and those crisp white gloves.
Heels go up and down, but clogs will be hideous forever. The Daily Beast’s Kate Betts on the worst fad to come out of fashion this year.
Missing from the Costume Institute’s impeccable new exhibit on the history of American women’s fashion are the working-class female archetypes who shaped our styles today, says Daily Beast style columnist Kate Betts.
Hillary Clinton may cut loose with a brilliant blue pantsuit on the road, but at home she blends in with subdued tones. The Daily Beast's new style columnist, Kate Betts, on why the secretary can't mix style with substance like Michelle Obama.