WHILE the world is watching newly-elected US president Barack Obama remake America, his wife Michelle is creating her own ripples.

Stylish without being ostentatious, classy yet not stuffy, she has enough fashion savvy that makes her trendy, but not intimidating.

That she wears both high- and low-end fashion, like that US$148 ($215) sundress at the Emmy-winning talkshow The View, makes her more real, as opposed to flamboyant Republican vice-presidential nominee Sarah Palin and her US$150,000 designer wardrobe.

Whether it's her own style, or clever PR at work, Michelle's sartorial choices have gained her many fans.

There was much hype about her day outfit at the swearing-in ceremony last Tuesday - a lemongrass brocade shift dress with a matching overcoat, both by designer Isabel Toldedo.

Vogue magazine's European editor-at-large, Hamish Bowles, deemed the choice 'appropriate, dignified and elegant, but it also had a considerable element of fashion panache.'

Is it just me or did her coat dress seem a little ill-fitting, making her look ungainly? The phlegm-yellow colour of her dress is unconventional, but I applaud her attempt, even if it did make her look washed out.

Nevertheless, I do think there were some saving graces that absolve her sartorial transgressions and prevent her from being a cookie-cutter Stepford Wife (read Laura Bush).

Simple is the way to go

 I like that her hair wasn't overly coiffed or sprayed stiff. It's a good, fuss-free style that works for all women.

Her make-up was natural, yet made her look polished. And you see her, not her make-up first.

Also, when you go with a more natural colour palette, touch-ups aren't required so often. It's a good approach to situations that could turn into drama, like it's a graduation ceremony, a job interview or even meeting the in-laws for the first time.

Be daring with colour

So the phlegm-yellow pick wasn't the greatest example, but Michelle has never shied away from making more impactful colour statements.

She wears purple well and has also made impressions in orange and turquoise. She gets brownie points for working variances into the same colour family - like the jade green gloves and emerald pumps to jazz up the lemongrass outfit.

Pin it down

Brooches are for Michelle, what the Blackberry is to her husband. I like how she's revived the brooch (a nearly forgotten accessory) and made it a modern woman's badge. Even more ingenious was how she wore it at the swearing-in ceremony - what seems like a choker on her brocade dress is actually a Victorian brooch (from the Lincoln era, another nice touch).

Cue it well

Clothes say much about personality, individuality, and sends, in Michelle's case, an affirmative message.

Toledo is a Cuban-born American designer. Jason Wu, the American designer who designed the one-shoulder, ivory chiffon gown Michelle wore to the inaugural ball, was born in Taiwan.

Maybe Michelle can give makeover tips to other female politicians and First Ladies in training. It would certainly make reading politics a lot more interesting.

This article was first published in The New Paper on Jan 25, 2009.