Mrs O-so fashionable...Michelle Obama has looked consistently chic and confident, mixing designer labels with high-street

Visiting Detroit, one of the places hit hardest by the recession, Mrs Obama showed political savvy by wearing a $34.90 off-the-peg summer dress from H&M.
To accent the waist, she wore one of her favourite accessories: a black patent leather belt.

To the strains of Stevie Wonder’s ‘Isn’t She Lovely’, Mrs Obama took to the stage on the first day of the Democratic National Convention in Denver wearing a dress by Maria Pinto, who’s based in Chicago, Michelle’s home town, and brooch by US-British duo Erickson Beamon.
The brooch has become a trademark of Mrs Obama’s style. After a 20-minute speech she was joined by her daughters Malia (left) and Sasha.

At the White House Correspondents’ Dinner in Washington DC, Michelle wore a magenta dress by designer to the A-list Michael Kors, paired with a necklace made of freshwater pearls and Swarovski crystals by up-and-coming British label St Erasmus.

This ivory and lime brocade cocktail dress by Peter Soronen, another up-and-coming Chicago-based designer, was altered from the original (right).
For Mrs Obama, the sleeves were shortened and a ruffle added at the bust, presumably for modesty.
She is seen here with her brother Craig Robinson and former president Jimmy Carter at the Democratic National Convention.

For her interview on The Tonight Show With Jay Leno – for a discussion about fashion, family and online shopping (‘When you don’t have time, you’ve got to click’) – Michelle wore an outfit by US high-street brand J Crew: honey cardigan, silk tank top and pencil skirt; plus, on her feet, a pair of Jimmy Choos. All three J Crew items sold out within days.

Shortly before hosting her first black-tie dinner, Mrs Obama welcomed catering students from Maryland to the White House kitchen to preview the menu.
‘This is where the magic happens,’ she said, wearing a cocktail dress from the spring 2009 collection by Jason Wu, who, thanks to Michelle,has gone from rising star to international designer in less than a year.

Michelle stepped off the plane in San Juan, Puerto Rico, dressed for the occasion and the temperature.
Her cotton blouse and simple stone pencil skirt were by Maria Pinto – one of Michelle’s favourite designers.

The Obamas celebrated a victory in the primaries for the Democratic presidential candidate on a balmy night in Des Moines, Iowa.
The funnel-neck jacket from this olive green suit by classic Italian label Moschino was seen again at the Democratic Party National Convention three months later when Mrs Obama wore it over black trousers, but without the Erickson Beamon belt.

Speaking at the Department of Transportation in Washington DC, she wore a Peter Soronen brown and black houndstooth check bolero jacket over a black turtleneck with trousers.
An oversize Moschino brooch – a cluster of metallic beads backed by a circle of silk tulle – added an unexpected burst of pattern and texture to the jacket.

During a live appearance on TV talk show The View, Michelle confided that while she did sometimes wear ‘high-end clothes’, she had bought her $148 Donna Ricco dress, accessorised with a large brooch, at White House Black Market, an American chain store.
‘You put a little pin on it, and you’ve got something going on,’ she said. The dress sold out across the US within 48 hours.

On the evening when Barack Obama accepted his party’s nomination for president, his wife made a bold style statement in an abstract floral-print dress by cutting-edge designer Thakoon, and set herself on an almost certain path to becoming a style icon. Instead of a necklace, she chose a trio of brooches by Erickson Beamon.

At a 35,000-strong public rally in Springfield, Illinois, Mrs Obama chose a Moschino shirtdress.
The floral print in tones of purple, moss green and blue-grey was a cool counterpoint to the sultry summer weather. The silhouette of the dress, with its short sleeves, button front, and slightly rounded shoulders, recalls vintage fashion of the 1940s