Is Ralph Lauren dressing Melania Trump for Inaugural Day?

While many designers jumped at the chance to dress first lady Michelle Obama, her replacement is not getting quite the same treatment. Soon-to-be first lady Melania Trump is attending her first event in her new role on Donald Trump’s Inaugural Day on January 20 and has just decided which designers she would like to work with.

For her first look, it seems that Melania has chosen an elite designer duo: Ralph Lauren and Karl Lagerfeld. Even though Ralph Lauren supported Hillary Clinton in the past, the designer is working on a gown for Melania, WWD reports. The dress and Inauguration Day ensemble will be created by the designer for the former model. It is also speculated that Karl Lagerfeld may be involved in creating looks for the first lady, according to the publication.

It’s interesting to see which of these designers are actually open to dressing Melania, as many have stated in the past that they will not participate in dressing her. Tom Ford has stated that he would not dress Melania, as she is “not necessarily my image,” he said on The View. Marc Jacobs has also expressed to WWD that he has no interest in dressing the new first lady, expressing his distaste for the impending president.

Ralph Lauren may dress Melania Trump for Inauguration Day

Although many have declined to dress her, there are also designers in the fashion industry who seem to be less closed off to the idea in regards to fashion. "If we say we are about inclusivity and making American manufacturing great again, then we have to put that before personal political beliefs,” Marcus Wainwright told The New York Times in regards to dressing Melania. Carolina Herrera has similarly expressed that she thinks more designers will start dressing her in time because she represents the country, as reported by Business of Fashion.

As far as Lagerfeld and Lauren, they are seemingly the current design team for the first lady’s looks. In President Barack Obama’s years of office, Michelle Obama was dressed by the likes of Derek Lam, Phillip Lim, Maria Pinto, Marchesa, Zac Posen, Tracy Reese, Prabal Gurung and many more. As Donald Trump is inaugurated, it will be interesting to see if Melania’s team of designers grows over time due to fashion’s current controversial feelings on dressing her.

Photo: Ralph Lauren