Skip to Content

first lady

First Lady Michelle Obama Wears Cartier Watch For Official White House Portrait

Filed under: Timepieces


Of course people are talking about Michelle Obama's choice of wardrobe for her official White House image located on the White House website. The attire while elegant, is distinctly modern and does not draw attention away from the face. Associated Press writer Caryn Rousseau reported on the photograph and commented on the first lady's choice of accessories including her jewelry and wrist watch. For the photograph, Michelle Obama chose her steel Cartier Tank Francaise - a popular Cartier Tank watch that is tasteful and luxurious without being showy - a good choice for any First Lady. The watch comes in both male and female models with various levels of gilding.

Michelle Obama's subtle yet sophisticated taste shows in her choice of wearing the undecorated version of the watch in steel, although the watch is available with gold and with diamond settings. The White House portrait of the first lady does not make the model of the watch clear, but the trained eye is easily able to pick up the recognizable timepiece. Cartier themselves expressed surprise and excitement over the picture as they had no idea she would be wearing the particular watch for the occasion.

Ariel Adams publishes the watch review site aBlogtoRead.com.

New First Lady Jewelry Fashion: The Pearls Vs. The Brooch

Filed under: Jewelry


The Democratic and Republican National Conventions are over and now the real political campaigns begin in earnest. Increased attention has been focused on the fashions of the potential first ladies, Cindy McCain and Michelle Obama. As we recently reported, Vanity Fair tallied up the cost of one of Cindy McCain's outfits finding that it topped $300,000 (helped along by a pair of $280,000 diamond earrings). While current First Lady Laura Bush sometimes wears a single strand of pearls, Cindy McCain upped that look, wearing her glowing four-strand pearl necklace on several key RNC occasions including the speech introducing her husband.

Michelle Obama has also worn pearls at several events but her signature look just may be the creative use of the brooch. She has worn a variety of pins on various occasions such as the flower brooch she wore on her dress strap when she was on The View, the cluster of rose pins she wore on her Thakoon Panichgul dress on the night of her husband's acceptance speech, and, most famously the turquoise and silver brooch she wore for her own speech at the Democratic National Convention. Both the rose pins and the brooch are said to be Erickson Beamon designs. Vanity Fair estimates Cindy McCain's four-strand pearl necklace as costing between $11,000–$25,000.


Join Luxist on Facebook!

Featured Galleries

Langham Yangtze Shanghai
Robb Report Limited Edition Series
Singita Sweni Safari in Kruger National Park
Temple Guiting Manor
Peter Gogolak in Darien, Connecticut
Life at the Sherry-Netherland
Art Work Partners, Fine Art In Stone
Just Don't Call It 'Wolf's Lair'
Spring Island