{"id":75,"date":"2009-08-19T17:41:00","date_gmt":"2009-08-19T17:41:00","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/dev.sarahshah.com\/index.php\/2009\/its-not-really-about-the-shorts\/"},"modified":"2018-06-21T14:41:16","modified_gmt":"2018-06-21T14:41:16","slug":"its-not-really-about-the-shorts","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"http:\/\/www.sarahshah.com\/blog\/index.php\/2009\/its-not-really-about-the-shorts\/","title":{"rendered":"It’s Not Really About The Shorts"},"content":{"rendered":"<\/p>\n

First Lady Michelle Obama is taking a lot of heat about wearing shorts to visit the Grand Canyon. People might be taking about her shorts, but the shorts aren\u2019t really the problem. The outfit doesn’t work because she doesn\u2019t look like the First Lady in it.<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a> <\/p>\n

(PHOTO – Dana Felthauser, AP)<\/p>\n

Image is tricky, it’s a form self expression and communicates your place in society. For an outfit to really work it has to honor your sense of style, flatter your body, be practical for the occasion, and represent who you are.<\/p>\n

There\u2019s no problem with the outfit Michelle chose, per se. It\u2019s flattering and perfect for a mom on vacation. The sticky part is that she isn\u2019t an \u201cordinary\u201d mom, she is also First Lady and her outfit ignores the formality of her official role.<\/p>\n

Just like the President, she is \u201con duty\u201d 24\/7. Right or wrong, the American people expect her to look like the First Lady… always. The President looked like \u201cThe President\u201d on vacation at the Grand Canyon. She looked like \u201cAlice America\u201d instead of \u201cThe First Lady.\u201d<\/p>\n

\"\"<\/a> <\/p>\n

(PHOTO – Reuters)<\/p>\n

Being the First Lady requires a formal element, even if the occasion is casual. A more formal pair of shorts (tailored walking shorts or starched capri pants) and a slightly dressier shoe (sport loafers\/Keds) would have made all the difference.<\/p>\n

We \u201cregular\u201d women face the same judgement everyday, it\u2019s just not discussed on a national scale. We encounter the same distinction when dressing for the office picnic versus a family vacation. There is a level of formality, professionalism, and modesty that is expected at a business casual event.<\/p>\n

Michelle can be comfortable, express her personal style, be a Mom, be a fit and fashionable woman, represent Change and a New White House, and represent her official role as First Lady. All women face the same challenge. It\u2019s possible to create an image that works. And no one said it was easy.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

First Lady Michelle Obama is taking a lot of heat about wearing shorts to visit the Grand Canyon. People might be taking about her shorts, but the shorts aren\u2019t really the problem. The outfit doesn’t work because she doesn\u2019t look like the First Lady in it. (PHOTO – Dana Felthauser, AP) Image is tricky, it’s […]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":0,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":[],"categories":[100,4,1192,1160],"tags":[175,1081,68,10,194,7],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.sarahshah.com\/blog\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/75"}],"collection":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.sarahshah.com\/blog\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.sarahshah.com\/blog\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.sarahshah.com\/blog\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.sarahshah.com\/blog\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=75"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"http:\/\/www.sarahshah.com\/blog\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/75\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":383,"href":"http:\/\/www.sarahshah.com\/blog\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/75\/revisions\/383"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"http:\/\/www.sarahshah.com\/blog\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=75"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.sarahshah.com\/blog\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=75"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"http:\/\/www.sarahshah.com\/blog\/index.php\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=75"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}