Mrs. O and Nelson Mandela
Tuesday, June 21, 2011 at 10:32 AM 
Photo by Debbie Yazbek, Nelson Mandela Foundation, Charles Dharapak / AP Images
The First Lady was in Johannesburg, South Africa today to visit the Nelson Mandela Foundation. While there, Mrs. O met with Nelson Mandela's wife Graca Machel. White House officials report that while viewing some of Mandela's personal papers at the foundation, Nelson Mandela sent word that he wanted to meet Mrs. O, along with her daughters and mother. Wonderful!
For the occasion, Mrs. O dressed in a raspberry hued skirt and jacket, punctuated with a colorful print top and blue flats. Turquoise Nava Zahavi earrings complete the look.
Update: Mrs. O wears a coral silk shantung jacket and skirt by Narciso Rodriguez. Nice to see that as some aspects of Mrs. O's wardrobe change and evolve, others stay very much the same!
Narciso Rodriguez, Nava Zahavi
Reader Comments (31)
Of course he did! How unbelieveable for them all, the girls especially. Imagine Nelson in his prison cell ever remotely dreaming of such a moment in history. And oh, they all look marvelous too.
An amazing racial and global legacy is illustrated in the first photograph. I like the raspberry (?) and blue pairing.
Beautiful!!!!
Love, love their outfits.! The raspberry suit is perfect.
Stunning! Nelson Mandela looks well....what a historic meeting! Glad is was possible that they all met.
On the style front...loving' the hair style of the First Lady. The color combo of the suit and her flats are a winner with me.
If ever we have a cynical moment, we should look at this blog post to remember to keep hope alive!
@Leslie, I can imagine!! The first black First Family of the U.S. meets the first black president of .S.A. Incredible!!! I'm loving both suits and our Michelle's 3/4 sleeve, think it goes well with the hemline. Mrs. Zuma(not in the picture) looked lovely too. However, there are rare moments like these where the occassion simply overwhelms the fashion, that first picture is my new first family fav!!!
She and the girls look great. It's such an honor that Nelson Mandela made it a point to meet with the ladies. Fantastic.
So far, so good for Mrs. O on this trip. I can see that she is going to err on the side of traditional and comfortable, which is smart. The Today Show highlight of this trip just HAD to reference her and Sasha's trip to Spain last year and how "lavish" it was.
Beaufitul as always. I agree that the first picture ranks as a first family favorite for me also!
And even though they still reference the Spain trip, funny how they somehow always forget to mention that they paid for a lot of that trip themselves...
What a lovely, relaxed photo of Mrs. O, Malia and Sasha with Mr. Mandela. How lucky they were to be able to meet him.
Raspberries and corals suit Mrs. O so much. I first noticed this when she arrived in Russia in the summer of 2009. Her up-do seems to have relaxed, too - very becoming.
And thank you, Mrs.T, for the selection of photographs. I find that some media publications choose certain photos of the First Lady and then delight in pointing out an apparently unflattering expression (usually because she is midway through an animated conversation or is visually empathising with the person who is talking to her). It says everything about the media outlet concerned and nothing about the First Lady. But this photo, with Mr. Mandela, (as well as the second one in the recent 'Hollywood' post) is a real peach. Rant over!
I am loving the suits on both Mrs. O and Graca Machel.
The first photo is such a lovely keepsake for the Obamas long after they leave the White House.
A moment in time to treasure.
The picture of the Obama ladies and Nelson Mandela is so beautiful, historical, and inspirational. I'm sure this picture will be added to President Obama's table behind his desk where he has plenty of pics of his wife and girls.
Mrs. Obama and the girls look lovely, as usual. They visited a daycare center and went to the apartheid museum. Mrs. O is wearing a navy blue vest and pants suit with an african printed blouse. The girls look comfy and cute and so do Grandma, Leslie, and Avery. You can see those pics at www.obamadiary.com.
BTW, thanks Terri and CID for inquiring about my whereabouts. I had a nice vacation and I've been getting back into the groove of things at home. Don't worry, I am not going anywhere. In the words of Nettie from "The Color Purple," "nothing in this world can keep me from it!" LOL :-)
As an African American, the picture with First Lady Obama and the first daughter's with Nelson Mandela brings great pride and joy in my heart. On a fashion note, we just don't talk enough about Mrs. O's shoes. Sure I love this suit, but its the shhhhooooeeeesss!!!! Her shoe game is always on point and I love that its hardly ever matchy matchy.
She soley changed the way women think about shoes. Now we feel fashionable and COMFORTABLE in flats thanks to Mrs. O. And I bet a lot of you, like me, have started thinking of your accessories, coats/jackets/caridgans and shoes differently. Michelle Obama is truly a fashion icon.
Wow!!! I love this look so much. The coordination of the shoes and the earrings is great but not overbearing or too "matchy." And, like the Rachel Roy coral dress from June 10th, this color works so well for her skin!! The swept-back updo completes the look and adds a layer of elegance.
What a lovely, comfortable moment. This such a wonderful time in my life. My heart is bursting with love, joy, peace and hope. For Mrs. Robinson, the girls and their cousins to experience a trip like this just warms my heart. It is hard to comment on the fashion style when history, once again is being made. I am grateful that God allowed these two families to meet in such as time as this. Nelson Mandela, represents the highest form of forgiveness and Our First Lady being so caring and giving. I can only say, this trip was predestined to happen. I am grateful and thankful to be here to witness it all. Peace.
@O'Couture: major co-sign about the shoes. The outfit is beautiful but would be more mundane without the shoes. The shoes are gorgeous with the coral. It is a very imaginative and inspired choice as it brings out the blue in her shirt.
@ Ivy & Carol,
You are spot on regarding NBC's (The Today Show) comment rehashing the First Lady's vacation to Spain last year on how "expensive" it was, yet neglect to inform their public that the private trip was paid for by the Obamas That just goes to show how shoddy NBC and the other MSM's reporting regarding the Obamas have become of late. I guess that's to be expected when there is an ever increasing decline in journalistic integrity and honesty. As for this trip, the entire family looks relaxed yet excited about their journey. The fact that Mr. Mandela called for The Obamas to meet with him says a lot about the man and the historical relevance of this meeting. Mrs. O is making a great impression on all she's meeting, especially the kids and young women. That kind of empathy cannot be manufactured.
As for her wardrobe, it's obvious that she's sticking to her trademark of ease, comfort and style, which is on target considering the areas of the country she's visiting and her agenda while there.
P.S. The video showing the First Lady, Malia and Sasha reading to the kids is priceless. Can you imagine the impact that simple act will have on those kids!
Oh, come on! These Jimmy Choo Sandy flats are killing me! No wonder they sell out so fast. The coral and turquoise is a perfect color combination that works well.
I was thrilled to read that Nelson Mandela requested them to come see him. His health has been frail as of lately and it was said that our Michelle did not want to burden him.....as if! He looks so good. I know this is a trip that this whole family will treasure forever. It's nice that FLOTUS took her mom, niece and nephew along for this historic event. I heard that comment made on the Today show as well and thought, "It's time to turn on the other cartoons". At least they know that they're not real or being passed off as responsible journalism. Oh well.....
@ Nyon, you know you were missed......glad you're back!
I love how positive and lovely the comments are on this site. Differences aside, it's great to read! I was actually shocked. Back to the matter at hand...wonderful suit. It is nicely paired with the Choos.
Absolutely beautiful!
Just happy & proud...I'm black and proud. The first black president of South Africa and the first black family of the USA...powerful. They all are beautiful!!!
It's wonderful to reflect that, even perhaps in seventy or eighty years' time, there will be people, such as Malia and Sasha Obama (and many, many others), who will have personal memories of Nelson Mandela and who will be able to perpetuate his legacy. And who knows how many of these young people will feel compelled to do this as a form of public service, like Barack or Michelle Obama, as well as in the tenor and character of their own family lives?
@ Joss - you summed up my thoughts perfectly. This is an historic picture. You almost overlook the beautiful outfits but I am definitely loving Mrs Obama's blouse, any word on the designer ?
Sasha and Malia have both been to So. Africa before with Mrs. O. and our President. I believe it was about two years ago. I remember being so impressed with their visit to Robben Island, the site of Mr. Mandela's imprisonment.
The look shows a great way to color block with the unexpected blue shoe. And the girls looks so cute in their dresses and cardigans.
Charell S. for Bien Abye by Dayanne Danier
AMANDLA!
Why is the NYTimes reporting that the suit she wore to meet Mandela was J. Crew? :
"Most of the major papers featured front page photos on Wednesday of a smiling Mrs. Obama, chic in a red J. Crew suit and bare legs, leaning shoulder-to-shoulder with a smiling Mr. Mandela. "
http://www.nytimes.com/2011/06/23/world/africa/23michelle.html?_r=1&hpw
Emily, good find! I guess even the New York Times makes mistakes. Narciso Rodriguez's publicist confirmed that the suit is his design, and this has been widely reported. I imagine the NYT reporter mixed up the credit with the J.Crew vest and trousers Mrs. Obama wore later in the day.
@ Christen,
Correction! The trip you are referring to was not to South Africa, instead its was to Ghana. This current trip is Michelle's, Malia's and Sasha's first visit to South Africa. The President, on the other hand, made a solo trip to South Africa as a Senator in either 2006 or 2007.
Any word on where the blouse is from? I love it!
I'd love to learn the designer of her colorful flats. Anyone know?