Garden Fresh

Reuters Image by Mike Blake

En route back from Mexico City, First Lady Mrs. O stopped in San Diego, CA for a visit to the New Roots Community Farm. Above, Mrs. O visits with Khadiga Musame, a refugee from Somalia, while admiring the locally grown chard. For the stop, Mrs. O dressed in gray trousers, paired with a blue camisole and pale yellow sandstone cardigan, embellished with light blue flowers. What an incredibly full week for Mrs. O!

Update: Mrs. O wears a J.Crew chiffon forget-me-not cardigan in sandstone sky, available here.

Super Tuesday

Photo by Mandel Ngan / Getty Images

Tuesday marks the official launch of the First Lady's campaign against childhood obesity, and it seems Mrs. O media appearances will abound.

Per Lynn Sweet of Daily Flotus:

Mrs. Obama's East Wing said she will be "joined by members of the president's cabinet, as well as media, sports, entertainment, and business leaders," plus mayors, member of the medical community and others at the White House event. On Tuesday evening, Mrs. Obama will sit down with CNN's Larry King for an interview about obesity and her first year as first lady. She will take questions from viewers.

Additionally, Mrs. O will appear on Good Morning America, a first peek of which we have here:

On a style note, the first lady is wearing an ivory double face wool sheath dress and jacket from Talbots for her interview with Robin Roberts. Mrs. O first wore the dress in November for a White House classical music event, seen here. Completing the ensemble is a pair of knee high boots in camel.

Update #1: Mrs. O's Super Tuesday is off and running! This morning the president signed a memorandum as part of Mrs. O's campaign to combat childhood obesity. The president and first lady were joined by Education Secretary Arne Duncan, Health and Human Services Secretary Kathleen Sebelius, Agriculture Secretary Tom Vilsack, and Interior Secretary Ken Salazar in the Oval Office of the White House.

For the signing, Mrs. O wore a teal dress with printed top, paired wtih a coordinating teal cardigan. A statement brooch by Erickson Beamon completed look. See photo above.

Update #2: The first lady has just unveiled a new website for her campaign against childhood obesity, Let's Move. In the email introducing the website, Mrs. O writes:

"The problem is clear. Over the past three decades, childhood obesity rates in this country have tripled. Today, obesity and excess weight threaten the health of one out of three American children. It’s time for us to act. That's why I’m asking you to be part of Let's Move! -- a nationwide effort to solve the obesity epidemic within one generation."

The site also includes this video from Mrs. O (wearing a J.Crew cardigan for the seated interview):

The Best of 2009

Before the clock strikes midnight and this officially becomes the second day of 2010, I wanted to take a look back through 2009 to highlight a few favorite Mrs. O ensembles of the year. With my top five outlined below, I'd also love to hear your favorite picks.

#1 Orange gold Rodarte dress in Copenhagen worn with a trio of vintage brooches / October 1, 2009

While the Olympic bid for Chicago was not a success, the trip to Copenhagen did bring one of Mrs. O's most stunning style moments of the year. The first lady has improved perceptions of American culture abroad, in part, by projecting elegance and sophistication through her style. It is a powerful, smart use of fashion, purely embodied through the Rodarte dress and vintage pins below, worn as Mrs. O represented the United States on a world stage in Copenhagen.

Photos by Peter Macdiarmid/Getty Images

#2 Peter Soronen Twilight Gown paired with a Tom Binns necklace for the National Governors' Association Dinner / February 22, 2009

The National Governors' Association Dinner happened to fall on the same night as the Oscars, and as one flicked from TV to laptop screen, it was hard to remember which was which. Mrs. O looked unlike any first lady had looked before in her sequined Peter Soronen corset gown, accessorized with ropes of crystals and pearls by Tom Binns. It was the perfect union of classic glamour and modern edge, and certainly one of the most exciting looks of the year.

Photo credit: Mandel Ngan/AFP/Getty Images

#3 Isabel Toledo lemongrass dress and coat chosen for the inauguration / January 20, 2009

Many Americans were introduced to Cuban-American designer Isabel Toledo on January 20, enchanted by her inaugural creation for our new first lady. Amidst a sea of navy and black wool winter coats, the eye was instantly drawn to Mrs. O's bold lemongrass hue, which projected an optimistic mood on the cold winter morning.

The ensemble in its entirety is an example of classic Mrs. O style. With the Isabel Toledo dress and coat, Mrs. O wore a Nina Ricci cardigan, a vintage pin from the Carole Tanenbaum Vintage Collection at the collar, green Jimmy Choo heels and J.Crew leather gloves -- a mix of price points and aesthetics, and a fresh play on color.

Photo by Mark Wilson/Getty Images

#4 Alaia dress worn for American Ballet Opening Night Spring Gala in New York City / May 18, 2009

Throughout the year, we saw the first lady embrace a wide range of fashion talent -- young, up and comers; established, mainstream labels; and a handful of lesser known, semi-couturiers. Significant among those is Azzedine Alaia, who has been described as the "last true couturier." Mrs. O publicly wore Alaia for the first time during the G-20 and NATO summits overseas in April. Soon following, she chose this frock, said to have been a long-time favorite in her closet, to wear to the American Ballet Opening in New York. The touch of sparkle and structured construction made it one of the best looks of the year.

Image via a kind, anonymous friend

#5 Violet Jason Wu dress with french knot embroidery, worn for a White House kitchen event / February 23, 2009

When seen from afar, one might perceive a simple, printed cocktail dress in this Jason Wu frock. But viewed up close, we discover thousand of hand embroidered knots, clustered in florets to create the pattern on the backdrop of violet fabric. As we whiz through glossy magazine pages, it's often easy to overlook the fine craftsmanship that goes into beautiful dresses. But we see a prime example of it here, offering an entirely new, substantive dimension to following the first lady's style.

White House photo by Joyce N. Boghosian

A Girl's Dream: J.Crew + Fenton / Fallon

When the first lady appeared on the December cover of Glamour magazine, wearing a red Jason Wu dress and a statement necklace adorned with jewels and bows, we were all intrigued by the same question: who made that gorgeous necklace? The answer proved to be designer Dana Lorenz for her line Fenton. The designer was as delighted to see her necklace on the first lady as we were, unaware that it had made its way into Mrs. O's jewelry collection.

Behind the scenes, Jenna Lyons of J.Crew and Dana Lorenz had met at a dinner party a few months before. A great fan of the Fenton and Fallon lines, Jenna Lyons made plans to meet at Dana Lorenz's new store in downtown Manhattan’s Freeman Alley to discuss a possible collaboration. As they looked through the Fenton and Fallon look books, there was a necklace that caught Jenna Lyon's eye. J.Crew made plans to produce the necklace with slight modifications. It was a fortuitous, though unexpected, twist, when just three days after plans for the collaboration were set, the first lady wore the same Fenton necklace on the cover of Glamour. Though on track to release the necklace for Spring 2010, J.Crew decided to push production forward after seeing the response that the necklace received (in part, by comments from many of you!).

The Carrington crystal bow necklace, designed by J.Crew in collaboration with Fenton / Fallon, features crystals and glass stones, silk ribbons dyed by hand (available in ivory or grey/green), and unplated chains. "There is a certain handwriting that J.Crew has, and Dana's pieces have a bit more edge," Jenna Lyons said. "Mixed with J.Crew clothes, there is a nice contrast." I asked Jenna how she might style the piece. "This is a statement necklace - no question," she replied. She recommends pairing the necklace with a classic jewel neck t-shirt, black blazer and jeans, or even a chambray shirt buttoned up to the top.

These pieces are the first look at what will be a continuing collaboration between J.Crew and Fenton / Fallon. The next pieces, set to debut in April, May and June, will feature the chains, studs and rock crystals that Dana Lorenz's work has become known for. Jenna Lyons said the gals at J.Crew are "madly obsessed" with the pieces. If these first necklaces are any indication, we will be too.

The Carrington crystal bow necklaces are available at J.Crew stores for $295. They'll be available online at JCrew.com beginning December 30. We'll follow up with a post when they are!

UPDATE: You can now order the FENTON-FALLON for J.Crew Carrington crystal bow necklace on J.Crew.com, here. We have heard rave reviews from readers who have seen the necklace in-store!

Images courtesy J.Crew

A Touch of J.Crew Sparkle

Official White House Photo by Samantha Appleton

The White House has released a photo of First Lady Mrs. O meeting with Emine Erdogan, wife of the Prime Minister of Turkey, at the White House today.

Dressed in a neutral palette, the first lady paired J.Crew's Stretch flannel del pelato shift dress in Heather Carbon with the Sequin peekaboo cardigan for a touch of sparkle.

Tres chic!