The scene is delicious.
Taken from the fanciful biopic
Bernadette,
by Léa Domenach, released in theaters last year, it shows Karl Lagerfeld giving Bernadette Chirac (played by Catherine Deneuve) a makeover with a mink-trimmed denim jacket.
He says: “Now that you're on TV, people will think that I haven't produced anything since 1978... You'll have to get up to speed if you want to become a muse.
" It is said.
We are in the 1990s, and Bernadette Chirac has just experienced a complicated period stylistically speaking.
Mocked by the press and
Les Guignols de l'info,
notably for her famous handbag which never leaves her side, but also for her old France side and her neon suits in the style of the Queen of England, she begins a sartorial transformation thanks to advice advised by his great friend Karl Lagerfeld, at Chanel.
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Represent France
Overnight, the first lady with the smoked glasses and the blond lacquered helmet modernizes at the speed of the TGV.
Even going so far as to wear New Balance sneakers with her suits when she campaigns in her Corrèze stronghold.
Saved by the most emblematic designer?
It's a fact: French first ladies have no official status but an implicit mission: to represent France with dignity alongside the President of the Republic.
In summary: take care of their wardrobe with elegance and modernity to embody one of the most powerful industries - that of fashion and luxury -, especially abroad.
Some will willingly play the game, others will be more reluctant, but all will form more or less strong links with the big names in couture, giving rise to fantasies and untruths.
Also read: Brigitte Macron: “Thanks to Nicolas Ghesquière, clothing helps me slip into office”
So, did Karl Lagerfeld really give Bernadette Chirac a makeover?
“This scene was born from our imagination,” explains director Léa Domenach.
But Madame Chirac had established a real friendship with Karl Lagerfeld.
He photographed her, dressed for the cover of his book.
They were two sharp tongues with a lot of humor.
They must have gotten along well.
And it is certain that the master of Chanel modernized it with small touches.
He almost made him a pop icon.”
If Bernadette Chirac attended all of Chanel's couture shows, she was also very closely linked to the house of Dior (she joined the LVMH board of directors in 2010).
And she is not the only one to have forged elective affinities with the big names in French luxury.
Bernadette Chirac with Karl Lagerfeld, during a Chanel fashion show in Paris, in 2009. Stephane Cardinale/ Getty Images
Tastes and colors
Throughout the Fifth Republic, the wives of presidents always had their own designer.
“Anne-Aymone Giscard d’Estaing remained faithful to one name, Jean-Louis Scherrer,” recounts Stéphane Bern.
It perfectly matched his French classicism.
Danielle Mitterrand dressed in Yves Saint Laurent and especially in Torrente.
Rose Met, the founder of this house, also sister of Ted Lapidus, had understood the tastes of this somewhat rebellious first lady, and never offered her big frills.
As for Brigitte Macron, we know, she likes Nicolas Ghesquière's outfits for Louis Vuitton, recalls Stéphane Bern.
When I ask her why, she replies: “Whatever I try, it suits me, and I feel confident”.
When these ladies find the right creator, the one who understands and reveals them, they never change.”
Retro.
Anne-Aymone Giscard d'Estaing (here at the Élysée in 1974) remained faithful to Jean-Louis Scherrer.
Pool SIMON/UZAN/GAMMA
In the beginning was Yvonne de Gaulle, the discreet, austere one, always in the crushing shadow of her husband.
The French call her Aunt Yvonne, she wears a little hat, gloves in all circumstances, and her wardrobe will not go down in History.
It is signed Jacques Heim, president of the Chambre syndicale de la couture Parisienne, whose most eminent clients are called “Mamie” Eisenhower or Gloria Swanson.
In 1961, Aunt Yvonne received, with General de Gaulle, John Kennedy on an official visit to Paris.
His wife, Jackie Kennedy, caused a sensation in an ivory silk Givenchy dress embroidered with pearls.
“I’m the guy who accompanies Jackie,” says her husband, who also refers to her as the First Lady.
General de Gaulle agrees: “Madame, you are very beautiful, you look like a Watteau.”
This is no small thing in the mouth of the great man, who is very little inclined to frivolity.
Danielle Mitterrand and Yves Saint Laurent, at the Opéra Bastille in 1992. ARNAL/PICOT/Gamma
French elegance
“In the history of first ladies, there is a before and an after Jackie Kennedy,” analyzes Pamela Golbin, fashion historian.
Everything changed with her, and she forever changed the wardrobe of the president's wives.
In Paris, she makes a lasting impression with her stunning chic and modernity.
Next to her, Yvonne de Gaulle, very ladylike in her strict dress and black coat, seems to embody the old world.
That day, presidents understand to what extent their wife can be a major key to their communication.”
Find your Jackie Kennedy?
A quest and an ulterior motive among many political leaders.
In the 1970s, Claude Pompidou played this new role of French First Lady wonderfully.
Unlike Yvonne, she takes the light and forms with Georges Pompidou the image of a modern couple.
The French already knew her when she entered the Élysée.
Charles de Gaulle with Jackie Kennedy, dressed by Givenchy, at Versailles in 1961. Bridgeman Images
“Long elegant figure, impeccably styled blond hair, very light blue eyes, they have often seen her photographed,” says Robert Schneider, former head of the political department of
Nouvel Observateur
and author of the book
Premières Dames
(Éd. Perrin).
In an evening dress, leaving a ball at the Rothschilds, in a Chanel suit, in gold lamé silk Bermuda shorts climbing the steps of the Opera, in a bikini, a cigarette on her lips or even at the wheel of the white Porche that Georges gave her offered.”
She is familiar with the world of luxury and great fashion designers, which she frequents, especially at the end of the 1950s, when her husband was appointed general manager of the Rothschild bank.
Jackie Kennedy with Oleg Cassini, her appointed couturier.
GRAZIANI/SIPA
“Suddenly, I was able to dress in haute couture and hang out with fashion designers, first of all Dior and Chanel, whose collections until then I had been content to go and see,” she writes in her book. memories (
L’Élan du coeur
, Claude Pompidou, Éd. Tempus).
Alain Pompidou, her adopted son, also recounts in his work
Claude
: it was my mother
(Ed. Flammarion) that her friend Coco Chanel taught her the art of wearing clothes, moving and sitting with elegance.
But also to roll on the ground to showcase a new outfit, the only way, according to the designer, to make it your own.
“Bibiche,” as her husband calls her, is not Aunt Yvonne.
The crazy success of Claude Pompidou
“Claude Pompidou clearly distinguished herself from her predecessor and understood well, when she arrived at the Élysée in June 1969, that her husband's political message must be combined with her way of dressing and decorating their apartments at the Élysée,” continues Pamela Golbin.
The wife of the 19th President of the French Republic called on Pierre Paulin, an avant-garde designer of the time, who boldly renovated the private apartments.
Claude Pompidou and Pierre Cardin, in New York in 1985. AGENCE / BESTIMAGE
She became not only the ambassador of French haute couture – Marc Bohan at Dior, Guy Laroche and Chanel – but also that of avant-garde ready-to-wear designers, such as Cardin or Courrèges.
“She displays cutting-edge tastes, wears pantsuits, a boldness for the time, and really cares about making all French arts shine internationally,” underlines Pamela Golbin.
Deliberately eccentric, she dares everything.
“During her first official trip to the United States, in February 1970, she was machine-gunned by photographers.
Her coats and dresses (thirty-two dresses by Dior, Chanel, Saint Laurent, Cardin, Laroche) made the front pages of American newspapers,” recalls Robert Schneider.
“Claude’s silhouette is a fashion designer’s dream,” headlines
Time Magazine
.
Michelle Obama in a Jason Wu dress. JEWEL SAMAD /AFP
“Madame Claude Pompidou has carved out a huge success for herself by presenting French fashion with tremendous demeanor and elegance.”
(
Newsweek.
) The president, proud of his wife, repeats, delighted, Kennedy's formula: “I am the husband of Claude Pompidou.”
But France is less tender towards the one that some,
Le Canard chainé
for example, nickname “Queen Claude” or “Madame de Pompidour.”
Claude Pompidou was then forced to notify that she borrowed the dresses from the designers and that she returned them when she returned from official trips.
Useful details in the country of Marie-Antoinette.
All the first ladies after her will be keen to emphasize that these are only loans.
If these women promote haute couture abroad, it is never with the funds of the French people.
Find the right measure
“Being dressed in beautiful dresses for galas, and working for charitable or activist foundations, these are two sides of the same coin for first ladies,” says Stéphane Bern.
Knowing how to keep a low profile while playing Jackie Kennedy, always her, Carla Bruni understands this well.
After Cécilia Sarkozy, fugitive first lady, it will be she, Carla Bruni-Sarkozy, top model with a dream body, who will play this role so brilliantly.
“Carla was a good student,” recalls Véronique Rampazzo, her agent and lifelong collaborator, who became her advisor at the Élysée.
Coming from the world of entertainment, she wanted to remain in a certain sobriety.
She wanted to honor France by appearing elegant and classic, but without ever losing sight of discretion and humility.
For her, never cleavage, shortened skirts or overly sexy outfits.”
Carla Bruni-Sarkozy, in London with the Queen of England: she wears a Dior belted coat dress by John Galliano, and a Stephen Jones fascinator.
DOMINIQUE JACOVIDES / BESTIMAGE
But on the couture side, Carla Bruni has an undeniable advantage over the other first ladies, several steps ahead in fact: she knows and has worked with all the big names in fashion.
She will be keen to promote them all and will wear Chanel, Dior, Hermès, Gaultier, Alaïa, Lanvin, Louis Vuitton, Saint Laurent as well as Alexis Mabille, Bouchra Jarrar, Roland Mouret, etc.
His favorite designer?
“John Galliano at Dior, for whom Carla embodied the ideal of the female body,” recalls Véronique Rampazzo.
It was the eccentric Englishman who designed her famous Dior pearl gray belted coat dress in 2008, which she wore with unparalleled elegance, accompanied by a charming fascinator by Stephen Jones, during the official visit to the Queen of England.
The image marked the whole world.
“All the pieces were returned to the houses,” explains Véronique Rampazzo.
Except for the two dresses worn in London: they had been reworked on her body by the Dior workshop manager, no one else could have worn them.
The first, she offered to charity, the second, the famous coat dress, left for an exhibition in Russia, from which she never returned…”
Style and strategy
After the Carla episode, we will easily understand that Valérie Trierweiler hires the services of a stylist when her companion, François Hollande, is elected president.
In line with this man of the left, she will be keen to play the normal-chic first lady, by day in Tara Jarmon, George Rech or Apostrophe, in the evening, in Dior or Saint Laurent.
“For brands, dressing first ladies is
celebrity marketing
,” recalls Amor Ouni, her stylist at the time, director of the Antichambre 24 agency. But we must be careful never to indulge in provocation.
We’re not in a fashion show.”
In summary: be chic and charismatic, but not display an overly strong taste for fashion and luxury.
“However, it is normal for first ladies, especially when they go abroad, to promote French fashion creation.
This is part of the cultural and economic influence of a country,” notes Pamela Golbin.
Since the election of Emmanuel Macron in May 2017, Brigitte Macron has been aware of the importance of her looks and the considerable echo generated by each of her appearances on social networks.
She is the first wife of a French president to have the honors of a fan account on Instagram, thebrigittestyle.
If she is keen to wear creations from other houses, she has imposed a signature style that she concocted with the help of Nicolas Ghesquière for Louis Vuitton.
“When a first lady finds her style with the designer who suits her best, it’s a win.
It then becomes iconic,” concludes Stéphane Bern.
Iconic First Ladies
Across the Atlantic, their wardrobe also serves to promote their country.
When Jackie Kennedy became the first lady of the United States in 1965, she abandoned, out of patriotism, her favorite French luxury brands – Chanel and Givenchy – and turned to a New York stylist with a reputation as a playboy.
Oleg Cassini is a descendant of the Russian aristocracy and has two merits above all: he is American and knows how to highlight beautiful women.
After working for 20th Century (where he met and married Gene Tierney), the flamboyant designer became Jackie's official couturier.
During his stay at the White House, he created more than 300 outfits for her, helping to make the first lady an icon of style and elegance.
Difficult for the following to surpass the one who marked the era with her grace and her incredible allure.
Michelle Obama will take on this role with a completely different vision of fashion.
On January 20, 2009, during her husband's inauguration ball, she wore a dress by Jason Wu, a then unknown 26-year-old designer, marking a clear break with Laura Bush or Nancy Reagan, who subscribed to Oscar's
establishment
dresses
. de la Renta, or a more cerebral Hillary Clinton, who never took off her very Washingtonian pantsuit.
As soon as she arrived at the White House, Barack Obama's wife set her rules and made a mark, favoring the new generation of New York creators – Jason Wu or Thakoon Panichgul –, French or English couturiers – Alaïa or Alexander McQueen – , and sometimes even an H&M dress. She is also the first First Lady to wear floral dresses during the day and to dare very glamorous outfits in the evening.
A unique style, in short, which will make her a modern and postfeminist fashion figure.
“Jackie Kennedy used fashion to elevate good taste in America, Michelle Obama uses it to connect with women,” summarizes Kate Betts, journalist at
Time
, in her book
Everyday Icon.
Michelle Obama and the Power of Style
.
Melania Trump, who succeeds him in the White House, will mark fashion history for another reason: the enormous amount allocated to her wardrobe!
230,000 euros in 2019 alone, revealed the English magazine
The Express
.
The wife of billionaire Donald Trump has never hidden her taste for luxury.
A former model, she mainly collects French and Italian couture outfits.
In reality, many American designers refuse to dress her, because of the values advocated by her husband.
Today, Jill Biden reveals a mastered wardrobe, between elegance and pragmatism.
The First Lady is discreet, constructs her outfits alone, without a stylist, and never reveals her favorite designers.
Oscillating between established houses – Ralph Lauren, Carolina Herrera – and more confidential talents – Brandon Maxwell, Gabriela Hearst or Jonathan Cohen –, she is unanimous.
Wisely.