Melania Trump’s 5 most controversial fashion moments: from her Gucci pussy-bow blouse to wearing a ‘colonial’ pith helmet on safari in Kenya and that unforgettable Zara jacket

Oct 13 , 2021

While she may not be a fashionista, Melania Trump has worn some fashion items that have been jaw dropping, but not for the right reasons. Photos: AFP, AP, @kwskenya/Twitter

Few people can forget the US first lady’s infamous Zara jacket that said “I really don’t care do U?”, worn when visiting detained immigrant children at a government facility

A day after Trump’s comment about ‘grabbing women’, Melania was seen wearing a pink blouse that made many wonder if there was a hidden meaning

US first ladies’ fashion choices have been scrutinised for centuries. Back in the 19th century, Frances Cleveland was criticised for wearing dresses that showed her shoulders (!), while even style icon Jackie Kennedy’s embrace of trousers was deemed “shocking”.

But is seems unlikely few presidents’ wives have raised quite as many sartorial eyebrows as Melania Trump – the first lady who once wore that Zara jacket that said, “I really don’t care do U?”, to a child detention centre, of all places.

Melania Trump wore a pink Gucci blouse to the second presidential debate in October 2016, causing speculation that the outfit had a hidden meaning

Melania Trump appears before the second presidential debate at Washington University in St. Louis, Missouri, on October 9, 2016 – wearing a Gucci pussy bow blouse. Photo: AFP Photo

Many wondered if the pussy-bow blouse was related to audio of Donald Trump remarking that he could “grab” women in intimate places because “when you’re a star they let you do it” that had leaked a few days earlier.

A campaign spokeswoman said that the similarity was not intentional, according to a tweet by Sopan Deb, then of CBS News.

In May 2017, Trump garnered criticism for wearing a US$51,500 Dolce & Gabbana jacket at the G7 summit in Italy

US first lady Melania Trump at Chierici Palace, in 2017, as part of a visit of the G7 first ladies in Catania, Italy. Trump’s first outing in the Sicilian sunshine was in a colourful floral appliqué jacket by Dolce & Gabbana that comes off the rack at US$51,000. Photo: AP Photo

Melania Trump wore a US$51,500 Dolce & Gabbana jacket to meet with spouses of world leaders at the G7 summit in Italy. Purchasing the floral multicoloured jacket requires a US$25,750 deposit. The full cost of the jacket is more than most Americans make in a year, which proved a controversial choice.

She was also criticised for seeming out of touch by wearing expensive designer heels to visit the site of a natural disaster in August 2017

US President Donald Trump and Melania Trump walk to board Marine One before departing the White House en route to Corpus Christi, Texas, to see the recovery efforts under way in the aftermath of Hurricane Harvey. Photo: Xinhua