Melania Trump appeared detached and solemn during the state funeral of President Carter, just 11 days before her husband’s inauguration. While Donald Trump engaged in lively conversation with former President Obama, Melania sat silently, avoiding contact with former first ladies nearby. Her outfit, a striking black wool coat with a unique white collar, hinted at deeper meanings linked to her mother’s memory, particularly following her mother’s passing a year prior. This tributes to her late mother and personal preferences were reflected in her choice of fashion, suggesting a complex emotional landscape for the former first lady during this turbulent time.
Melania Trump certainly didn’t seem happy about returning to Washington, DC.
With 11 days until her husband’s inauguration, the mood seemed a little grim as she accompanied him up the nave of the Washington National Cathedral and took her seat at the far end of the second row of seats for the late president’s state funeral. jimmy carter.
With no neighbors in front or behind her to talk to, Melania sat silently while Trump chatted animatedly with his former nemesis, President Barack Obama.
Melania, on the other hand, looked oblivious, even icy, staring outside, unfazed by what was happening around her.
She seemed completely uninterested in approaching the members of the most exclusive club, former first ladies, who were seated a short distance away.
First lady Melania Trump’s solemnity seemed quite excessive even by state funeral standards, but the absurdity of the oversized white-collar, featuring neoclassical sculptures of kissing lovers in black-and-white prints, was almost mocking. It may have been a sign of contempt.
But when it comes to Melania, there’s always an element of surprise. After all, she memorably wore gray instead of her usual black at Carter’s late wife Rosalyn’s funeral in 2023.
Now she’s baffling critics once again – this time with an outfit that has a hidden meaning that only she and perhaps her stylist would really know.
On Thursday, first lady Melania Trump sat silently as President Trump engaged in a lively conversation with President Barack Obama.
First Lady Melania seemed to have no interest in getting close to the members of the most exclusive club, the former First Ladies, who were seated a short distance away.
First lady Melania Carter defied tradition at Rosalynn Carter’s funeral in 2023, choosing to wear gray instead of the traditional black.
The long black wool belted coat, with a white collar that subtly protrudes from underneath, was designed by house designer Pierpaolo Piccioli and Japanese label Undercover, which specializes in streetwear and experimental tailoring. 2nd place was the result of a unique three-way collaboration between Jun Takahashi and Jun Takahashi. And a group called the Movement for the Liberation of Poetry, whose members are pasting lyrical passages on the walls and monuments of Italian cities.
To create this look, Melania delved into the archives (rather than rushing to the designer) for two pieces from Valentino’s Fall/Winter 2019 collection.
In that show, titled “Valentino in Love,” Piccioli had the words “The people you love become ghosts inside you, and this is how you keep them alive” written at the end of the runway. An illuminated signboard was installed.
The audience found a small amount of verse in each seat. Piccioli then added a bit of “undercover,” choosing lines from this special anthology and hiding them inside the clothes so that only the wearer could see what was hidden and what was written there. It was explained that it was made to make it easier to understand.
What thoughts are behind the fashion items Melania chose last week?
Only she will know the answer, but it’s possible that memories of her mother, Amalia Knabs, must have had something to do with her decision to wear this particular costume, as well as her calm demeanor. I think it’s highly sexual.
From Amulya’s death a year ago to President Carter’s state funeral last week, it has been a life-changing moment for the model-turned-politician spouse.
Melania’s mother, whom she describes as her “dear friend and irreplaceable treasure,” was a largely invisible but important presence in Melania’s life.
Amalia and Melania’s father effectively became a full-time resident of the White House.
Like Michelle Obama’s mother, Marian Robinson, Amalia was tasked with providing some semblance of normalcy for her daughter and grandson, Barron, to their cocooned existence at 1600 Pennsylvania Avenue.
But unlike Marian, Amalia was rarely paraded on the political stage.
Few people outside the D.C. bubble knew she existed, and like most things about Melania’s personal life, she remained just that: private.
From Amulya’s death a year ago to President Carter’s state funeral last week, it has been a life-changing moment for the model-turned-politician spouse. (Photo: Melania Trump and her mother at Olympus Fashion Week in New York City, fall 2004).
Photo: Melania attended the funeral of her mother Amalia Knahus on January 18, 2024.
Melania’s decision to deliver a eulogy to a packed congregation at Amalia’s funeral in Palm Beach was a rare occasion that inspired her determination to overcome her natural aversion to public speaking.
Amalia was definitely on her daughter’s mind on the anniversary of her death, and never more so than as Melania gears up for her second starring role on the biggest political stage.
It was written large on her face.
First lady Melania Trump refuses to use the sad anniversary as an excuse to avoid the occasion or blame “scheduling conflicts” like Michelle Obama did, instead insisting that another moment of disappointment has arrived. I decided. It has become a kind of habit.