Meet the Stylist Behind Michelle Obama’s Bottega Moment

For the past decade, LA-based stylist Meredith Koop has dressed one of the most closely watched and discussed political figures in the world: Michelle Obama. “It is a lot of pressure,” Koop says of her tenure, which has included styling the nation’s only Black first lady in everything from Ann Taylor to Junya Watanabe. “You do need to block out certain things.” 

Koop was recently tasked with styling Obama for the press cycle surrounding the former first lady’s second memoir, The Light We Carry. This was not your average book tour. Stops were held at music venues like LA’s YouTube Theater and featured Oprah Winfrey, Ellen DeGeneres, David Letterman, and other household names as moderators. 

As news of the tour broke—following two years of the former first lady keeping a low profile (which she discusses in the new book)—many wondered, What will she wear? The answer lies in a more loose and experimental wardrobe compared to what she wore during her time in the White House. Who can forget the exciting visions of maximalism delivered during the 2018 book tour for Obama’s Becoming? That whirlwind spin of appearances and stops featured Obama in one of her most viral looks yet: incandescent thigh-high boots paired with a gold shirtdress, both by Balenciaga. But things are a bit different this time around. The world has changed and so has Obama. Koop says a big part of her recent “evolution is wanting to be more and more comfortable. That is huge. That’s like most of it. What’s going to be physically comfortable for her body, for her.” 

Obama, 58, has been open about her menopause, saying she has experienced weight gains and adjusted her famously disciplined workout schedule as a result. “There is not a lot of conversation about menopause,” Obama said in an interview this month. “I’m going through it, and I know all of my friends are going through it. And the information is sparse.” When speaking to Vogue, Koop does not directly mention this topic, but she alludes to it when she runs through practical considerations. She provides an example: “A wool turtleneck. I don’t care how cute it is, it’s not going to happen.”

Koop has been deeply attuned to the first lady’s style, and what it communicates to the world, since 2009. She first started working with the former first lady as an assistant to Obama’s former main stylist. (She can’t take credit for that one-strap Jason Wu inaugural dress.) In 2010, Koop became the primary stylist for Obama and has been so since. “It’s been wonderful to watch her become more and more herself to the public,” she says. 

And though Obama’s focus, today, is more on comfort, this does not necessarily mean an ounce of glamour was sacrificed. Obama has provided a how-to guide of grounded and functional opulence over the past few weeks. There was the sharply tailored Bottega Veneta set she wore in Philadelphia, plucked from the coveted spring 2023 collection sent out by the brand’s newly appointed creative director Matthieu Blazy. There was also a breezy, sheer Versace tunic thrown over a bra and wide-leg pant, and a delightfully oversized and loose Canadian tuxedo get-up by Ganni. 

Koop divulges some of her magic. “When you’re looking at a garment or a shoe—everything has a certain level of engineering,” she says. “So I’m looking for low heels. But if it’s a high heel, I’m looking for booties that support at the front of the arch. So the high heel doesn’t feel as aggressive.” Koop says her first and foremost concern when working with the former first lady is comfort. “I’m looking for things with elastic waists—or stretch. Throughout the process, I requested from different designers, ‘If we’re doing pants, can you put a bit of elastic in the back so that it’s more comfortable?’ For me, it’s not the particular brands but more so navigating or instructing how we can do things.” 

This might come as a surprise to a number of style watchers and fans of the former first lady. Her standout post-White House appearance looks are, more often than not, custom-made. “I do my best to make things customized to her,” Koop shares. “I know her very well and I know her body. I work closely with designers to customize things, the specifics of what I know is going to work for her, what is going to fit.” 

And what about that trending “new Bottega” look Obama wore in Philadelphia? “That look for me is something that is very chic and sleek and a bit understated in a sense,” Koop says. “That’s something that I would love to wear and I think a lot of women would love to wear that.” 

There was also an emphasis on eye-catching colorful and sparkly clothes throughout, inspired by the “light” in the memoir’s title. The memoir is squarely focused on helping people stay hopeful during uncertain times, and Obama’s clothes aligned with the message of joy. One motif: bright colors. There was a yellow suit by Proenza Schouler and an electric blue one by A.W.A.K.E. Mode. “There’s really not a color she doesn’t look great in,” Koop says. “To me that’s one of her signature looks: a monochromatic bright story. It just works.” 

With the first-leg of the book tour completed, Koop is now back in LA. She says she works with “no other celebrity clients” and, at the start of the interview, specifically requested not to speak about politics. One wonders, what has dressing someone as closely watched as the former first lady taught Koop over the years?  

“I think there are some really loud voices but the internet is just…you just can’t put too much weight into any of it,” she says. “At the end of the day my job with all of my clients is to make them feel good. That is what I do.”