The extra-fly future First Lady Obama

So Barack Obama finally won the Democratic presidential nomination last night - and I'm thrilled! Like many others in the Caribbean, this is one US presidential race I have been following avidly and I think we all feel a bit invested in his historic campaign and proud of what he has accomplished and what it symbolises, especially for us on this side of the Atlantic Ocean who are haunted by the legacy of slavery.

But can we focus for just a second... on the fly, fabulous and fierce Mrs. Michelle Obama? She has always been striking, graceful and elegant but she outdid herself with the nomination dress last night.

A vibrant royal purple shift with a slightly edgy studded (? I think) black patent leather belt, it complemented Michelle perfectly. It showed off her great trim shape (apparently she gets up at 4:30 several mornings a week to exercise ... I feel like such a slob) and fantastic arms.

Someone on a Caribbean message board even commented that the dress was symbolic, since Barack often speaks of there being "no red states and blue states but the United States". Red and blue makes purple ... hey it's not my theory, I'm just reporting what was said!

Apparently Mrs. Obama's style go-to woman is Chicago designer Maria Pinto who must be getting a fair bit of interest these days, judging by the responses of many other commentors I've seen online. 

More pics of the dress below with close-ups so you can see the detail on the belt.

(photo credit:Chip Somodevilla/Getty Images North America)

(photo credit:AP Photo/Chris Carlson)