Hello and welcome to our first post here at What Kamala Wore, where we will be chronicling the style of US Senator and Vice Presidential candidate Kamala Harris. Today we have an overview of the ensembles worn by Senator Kamala Harris during the momentous week when she was named by Joe Biden to be his Vice Presidential candidate. We begin with the duo’s first day of joint events.
Vice President Kamala Harris wore a navy blue Chloé suit as she formally accepted her party’s presidential nomination in Chicago last night.
More from The 19th’s coverage: “Harris took the stage Thursday night to accept the party’s presidential nomination to a sea of blue and white signs bearing her name as the crowd chanted “Kamala” and then, “USA,” their light-up wristbands flashing red, white and blue. She came prepared to describe how her background and upbringing gave her the passion for justice that fueled her path to politics.”
Ahead of the speech, there was chatter about what the Vice President would wear: would it be white? This NPR story offers more: “As delegates gather on the convention floor today in Chicago, there’s a very clear fashion trend. Women are wearing white, in honor of the suffragists who fought to earn women the right to vote more than 100 years ago.” Many readers will recall the white Carolina Herrera suit worn by the Vice President-elect in November 2020 when she and President-elect Joe Biden delivered victory speeches in Delaware.
The Vice President chose a navy blue look, opting for an understated ensemble designed by Creative Director Chemena Kamali for Chloé.
Thoughts on the choice from Vanessa Friedman’s column in the New York Times: “Many women in the United Center in Chicago wore white. Many of the other speakers had worn it, too. (A call had gone out from the D.N.C. Women’s Caucus requesting the shade.) Instead, she used the regalia of the moment to bring to a close a chapter that began with the nomination of the first Democratic woman candidate for president, Hillary Clinton, in 2016, and to start a new one. That’s what she offered in her speech — “a chance to chart a new way forward” — and that’s what her suit represented. In its monochrome substance, the point was impossible to miss.”
Writing in the Washington Post, Rachel Tashjian offers this perspective: “As the first South Asian and Black woman candidate for president of the United States, she demonstrated a new picture of authority. She wore an ensemble you might consider her comfort suit, because she wears the shade and silhouette often: a square-shouldered, loose-legged pantsuit in navy, with the kind of matte silk pussy bow blouse she’s made into a signature. An American flag pin was on her slightly broad lapel. The subdued tone allowed the women in the audience who chose to wear white in honor of her candidacy to pop — it was an act of sartorial graciousness.” Below is an image from the Chloé Instagram post about the look.
The Monday night and Thursday night looks were very similar. Both ensembles featured single-breasted blazers with two-button front closures, padded shoulders, flap pockets, peak lapels, and four buttons at the cuff. The trousers flared at the knee to a wide-leg silhouette. Both were made of grain de poudre fabric, a fine woolen material often used in upscale suiting styles.
The blouses both featured tone-on-tone stripes. On Monday, the ties were atop one another vertically, similar to an ascot, while last night, they were tied into a bow.
Another view of the Vice President last night.
The Vice President wore her mabé pearl earrings and one of her American flag pins.
You can see how well the candidates and their spouses coordinated in this photo of Doug Emhoff, Vice President Harris, Governor Tim Walz, and Gwen Walz. Ms Walz wore this Carolina Herrera dress; if I learn more about the men’s suits and ties, I will add the information to the post.
A sidebar note: I recommend reading both the Washington Post and NY Times pieces in their entirety; they are excellent. Here is a gift link to Rachel Tashjian’s Post column, and this is a gift link to Vanessa Friedman’s Times piece. (Gift links simply mean you can read the stories without a subscription, as they are behind a paywall.)
I have combined the last two weeks into one post because Vice President Harris had few public engagements the last week of August. She wrapped up the month on August 31 with a Capitol Hill appearance where she presided over a Senate session.
I can’t tell what she was wearing from the videos; there are no photos available that I can license. It looks like the Vice President may have been wearing some of her black separates by Altuzarra, but that is just a guess.
[Read more…]Last week Vice President Harris traveled to Southeast Asia, visiting Singapore and Vietnam. Below, the Vice President as she boards Air Force Two for the long flight to Singapore.
Vice President Harris started her week on June 14th with a trip to South Carolina. Below, the Vice President arriving at Greenville Spartanburg International Airport.
Vice President Harris started the week with a trip to North Carolina, visiting Greensboro and High Point. She spoke about the administration’s infrastructure proposal at Guilford Technical Community College.
In High Point she toured Thomas Built Buses.
Another view.
The Vice President also made an unannounced stop at the International Civil Rights Center & Museum in Greensboro.
More from Andrea Blackstone’s story for Black Enterprise.
The museum commemorates the historic action of February 1, 1960, when A&T State University students David Richmond, Franklin McCain, Ezell Blair Jr. (now Jibreel Khazan), and Joseph McNeil—aka “The Greensboro Four”— sat at the all-White lunch counter at F.W. Woolworth’s five-and-dime. The non-violent action “challenged America to make good on its promises of equality and civic inclusion enunciated in the Constitution,” according to the museum’s website.
The museum now sits on the site of that famed Woolworths.
And from this WFMY story by Jalen Gilkey:
Embed from Getty ImagesI spoke with museum co-founder Skip Alston about what it meant to play host to Vice President Harris.
“It was a very surreal moment to be able to have the first African-American woman vice president of the United States of America. The second most influential and most powerful person in the world sitting at the lunch counter.”
The view from the Vice President’s perspective.
Ms. Harris viewed other exhibits at the museum.
For the day’s events, it looked like Ms. Harris wore her Sergio Hudson suit.
The suit is single-breasted with notch lapels, angled flap pockets, and a one-button closure. The trousers have a tapered leg. Beneath the jacket, I think the Vice President may have been wearing the Cory Tee ($85) by one of her go-to brands, L’Agence.
The all-cotton tee has a scoop neck, short sleeves, and a slim fit. It is made in the USA of imported materials. The Cory is offered in a broad selection of colors at L’Agence and in basic colors at Saks, Nordstrom, and Bloomingdale’s.
On Tuesday, April 20, the Vice President and President met with members of the Congressional Hispanic Caucus.
The President and Vice President both spoke about the verdict in the Derek Chauvin trial and urged Congress to pass the George Floyd Justice in Policing Act.
Embed from Getty ImagesA transcript of the Vice President’s remarks may be seen here. Ms. Harris may have worn her Altuzarra Fenice jacket and coordinating trousers. Beneath the jacket she had on a maroon top that is not yet identified.
Wednesday, April 21, Ms. Harris attended a service for Congressman Alcee Hastings, who died in early April. The 84-year-old Democrat had represented his South Florida district since 1992.
Embed from Getty ImagesShe also was part of a presentation marking the administration of 200 million vaccines.
It looks like the Vice President brought back a piece from Akris Punto she has worn several times.
The Zip Front Dress features a sheath silhouette with topstitched princess seams, waist darts, a front half-zip with metal pull tab, an invisible back zipper, and cap sleeves.
The current version of the dress ($995) is made in a viscose/polyimide/elastane blend. More photos and info on the piece may be seen here.
Thursday, the 22nd, the Vice President delivered remarks at a virtual summit on climate change.
She also took part in an immigration roundtable.
Ms. Harris was in a grey suit that remains unidentified and a white tie-neck blouse she has worn on several occasions.
The Vice President wrapped up her week on Friday, April 23, with a trip to New Hampshire. Below, Ms. Harris arriving in Gilford, NH.
Ms. Harris delivered remarks at the New Hampshire Electric Co-Op, a non-profit entity that delivers broadband service in addition to electricity.
She also stopped at Gibson’s Bookstore and Cafe, an independent bookstore in Concord.
The Vice President did a little shopping at the bookstore.
She purchased Of Women and Salt by Gabriela Garcia and The Complete Mediterranean Cookbook from America’s Test Kitchen, per Deputy Press Secretary Sabrina Singh.
It looks like the Vice President was in separates by Altuzarra, the label’s Fenice Jacket ($1495), and coordinating Serge Pant ($695).
Beneath the blazer I think the Vice President wore the Featherweight Cashmere Sweater ($590).
The ribbed crewneck sweater is crafted of lightweight cashmere and is from the more upscale Michael Kors Collection line. The piece was first noted when Ms. Harris visited New Haven, Connecticut, in late March.
Vice President wore her Irene Neuwirth double strand of pearls every day this week, as well as her mabé pearl earrings. It looks like she was in her Newcio Pumps ($665) by Manolo Blahnik, shown below as worn on another occasion.
The Vice President chose Prabal Gurung for this morning’s Inaugural Prayer Service. Here you see the Vice President and Second Gentleman with their hands over their hearts as Patti LaBelle sang the National Anthem.
Kamala Harris, soon to be Madam Vice President, was out for a run when the news broke at 11:25 am this morning that the Associated Press officially called the US presidential election for the Biden/Harris ticket. When she heard the news, the Vice President-elect called the President-elect.
Senator Kamala Harris chose familiar styles for Wednesday night’s vice-presidential debate in Salt Lake City, structured pieces in solid colors, sans any distracting embellishment.
[Read more…]Vice President Kamala Harris chose familiar styles for last night’s presidential debate in Philadelphia. She wore her Dior 30 Montaigne Jacket ($5000) and what looked like a version of the Straight Cut Pants ($1650). You have a better look at the ensemble in this photo of the Vice President and Second Gentleman at a Philadelphia watch party they […]
