Mrs. Obama Steps Out in a Merona for Target Dress and Chris Benz

Pictured: Michelle Obama in a dress she bought in 2009 at Target (photos courtesy of Target, Photos by Jason Hirschfeld, Gerry Broome / AP Images.)

Proving she is still a recessionista even in the White House, Michelle Obama  was spotted wearing a Merona for Target dress this week while visiting the “Joining Forces” program at Oceana Naval Air Station in Virginia Beach.  Michelle first wore this dress in September 2009 for a family trip to Arizona. Three years of shelf life for a Target dress is pretty good.  I can’t help but wonder how many times this has been washed   I have to say sometimes Merona doesn’t stand up well to multiple washings. Stepping out in clothes from stores like Target, H&M and the Gap, Mrs. O has certainly proved that style doesn’t have to cost beaucoup bucks.  I like the dress, but unfortunately it’s no longer available for sale at Target.  However, Merona has some similar dresses on the sales racks for about $30.00 US that you may wish to check out for cheap and chic summer style.

Pictured: Mrs. O in Chris Benz. (photo credit: Elaine Sanchez)

 Later in the week, Mrs. O stepped out in another cool looking summer frock, albeit one that is a bit pricier.  She wore up and coming designer Chris Benz’s Blue/Green Resort Nelda Dress for her appearance on Extreme Makeover: Home Edition in Fayetteville, North Carolina on Thursday, July 21, 2011.The episode, which is set to air in October, focuses on redesigning and expanding a North Carolina community resource center for homeless female veterans. I’ve been a fan of Chris Benz since I saw Eva Amurri wear one of his dresses at New York Fashion Week.  He is really talented, and I’m glad to see Mrs. O drawing attention to his designs.  Benz once worked for J. Crew, another Mrs. O fashion fav.