Slaven Vlasic/Getty Images(NEW YORK) — Tom Ford is the latest fashion designer to weigh in on whether he’d dress future First Lady Melania Trump.
In an interview on The View, Ford said that he actually declined to dress Trump when he was asked quite a few years ago.
The Democrat, who admitted he’s “very sad and disappointed” that Hillary Clinton lost, would make the same decision today.
“She’s not necessarily my image,” he said about Trump.
“Even had Hillary won, she shouldn’t be wearing my clothes,” he said. “They’re too expensive, and I don’t mean that in a bad way.”
“I think to relate to everybody,” he continued, “you shouldn’t be [wearing such pricey clothing].”
Ford’s dresses often sell for thousands of dollars at high-end department stores, and he said the cost is reflective of the work that goes into making the garments. However, he also acknowledged that in 2011, he dressed current First Lady Michelle Obama, who often wears designer clothing.
“Michelle I dressed once when she was going to Buckingham Palace for dinner with the queen and I thought that was appropriate,” Ford, who recently directed the film “Nocturnal Animals,” said. “I live in London so that made sense. And it was an honor.”
Earlier this month, designer Sophie Theallet said in an open letter that she would not dress the former model, explaining that “the rhetoric of racism, sexism and xenophobia unleashed by her husband’s presidential campaign are incompatible with the shared values we live by.” She also encouraged other fashion designers to follow suit.
Tommy Hilfiger, a longtime friend of the Trumps who has an office in Trump Tower, is not on-board with that suggestion. Last week, he told Women’s Wear Daily that designers should appreciate the opportunity to provide clothes for her.
“I think any designer should be proud to dress her,” he told the fashion industry magazine. “Ivanka is equally as beautiful and smart, although she wears her own clothes. I don’t think people should become political about it. Everyone was very happy to dress Michelle [Obama] as well. I think they look great in the clothes. You’re not gonna get much more beautiful than Ivanka or Melania.”
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