Priyo Oktaviano Has Designs for the US First Lady

Fashion designer Priyo Oktaviano had the opportunity to present the US first lady, Michelle Obama, with some of his creations at the State Palace on Tuesday.

“I made her a purple sleeveless sack dress from Balinese songket,” he said, referring to the Balinese hand-woven cloth.

The designer, who worked for Spanish fashion house Balenciaga early in his career, said he made the outfit based on what he thought the first lady liked to wear.

“I think Michelle likes to show her toned arms. And I picked bright purple because I think it will look good on her,” he said. “Michelle liked the songket.”

Priyo was one of three designers — along with Sebastian Gunawan and Auguste Soesastro — selected to present a variety of Indonesian textiles at the State Palace during the visit of Obama.

Priyo said he was only contacted on Nov. 4.

Busy juggling fashion shows for the IPMI Trend Show and Jakarta Fashion Week, he made the dress and a coat in a day after looking up the first lady’s size on the Internet. 

Jakarta Globe