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First ladies wear Valentino, Louis Vuitton for Bastille Day parade

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First Lady Melania Trump was immersed in today’s Bastille Day festivities wearing a Valentino jacquard dress with a floral design and full skirt.

Looking celebratory — and patriotic — with her husband, FLOTUS joined French President Emmanuel Macron and his wife Brigitte to watch the traditional military parade down the Champs-Élysées.

Brigitte Macron chose a different style, marrying a navy silk zipped jacket and short matching dress custom designed by Louis Vuitton with suede pumps from the brand, her label of choice for public appearances.

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Just after 10 a.m. local time, the first couples arrived to watch troops march down the famous thoroughfare to the sounds of drums, bugles and trumpets in a display of France’s military power. For the first time, U.S. troops are to be given the honor of leading the military parade to mark the centennial of the U.S.’s entry into World War I in 1917.

One of the highlights of the Trumps’ whirlwind visit to Paris was the Macron-hosted dinner at chef Alain Ducasse’s Michelin-starred restaurant Le Jules Verne in the Eiffel Tower Thursday night. The City of Light’s tallest landmark will also be the focal point for tonight’s fireworks, another longstanding Bastille Day tradition.

As has been the case throughout her Paris stay, the First Lady paid tribute to the host country in her own referential way. Her stylist Hervé Pierre said the jacquard Valentino dress she wore for the parade is meant to be reminiscent of the flowers — the carnations, poppies and wheat — that people were carrying in May 1945 on the Champs-Élysées in celebration of the Liberation of Paris after WWII. “It is so chic,” Pierre said. “When I saw it, I said, ’That’s the dress.’”

“There is something Parisienne about it even if it is from a European house. I mean, I love Valentino, period. The fabric is exquisite,” Pierre said. “There is also something almost patriotic about it.”

Partial to a cinched waist, FLOTUS completed her look with a wide pale blue Max Mara belt, which was accentuated by suede French blue Manolo Blahnik heels.

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After lifting off from the U.S. wearing an Escada ensemble, Trump arrived in Paris Thursday in a red Dior “Bar”-inspired suit. For Thursday’s night dinner, FLOTUS wore a custom-designed dress from Pierre, a French-born New Yorker who became a U.S. citizen last summer. “When she asked me if I wanted to do this French trip, I said, ‘Hello, yes, of course!’” Pierre said. “We get along well, and we smile and we laugh. I am so, so lucky.”

Brigitte Macron was also faithful to her regular favorite Louis Vuitton during Thursday’s events. As she and Trump visited Notre Dame cathedral and took a boat trip on the Seine river Thursday afternoon, Macron wore a custom white zipped Sixties-inspired minidress from the label, pairing it with blue suede pumps and a Capucines bag. As the pair posed for photographs, they made for a suitably patriotic duo in a combination of red, white and blue, the colors of both countries’ flags. For dinner at the Eiffel Tower, Macron chose a short black and white embroidered lace dress with a silver collar with high-heeled pumps, all from Vuitton.

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