The world has watched Malia Obama grow up as she went from ten-year-old first daughter when her dad, President Barack Obama , took office in 2009, to today’s accomplished young woman – a college student attending Harvard University, where she enrolled back in 2017.
Born on July 4, 1998, Malia wasn’t always forging ahead with her own style. In fact, her early looks were basically twinning with her little sister Sasha Obama . But as she went from shy teen holding her dad’s hand in front of the cameras to a confident soon-to-be university grad, her style has been not just her own but very consistent from season to season. Increasingly poised and sophisticated, Malia – who in 2020 gave her first interview in mom Michelle Obama’s documentary Becoming – has always seemed to love A-line minis and shirt dresses, casual denim looks, neutral colors and effortless t-shirts and flats.
So, in honor of Malia Obama’s cool style, here’s an in-depth look at the former first daughter’s fashion, look by look!
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Becoming... Malia
In the 2020 Netflix documentary Becoming, Malia and Sasha gave their very first interviews – and Malia stayed true to one of her fave casual looks for the high profile moment: baggy boyfriend jeans with rolled cuffs, white sneakers and a simple V-neck t-shirt.
Lovely in lavender
While sister Sasha was all dolled up for the prom, Malia was relaxed and styish in a simple lavender linen minidress accessorized with hoop earrings. The elder Obama sister also wore her hair in braids with a center part.
London calling!
For a trip to London, England Malia wore a bright red lace dress – notable because she doesn’t often wear such bold colors –and ballet flats. In this photo she’s leaving the British White House, 10 Downing Street, the home of the Prime Minister.
It’s a date
Spotted in New York City with boyfriend Rory Farquharson, Malia wore a down jacket and showed a love for ‘90s style with a floral dress and sheer tights worn with grey socks and grunge-worthy Doc Martens.
Hollywood glamour in D.C.
Malia stunned at an offical State Dinner at the White House in 2016 for Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau and his wife Sophie Gregoire. She looked like a true American princess in a beige beaded strapless gown with her long hair swept to one side.
Festival fashion
Malia rocked some serious festival fashion as she hit the Budweiser Made in America music fest wearing cutoff shorts and a white cropped t-shirt. She wore movie star shades and also flew the flag for her college in a Harvard baseball cap.
Little Denim Dress
Returning from Martha’s Vineyard to D.C. in 2015, Malia opted for one of her favorite looks – denim! This summery look consists of a Tencel dress with empire waist, and neutral flat sandals.
Señorita style
Another great outfit is one the first daughter wore on a 2016 trip to Spain. The former first daughter wore a silky striped green shirt dress and ankle strap brown leather sandals with a block heel, just high enough to look dressy but low enough for touring the cobblestone streets of Madrid.
A ‘60s look for the 21st century
Malia can’t resist a cute collar and she also embraced some retro style with this tailored minidress look. With a sleeveless gray knit top featuring a contrasting Peter Pan collar and a white A-line skirt, the first daughter’s look could have come straight out of the Swinging Sixties! She brought it up to date with strappy black sandals, but we’d love to see this look with boots...
Viva Italia
During a trip to Europe, Malia hit the streets of Milan, Italy wearing this stylish combo: a cropped short sleeved top, black shorts and neutral Roman sandals. In this photo, she’s visiting the Fondazione Prada.
Jetting in
Stepping off of her dad’s helicopter, Malia wore a breezy linen dress in pale blue. We love that the ex-first daughter loves to be comfortable at all times and can truly appreciate those Converse high tops.
Shirtdress style
Malia and her mom Michelle showed off two different ways to wear a shirt dress for summer! While mom wore a more conservative knee-length look, daughter picked an oversized crisp white blouse. What’s really great, though, is that both opted for comfy Converse sneakers for footwear.
Lightweight linen
The Obamas’ elder daughter looked perfect for summer in a white strapless linen dress with a button front and pockets. A leather patchwork backpack finished up the warm weather outfit.
Denim overalls
Malia’s ensemble here consisted of a schoolgirl shift dress in dark denim with square cut neckline worn over a striped blouse. With her hair in boxer braids, she finished the look with ankle strap sandals with a slight platform sole.
Bienvenido a Cuba
For a 2016 visit to Cuba, Malia rocked a cutout lace LRD – little red dress – with flat sandals. The sleeveless A-line frock hits above the knee, which is one of the Harvard student’s fave cuts.
Cozy knits
In 2014, for a Thanksgiving ceremony with her sister and dad, Malia wore a two-tone knit sweater and plaid mini skirt with tights and hiking boots. Her hair was in a cute sideswept style.
Patterned tights for pop
Malia gets extra style points for adding fun patterned tights to this black velvet holiday look. We also love the lace details on the bodice that make her LBD a standout.
Winter casual
Walking with sister Sasha and the family pets, Malia wore a classic look: a burgundy double breasted wool toggle coat, leggings and black quilted leather boots.
Sunday best
For a 2015 Easter photo, Malia wore her Sunday best – a blue halter minidress with Mary Jane shoes in a pastel shade. The teen also wore her hair down past her shoulders with some serious waves.
Sportswear chic
Laughing at what was no doubt a dad joke in 2015, Malia donned the perfect fall sportswear look: a dual-toned jacket in earthy hues, striped turtleneck, dark tights and, for a touch of ‘90s style, white socks peeking out of her military boots.
Peter Pan collars
We love this sweet babydoll dress with a contrasting Peter Pan collar (Yes, that’s one of Malia’s fave style details!). The red white and blue plaid look is completed with Malia’s go to finishing touches, dark flats and patterned tights.
Mix and match
Malia’s not afraid to mix and match patterns and motifs. Here, hand in hand with dad, she wears a navy and white checked overcoat with brocade miniskirt during her teen years.
Tie dye
It’s not often we see Malia in bright colors, but she really went for it with a simple knit dress with a bold tie dye print. She was spotted wearing the fun blue, purple, pink and orange look when returning to the White House back when her dad was president.