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Carole Tanenbaum photo

Sash pin from The Carole Tanenbaum Vintage Collection worn by Michelle Obama on inauguration day

Inauguration Jewelry

Which came first - Michelle Obama's brooch or her dress?

Was the entire outfit worn by Michelle Obama on inauguration day designed around her brooch?

It sure looks that way, given the way the pin was perfectly framed by Obama’s coat lapels and matched the curvature of her neckline.

The piece in question is a Victorian paste sash pin from The Carole Tanenbaum Vintage Collection, purchased through Ikram, the Chicago boutique that has been instrumental in dressing the new First Lady.

Tanenbaum is a Toronto-based vintage costume jewelry collector who sells through Holt Renfrew in Canada and across the U.S.

She acquired the pin from a Florida dealer who had purchased it from a Palm Beach estate. Tanenbaum believes the piece was made in England and describes the Victorian paste stones as being set on a delicate silver frame.

“It is a type of sash pin that would have been worn on the waist in the Victorian era,” says Tanenbaum, who is originally from the U.S. “This particular one was probably done as a multipurpose piece that may have been worn at the neck, or in the hair, because it is curved to mold to whatever body part it’s on. The Victorians were very creative that way.

“It’s the only piece I’ve ever had like it,” she adds. “They weren’t made in production and they are so fragile, not many survived.”

About a month and a half prior to the inauguration, the piece was sent back to have a stone replaced. That has lead to speculation that Obama was planning to wear the item to the inauguration and made sure her outfit allowed her to do so.

Tanenbaum admires Obama’s decision to wear historical jewelry for the inauguration and says it is in keeping with the couple’s desire to incorporate history with items such as Lincoln’s bible.

“It shows what an intelligent, cultured woman she is.”