Michelle Obama Styles Her $3,700 Bottega Veneta Bag With Baggy Cargo Pants and Slingback Pumps

The former First Lady elevated her casual outfit with sleek accessories.

Michelle Obama wears cargo pants and carries a Bottega Veneta bag
(Image credit: Backgrid)

Michelle Obama's latest outfit, which combines a cute Bottega Veneta bag with baggy cargo pants, perfectly encapsulates the former First Lady's post-White House style.

Obama—whose stylist is Meredith Koop—has been cultivating a brand new aesthetic since her husband's presidency ended. On Thursday, April 17, the former-FLOTUS was photographed in Los Angeles with her brother, Craig Robinson, who also just so happens to be her new podcast co-host. For the outing, Obama carried a Bottega Veneta Small Arco Intrecciato Leather Tote Bag in black, which retails for $3,700.

The Becoming author wore an almost entirely olive green outfit. She matched her cardigan to a V-neck sweater in the same shade, while her baggy cargo pants, which were cuffed above her ankles, were a lighter khaki green. Obama completed the sleek outfit with brown slingback pumps and gold knot earrings, while she wore her long hair in a ponytail.

Michelle Obama wears cargo pants and carries a Bottega Veneta bag

Michelle Obama carrying her Bottega Veneta bag.

(Image credit: Backgrid)

Of course, Obama isn't alone in her love of baggy pants. Rihanna regularly makes a case for wearing cargo pants, while Jennifer Lawrence has proven parachute pants to be extremely wearable. Marie Claire editors even earmarked lightweight cargo pants as one of their spring essentials for 2025.

The host of IMO with Michelle Obama and Craig Robinson has mastered the high-low outfit, managing to take her presidential wardrobe to a more relaxed, yet still designer, place. Recently, Obama attended SXSW where she nailed boho-chic in a Western-inspired matching set by French label Rabanne, and invoked the '90s with a braided mohawk. Obama is also comfortable in a safety pin Versace suit or a futuristic pantsuit when the situation calls for it.

Amy Mackelden
Weekend Editor

Amy Mackelden is the weekend editor at Marie Claire, where she covers celebrity and royal family news. She was the weekend editor at Harper’s BAZAAR for three years, where she covered breaking celebrity and entertainment news, royal stories, fashion, beauty, and politics. Prior to that, she spent a year as the joint weekend editor for Marie Claire, ELLE, and Harper's BAZAAR, and two years as an entertainment writer at Bustle. Her additional bylines include Cosmopolitan, People, The Independent, HelloGiggles, Biography, Shondaland, Best Products, New Statesman, Heat, and The Guardian. Her work has been syndicated by publications including Town & Country, Good Housekeeping, Esquire, Delish, Oprah Daily, Country Living, and Women's Health. Her celebrity interviews include Jennifer Aniston, Jessica Chastain, the cast of Selling Sunset, Emma Thompson, Jessica Alba, and Penn Badgley. In 2015, she delivered an academic paper at Kimposium, the world's first Kardashian conference.