Around this time five years ago, the natural-hair-blog streets went into a full tailspin when a photo of Lady Obama wearing a kinky, curly, asymmetrical style circulated the internets.
Twitter detectives soon discovered that the image had been photoshopped, and our textured-black-hair-in-the-White House dreams were dimmed.
But Sunday evening, we got a glimpse of that dream once again. True, Michelle Obama is no longer in the White House (still hard to type that), but she will always be our first lady—and seeing her textured tresses gave us every bit of life we needed.
It’s not clear where or when the photo was taken, but in an interview with The Root, her stylist, Johnny Wright, confirmed that FLOTUS has been 100 percent natural for a few years, so don’t let her past smooth tresses fool you. Wright revealed that he uses a flat iron to straighten and style Obama’s hair. He commented that it was very possible we would see Shelly rocking a curly/kinky texture at some point in the future.
Since the day we were first introduced to the stunning perfection that is Michelle LaVaughn Robinson Obama, she has delivered in the hair department. Her sleek strands, chic updos and flawless fringe always kept us wanting more—especially when she would change it up with a voluminous curly or textured look.
To celebrate Obama’s textured, natural hair, we took a trip down mane-memory lane to reminisce on her best coiffed styles of the past that gave us a glimpse of the versatile magic of black hair.
1. BET Honors 2012
Michelle Obama is the queen of classic, smooth updos—but this one stood out from the rest because of the added texture dynamic. By pinning her curled coils up, she gave the style a new depth and allowed for a few curls to fall where they may and give a fun twist to a mature style.
2. State Dinner 2010
We always loved how Mrs. O could give the illusion of a drastic haircut with curls and volume. Her bob-length haircut is given an instant update with an all-over curl-up. While we’re sure this style was achieved using heat, doesn’t it just scream Bantu-knot-out?
3. Heading to Martha’s Vineyard 2016
The Obama women always do vacation style just right. Look at those edges! Those are natural hair, gel, water and a brush edges. We appreciated the ease and natural look of this styling—don’t have to have bone-straight edges to look sleek. Who would have thought that a year later, we would get to see the textured vacation hair of our dreams?
4. Jimmy Fallon 2017
This is another style that was most likely accomplished with heat but could have been accomplished on unstraightened textured hair. This curly coif could very well have been the result of a good stretch and roller set, no heat needed.
5. White House Correspondents’ Dinner 2015
This style was the ultimate texture-tease, with the tight curls giving us all the hope of seeing an Afro in the White House. The styling gave her hair an amazing boost and perfectly framed her glowing face—looking like a perfect straw set.
6. Throwback Thursday
It doesn’t get any more perfect than this #TBT pic. The volume, the feathering, the puffy blowout are all amazing parts of versatile natural hair. This is beyond adorable, and made us go back in time and fall in love with Michelle Obama all over again.
7. Kennedy Center Honors 2013
Always a fan of perfectly placed curls, we enjoy seeing Michelle Obama in a more carefree, curl-frenzied style. This tousled look was a genius pairing for her off-the-shoulder gown and easygoing styling.
8. Trudeau Visit to White House 2010
This curly lob (long bob) is a great modern update for Obama. We love how effortless and relaxed the curls are, giving her an awesome on-trend look and the perfect amount of sex appeal with the side-swept bang.
9. White House Correspondents’ Association Gala 2014
The best part of this look for us are the super-large barrel curls that form a collar of coils around her structured jawline. Partnered with the subtle highlights, this style is ethereal and free-flowing in all the right ways. Our flawless former (and forever) first lady looks as fresh-faced as ever with this style.