Prime Minister Yingluck earns admiration – and a few hints to make that look absolutely perfect
It’s a speed bump on the road to equality but, like it or not, the clothes that Yingluck Shinawatra wears as Thailand’s first female prime minister are going to be watched as much as her policies.
So far she’s won the fashion election even more easily than her first crack at a political post. Pundits are almost unanimous in praising her outstanding wardrobe, along with her good figure and endearing smile.
Fashion guru Tinnakorn Assawarak’s assessment: “Yingluck looks like a modern executive woman who’s quite individualist in her style.
“The prime minister doesn’t have to stick to the rules of a stereotypical bureaucratic woman. She can really create a difference by taking advantage of her figure and choosing various colours. But from time to time she ought to add some Thai identity by wearing clothes by local designers. These days there are plenty of very good outfits to choose from. Then her look will be more distinctive.”
Veteran clothing designer Somchai Kaewthong is impressed with Yingluck’s overall look and her perfect choices for different times and places. His only advice to her would be to have a professional stylist offer regular head-to-toe consultations.
“As prime minister she’ll be easily targeted and can’t afford to make any mistake in her looks,” Somchai says. “A stylist could help her prepare tailored outfits in advance for every day, different seasons and special occasions.
“Then she can’t say she doesn’t have the time. Everyone has 24 hours a day, but she may need twice that because it’s a tough job, so she’ll need some help.”
Suggesting that Yingluck also needs a dressing room in her office, Somchai agrees that she needs to wear Thai gear as well as foreign brand names.
“And maybe it’s time to increase the prime minister’s salary too. Khun Yingluck is rich, and as a business executive it was understood that she could afford expensive handbags and shoes, but the prime minister’s salary is simply too low.”
Renowned make-up artist Apichart Norasetthaporn admires Yingluck’s “balanced” look but, like Somchai, he thinks she needs professional assistance with her hair and make-up to get the look perfect.
“No matter how high their position or rank,” he says, “everybody needs to look after themselves before they can take care other people – and as the prime minister, Yingluck will be better taking care of the whole country.”
Apichart likes Yongluck’s smoky eye make-up, saying it helps make her tiny eyes look bigger and more sensual, but he’s unhappy about her hair.
“It’s too tangled! She has to sort it out, especially when she makes a wai and her hair falls across her face and then she has to flick it back. That’s not very elegant for a nation’s leader.
“If she has her hair this way because it makes her face look smaller, I suggest she take care of that with the correct make-up instead. The right make-up for the camera is just the right balance to highlight the contours from cheek to neckline.”
Hairstylist Saisuda Chauwiwat met Yingluck three years ago and says her hair was the same then.
“I like her sweet smile, and she’s lucky to have such a good figure,” Saisuda says, “but her hair has to be cut and styled a little better because she’s not a businesswoman in an air-conditioned office any more. She’ll often have to be outdoors and her hair could get quite messy. I like it when she ties a little bit back – that looks nice.”
Yingluck has harsher critics, but those we spoke to asked not to be named (probably Democrats).
One of the biggest complaints is that Yingluck’s impressive fashion sense just doesn’t fit the prime minister’s duties. They say she should wear clothes that are clearly more comfortable so that citizens will have the impression she’s focused on her work rather than her looks.
“People compare her to Michelle Obama or Carla Bruni or even the Duchess of Cambridge,” says one anonymous pundit, “but those women aren’t politicians.”
And there’s a fashion stylist who writes for various magazines – and who shall also remain nameless – who declined to comment, other than giving the reason why she wouldn’t comment: that Yingluck leaves her completely uninspired.
It’s a speed bump on the road to equality but, like it or not, the clothes that Yingluck Shinawatra wears as Thailand’s first female prime minister are going to be watched as much as her policies.
So far she’s won the fashion election even more easily than her first crack at a political post. Pundits are almost unanimous in praising her outstanding wardrobe, along with her good figure and endearing smile.
Fashion guru Tinnakorn Assawarak’s assessment: “Yingluck looks like a modern executive woman who’s quite individualist in her style.
“The prime minister doesn’t have to stick to the rules of a stereotypical bureaucratic woman. She can really create a difference by taking advantage of her figure and choosing various colours. But from time to time she ought to add some Thai identity by wearing clothes by local designers. These days there are plenty of very good outfits to choose from. Then her look will be more distinctive.”
Veteran clothing designer Somchai Kaewthong is impressed with Yingluck’s overall look and her perfect choices for different times and places. His only advice to her would be to have a professional stylist offer regular head-to-toe consultations.
“As prime minister she’ll be easily targeted and can’t afford to make any mistake in her looks,” Somchai says. “A stylist could help her prepare tailored outfits in advance for every day, different seasons and special occasions.
“Then she can’t say she doesn’t have the time. Everyone has 24 hours a day, but she may need twice that because it’s a tough job, so she’ll need some help.”
Suggesting that Yingluck also needs a dressing room in her office, Somchai agrees that she needs to wear Thai gear as well as foreign brand names.
“And maybe it’s time to increase the prime minister’s salary too. Khun Yingluck is rich, and as a business executive it was understood that she could afford expensive handbags and shoes, but the prime minister’s salary is simply too low.”
Renowned make-up artist Apichart Norasetthaporn admires Yingluck’s “balanced” look but, like Somchai, he thinks she needs professional assistance with her hair and make-up to get the look perfect.
“No matter how high their position or rank,” he says, “everybody needs to look after themselves before they can take care other people – and as the prime minister, Yingluck will be better taking care of the whole country.”
Apichart likes Yongluck’s smoky eye make-up, saying it helps make her tiny eyes look bigger and more sensual, but he’s unhappy about her hair.
“It’s too tangled! She has to sort it out, especially when she makes a wai and her hair falls across her face and then she has to flick it back. That’s not very elegant for a nation’s leader.
“If she has her hair this way because it makes her face look smaller, I suggest she take care of that with the correct make-up instead. The right make-up for the camera is just the right balance to highlight the contours from cheek to neckline.”
Hairstylist Saisuda Chauwiwat met Yingluck three years ago and says her hair was the same then.
“I like her sweet smile, and she’s lucky to have such a good figure,” Saisuda says, “but her hair has to be cut and styled a little better because she’s not a businesswoman in an air-conditioned office any more. She’ll often have to be outdoors and her hair could get quite messy. I like it when she ties a little bit back – that looks nice.”
Yingluck has harsher critics, but those we spoke to asked not to be named (probably Democrats).
One of the biggest complaints is that Yingluck’s impressive fashion sense just doesn’t fit the prime minister’s duties. They say she should wear clothes that are clearly more comfortable so that citizens will have the impression she’s focused on her work rather than her looks.
“People compare her to Michelle Obama or Carla Bruni or even the Duchess of Cambridge,” says one anonymous pundit, “but those women aren’t politicians.”
And there’s a fashion stylist who writes for various magazines – and who shall also remain nameless – who declined to comment, other than giving the reason why she wouldn’t comment: that Yingluck leaves her completely uninspired.
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