Trump's Inauguration Was A Fashion Nightmare For The Whole Family

Donald Trump's inaugural festivities in January 2025 were full of fashion fails. The tacky flapper dress worn by Kimberly Guilfoyle at a celebration prior to the inauguration stole the spotlight for all the wrong reasons. Lauren Sánchez made headlines (and our worst-dressed stars and politicians list) after she donned a white Dolce & Gabbana suit for the occasion but skipped the shirt. Jeff Bezos' fiancee wasn't afraid to show skin even at a presidential inauguration as she displayed major cleavage in a lacy bra, catching the eye of Mark Zuckerberg.

The outfit of the Meta chairman's wife, Priscilla Chan, also missed the mark but for an entirely different reason. Her wool blue cardigan and coordinating skirt looked frumpy, and gold buttons and a pearl necklace only served to age her up even more. Among the worst male fashion offenders was controversial boxing champ Conor McGregor, whose suit pants were so tight they barely left anything to the imagination.

However, the fashion fails weren't limited to the guests; the Trump family themselves made some major mistakes in their inauguration styling. Donald couldn't give the extremely long ties a rest even for his second presidential inauguration, while Barron Trump proved he's his father's son with his disastrous greasy hair that looked like he'd spilled a tub of pomade on his head. Even the family's style stars, Melania Trump and Ivanka Trump, had a dismal showing at what was essentially the MAGA Met Gala and were outperformed by JD Vance's wife, Usha Vance. Here's a look at the Trumps' inauguration outfits and why the event was a fashion nightmare for the whole family.

Melania Trump's stylist Hervé Pierre may have firmly denied the claims that the first lady sends subtle messages via her clothing and accessories, but that hasn't stopped people from reading into her outfits. It's not a stretch to say that several of Melania's outfits have likely meant more than we realized, and her look for her husband Donald Trump's second presidential inauguration might be among them. The obvious one is that she was reinforcing the president's message of buying and supporting American by donning a dark navy double-breasted coat, skirt, and ivory blouse by Adam Lippes, an American fashion designer who has been worn by Michelle Obama. However, Melania paired the already austere outfit with a dark navy boater-style hat by U.S. milliner Eric Javits, sky-high pumps, and black leather gloves, making us wonder if she had a darker secret message tucked away under the wide brim of her hat or in the folds of her coat.

It's unlikely that Melania intended to go for James Bond villain, but that was what she ended up looking like as she held the Bible while Donald was sworn in as president for the second time. Her eyes were often hidden by the brim of her hat, and she wore a serious expression throughout most of the event, resulting in a look that screamed movie antagonist rather than first lady. Melania's inauguration look nearly had a different vibe as the original hat had been damaged and couldn't be worn, but Javits managed to remake it in time for the ceremony, suggesting the first lady thought it was a vital piece of her ensemble. "It was pretty clear what she wanted," Lippes told WWD of Melania's outfit.

Like her siblings, Ivanka Trump lives an insanely lavish life and can more than afford the most expensive clothing and accessories money can buy. However, even someone like Ivanka, who has grown up in the lap of luxury and has been surrounded by designer goods her entire life, can still fall victim to outdated trends. She memorably wore a dated-looking blue velvet suit on election night in November 2024, raising eyebrows over its color and giving the impression that she was taking style cues from '90s Gwyneth Paltrow. But Ivanka may have read all the criticisms, as she seemingly decided to reference something futuristic for her father Donald Trump's presidential inauguration two months later. Unfortunately, her inauguration look was another step backwards fashion-wise for Ivanka as it drew comparisons to a green dress that appeared in the futuristic dystopian series "The Handmaid's Tale."

Ivanka wore a dark green skirt suit that featured a blazer with an asymmetrical hem and a fitted pencil skirt that stopped below the knee. The outfit was accessorized with a matching green hat, a thin black belt, black leather gloves, black stilettos, and a Dior handbag. Popular Instagram account Diet Prada mocked the first daughter's look by sharing side-by-side photos of Ivanka in her green outfit and Yvonne Strahovski's character Serena Joy sporting a cape, dress, and gloves of the same color. "Her favorite reference," the account captioned the images. A number of Instagram users also clowned Ivanka in the comments section. "Of Jared looks stunning," one person joked, referring to the practice in "The Handmaid's Tale" of naming women after the men to which they essentially belong. Another insisted, "It's 100% intentional."

While the inauguration ceremony itself isn't black tie, Donald Trump Jr.'s ex-wife Vanessa Trump's outfit for her former father-in-law Donald Trump's swearing-in seemed a bit too casual, especially when compared to what the other Trump family members wore. For the event, Vanessa donned a short navy blue coat and black pants. She accessorized the look with a white and silver crossbody bag. Its colors did not match any other part of her ensemble, so it didn't look intentional but rather something she threw on in a rush right before leaving the house. However, considering Vanessa is among the most low-key members of the family and rarely joins them in the spotlight, we can give her a pass.

Vanessa and Donald Jr.'s eldest Kai Trump looked much more polished than her mother in a slate gray sweater dress, black coat, and a simple gold necklace. Her father, meanwhile, looked every inch a presidential son in a long navy coat, matching dress pants, white button-down shirt, and a bright red tie. Donald Jr.'s girlfriend, Bettina Anderson, also seemingly did her best to outshine everyone else in the Trump family in the fashion department by donning a Dolce & Gabbana skirt suit in houndstooth and a long black coat. She finished off her stylish look with black leather gloves and a red Lady Dior bag.

Tiffany Trump has become known as the forgotten Trump child after repeatedly being left out of messages and speeches by her father Donald Trump, but this doesn't mean she has to dress the part, too. However, during the president's inaugural balls in January 2025, she ended up fading into the background due to the color of her gown. For the Liberty Ball in Washington, D.C., Donald's younger daughter donned a gray Zuhair Murad dress that featured an off-the-shoulder neckline. 

The bodice had beading all throughout and was attached to an empire waist skirt that fell gently over the pregnant first daughter's baby bump and coordinated with a scarf on her neck. While close-up photos showed Tiffany looking gorgeous in the dress, her gown looked dull amid the stronger outfits of the other women in the Trump family and would have been better in a different color.

Fortunately, Tiffany did rock a stronger look for her dad's inauguration ceremony earlier in the day: a long velvet navy coat dress and leather pointed-toe black stiletto boots. Her coat was cinched at the waist with a matching belt. She was joined by her husband, Michael Boulos, who coordinated with his wife in a dark navy suit coat and made a subtle Republican tribute with his red tie.

Like Melania Trump and Tiffany Trump, Eric Trump's wife Lara Trump chose to wear a long coat for Donald Trump's inauguration ceremony. Although the silver buttons of her navy Rabanne coat looked almost too large to be fashionable, and the purposeful fraying circling the hem and ends of the sleeves made it look unfinished at first glance, the outfit wasn't too bad — at least compared to what she wore for the inaugural ball later that evening.

As seen in photos and videos shared by Lara on Instagram, she donned a strapless red column gown. A creation of designer and "Under the Gunn" winner Oscar Lopez, the dress featured detachable sleeves that were made to look like gloves, a corset bodice, and a cascading ruffle train, which were the only things that prevented it from landing in the "too plain and boring" category. But it was still a pretty boring choice, which should have been expected considering Lara has never been associated with the term fashion-forward. Unfortunately, she also made an unsurprising choice when it came to her accessories: a statement necklace. 

Further proof that Lara can't stop wearing this gaudy jewelry trend, she paired her dress with a ruby-and-diamond collar necklace, along with dangling ruby-and-diamond earrings and massive diamond rings. A smaller, less obnoxious necklace might have resulted in a more elegant and sophisticated look, but it seems Lara is determined to follow in the footsteps of Kellyanne Conway, the original statement necklace queen of the MAGAs. Lara shared a video showing her entire Liberty Inaugural Ball look, writing: "Still dreaming about this incredible dress and these gorgeous jewels!"