Melania Trump Ditched The Headscarf And Saudi Arabia Has Surprising Reaction


Melania Trump decided not to wear a headscarf in Saudi Arabia, but the country isn’t holding that against her. The first lady was the subject of a surprising cover story in the nation’s newspaper. What the Saudis are saying about her fashion choices is astounding. To say the least, she made quite the impression on her first foreign trip as first lady.

The English edition of Arab News published a newspaper with Melania Trump on the cover with the headline, “Classy and conservative,” followed by the sub-title, “US First Lady Trump praised for ‘elegantly respectful’ KSA look.” A photo of Mrs. Trump waving at admirers as she appeared from Air Force One wearing a black jumpsuit and large gold belt designed by Stella McCartney. CNN reports that Melania has a new fan base among women in Saudi Arabia for her fashion sense and they’re feeling inspired by her choice of clothing.

Arab News wrote that Melania Trump’s style was “admired by Saudis who appreciated the modest, yet classy look of the first lady.”

It was long that the first lady’s arrival outfit inspired a “Melania-style” abayas, according to the report. Jeddah-based Nahed Andijani, owner of Trendy Sketch PR, posted a photo of her wearing an abaya that looked almost the same as Melania’s.

“When I saw her arrival pictures wearing a modest outfit respecting our culture, I was like ‘this looks so much like my abaya!'” Andijani said. “She wore a golden belt, while I wore a golden rose but still look so much alike.”

Many other women in Saudi Arabia began posting photos on social media of themselves in their abayas that resembled Melania’s jumpsuit.

Melania also won praise for some of her other outfits. She wore a khaki shirt dress designed by Ralph Lauren when she visited the American International School in Riyadh where she met with pupils and spoke and teachers. The same dress was seen when she was welcomed at the All-Women Business Process Services and IT Center in Riyadh. She met and talked with several of 1,000 female employees.

The 46-year-old also wore a white pantsuit during her husband’s foreign speech at the Arab Islamic American Summit. For a tour of Murraba Palace by King Salman, Melania dazzled in a floor-length fuschia cape-style dress that had draped sleeves. It had a striking crystal detail around the collar that set off the flawless look.

Melania Trump wasn’t required to wear a headscarf while in Saudi Arabia, an exception that is made for all female diplomatic guests. Women representing the western region are known to opt out of wearing a headscarf. British Prime Minister Theresa May and German Chancellor Angela Markel didn’t wear any head covering while in Saudi Arabia. Previous first ladies have also refused to wear a headscarf.

Trump spokeswoman, Stephanie Grisham, explained that Melania Trump had worked closely with the State Department protocol and received briefings before heading to Saudi Arabia.

“It was not required for her to wear a headscarf and nobody asked her to, and based on that she chose not to,” Grisham said.

Grisham added that Melania had been “studying hard” for the trip.

Melania was a huge hit in Saudi Arabia and managed to gain a lot of praise despite not wearing a headscarf. Melania Trump may have broken new ground as being one of the only first ladies to earn so many raves from Saudi Arabia.

[Featured Image by Evan Vucci/AP Images]

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