The secret message behind Melania Trump's exit outfits

Melania Trump's exit outfits couldn't have been more different. And each had a significant meaning. 

At Joint Base Andrews, Melania's exit outfit almost seem to mirror her inauguration outfit— a powder blue Ralph Lauren affair—right down to the high necked jacket, the gloves, the up 'do and the knee-length skirt trend she has made her signature.

Except for her final appearance as First Lady, she wore funereal black, complete with a $75,000 Hermes Birkin Bag.

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Noticeably, Melania opted for a Chanel jacket, a Dolce and Gabbana dress and sky-scraper heels by Christian Louboutin - a stark contrast to Vice President Kamala Harris' inauguration outfit and that of new first lady, Jill Biden, both of which were made by American designers.

Melania's sombre, almost cinematic ensemble couldn't have been more different to the gaily patterned $3,700 Gucci dress and flats she emerged wearing a few hours later when she touched down in Florida.

It's not the first time Melania has used her outfits to make a statement. She controversially wore a jacket emblazoned with the motif "I don't care, do u?" while visiting a migrant child detention center in 2018.

So was yesterday another coded message? Melania is said to have sobbed after Trump won the presidential election in 2016 but it hasn't gone unnoticed that she couldn't stop smiling on her final morning as First Lady.

Though this is only speculation, Gucci's brightly-coloured, hexagon-print maxi dress does have a 70s cocktail party and vacation vibe. It's equally possible that her relaxed look was simply an expression of her excitement at regaining her privacy. Or are those impending divorce rumours actually true? Only time will tell.