Designer Jason Wu

When Michelle Obama selected Jason Wu to be the designer for her inaugural ball dress, she made him a fashion star overnight.  The 26-year old designer joins great American designers like James Galanos and Oscar de la Renta to have this very rare distinction.

Not every inaugural designer has gone on to great success. Remember Hillary Clinton’s designer, Sarah Phillips? Or Laura Bush’s designer, Michael Faircloth? Neither do we.  But since Michelle Obama has emerged as an exciting new fashion icon, her favorite designers will quickly become household names.

So where can one buy Jason Wu in SF, you may ask?

On Tuesday evening, just moments after the world got its first peak at Michelle’s dress, Vicki Winston of Neiman Marcus in San Francisco immediately started getting text messages from clients on her cell phone asking the same thing.

“It is like Narciso Rodriguez after he did Carolyn Bessette Kennedy’s wedding dress,” she tells us.

The ivory silk chiffon confection, embroidered with silver thread and embellished with organza and Swarovski crystals, is sure to become widely reproduced and sold at department stores around the nation.

For an original Jason Wu piece, you should know there are only a few items from his collection currently in the City.  But one can easily place special orders through Susan of San Francisco (415. 922.3685), Neiman Marcus (415.362.3900), or Saks Fifth Avenue (415.986.4758).

Looks from the Spring Collection, 2009.

• Further Information: Jason Wu [jasonwustudio.com]