Just finished Melania and Me. My take:

[Hamlette]

The author worked in the fashion high society circles. She put on the Met fundraiser that gets so much attention each year. I admit I like looking at the fashions.

She talks about how hard it was to get entertainers for the inauguration. And she pulled in some chits to get designers to design for Melania. When the designers didn't get paid, the author talked to Melania about it. Melania blew her off. The author said Melania and Donald consider if payment enough for people to just be in their presence.

What the hell does that feel like. What a warped world view. Fits each of them perfectly.

[bamagal62]

1. They are screwed up.

[Irish_Dem]

2. Totally unsuited to public service and leadership positions, on so many levels. nt

[Hamlette]

3. true that

[Cha]

4. Well Now they know just how

many people not only don't want them in their "presence"... they want them the Fuck outta here.

[betsuni]

5. Like Nancy Reagan!

[yankeepants]

7. Exactly.

[smirkymonkey]

6. As expected.

What assholes! This will all come back on them. Be sure of it.

Thank you for your summary.

[Hortensis]

8. What's your take on the author, Hamlette, who chose to lie down with dogs?

From some article I read, she claimed to be unaware of (indifferent to?) their less attractive behaviors, until Melania woke her up by dumping her. Was she totally unplugged from NY's social scene and gossip? The contemptible anecdote does suggest the author is capable of knowing right from wrong, and cared in that case. Were her claims backed up by other sources?

[AngryOldDem]

10. Not Hamlette, but...

...I read this book and I came away with the impression that Winston saw Melania as a way to social climb. I got extremely put off very early by Winston’s humble bragging and name-dropping, as well as her hurt “surprise” when she realized Melania was a user and grifter just like the rest of the Trumps. She knew this, but willfully decided to ignore it because...White House office, more celebs, another line on the resume...

I’ve read most of the volumes in the Trump Library of Dysfunction this year, and this was the least-revealing.

Unlike, say, Michael Cohen who offered insight into Trump’s thinking and business practices, as well as how Cohen acknowledges that his ambition led him to willfully ignore things, Winston shows no such thing.

Sorry to go on, but TL;DR: This is a revenge book written to settle a score with people who don’t really give a damn in the first place. Just one more sad tale of a used and abused Trumpeteer.

Can’t recommend.

[Hortensis]

11. Thanks, Angry. And thanks, Hamlette. This is very helpful.

Your reviews give a pretty good picture. nd both reviews are sufficient.

And for Cohen, insightful and self-insightful: good.

[AngryOldDem]

13. Just a story of two users.

One is just better at it than the other.

[Hortensis]

16. Extremely asymmetrical power. No doubt there're

plenty of people happy to take this one's place any time Melania's in the mood for another.

[Irish_Dem]

58. Exactly. nt

[Demsrule86]

24. Not only was she dumped but she was supposed to take the fall for the inauguration

cheat. You make allowances for your friends. I had a friend that I knew had some shortcomings but I loved her. We lost touch (she stopped calling after we moved). Some years later, a Mom I knew back then called me furious. Apparently my friend had shared drugs with teens...she felt this was the cause of her child's addiction. And I don't doubt it. I had nothing to do with this and never knew. She said, ' how could you not know?'.

I still ask myself that question. She gave cocaine to my oldest daughter...there are no words how to express how angry and betrayed I felt. How could I have missed it? I think we see what we want to see...and some think money gives people the right to behave badly. Yes this friend came from an old moneyed Georgia family complete with a trust fund.

[Hortensis]

27. Yes, relationships are always more complex. A balancing view.

[AngryOldDem]

29. What I find fascinating is...

Just about everyone who thinks the Trumps are their friends or will treat them squarely ends up in severe legal trouble, while the family skates away scot-free. Winston is another deluded victim who, I guess, saw the “benefits” worth the risk.

The con-artist skills of the Trumps are absolutely legendary.

[Hortensis]

39. Yes! But even a basic core of honor and morals would

act like garlic on vampires. They've never been in the private homes of much of NY society, who neither want nor need anything from them they can't get by holding their big fundraisers elsewhere.

[Hortensis]

40. Yes! But even a basic core of honor and morals would

act like garlic on vampires. They've never been in the private homes of much of NY society, who neither want nor need anything from them they can't get by holding their big fundraisers elsewhere. And I imagine that last is the key to those who fly eagerly into their web.

[Irish_Dem]

46. Right that is the pattern. Lots of hangers on and fame groupies who glob onto the Trumps.

The Trumps use them, don't pay the bills, and make them the fall guys for crimes while they skate away.
There is no shortage of these foolish people.

Yes con artists extraordinaire.

[Hamlette]

38. As a person? Winston comes off as vapid.

I hated both of them and found it difficult to finish the book. Someone here on DU said it was mostly about where the money went from the inauguration but Winston claims she does not know so no answers/gossip there.

Winston has 2 points to make in the book. One, she didn't profit from the inauguration or in any other way from the Trumps, and two, that she and Melania were close. This last point is because the Trumps said they hardly knew her after the inauguration scandal broke. And she pounds it home on every page. I don't recommend the book. Read Mary Trump instead.

As for profiting, she was paid $460,000 for "producing" the inauguration. She says she has spent over $1 million in legal fees during and after she worked for Melania. She said she kept working for Melania because she liked her and wanted to protect her from the family that was trying to sideline Melania. She seems to think that producing the inauguration was worth $460K. She talks in terms of a percentage of the total cost of the many events. It might be. Her connections helped.

She says she "got it" after the family shit on her but doubt it. She says she was apolitical and uninformed about politics before but now knows she can't be. But really, I think she'd be friends with them all again if she could and I don't think she has enough interest or insight to follow politics. It seemed empty, especially when she followed up by saying she is proud of the work she did on the inauguration because it was the best inauguration in history.

With a stick.

[jmowreader]

9. The sick thing is...

Jill Biden dresses a hell of a lot better than does Melania Trump. Her clothes look better. Her hair and makeup are better, and she’s better accessorized...and the funny thing is, Dr. Biden doesn’t have dressers like Mrs. Trump does. She puts herself together.

I’m sure they’ll assign her a wardrobe consultant as First Lady, but she really doesn’t need one.

Of course, it helps a lot that Jill Biden is a happier person than Melania Trump.

[AirmensMom]

15. Just proves that you can't buy class.

I love Jill Biden's look. She's always put together, and never pretentious. What a breath of fresh air!

[jmowreader]

32. Did you see the outfit she wore to the last debate?

It was a flower print knee length dress, and a mask made of the same fabric.

[AirmensMom]

36. Ah yes, I remember.

So naturally comfortable. I will not get tired of seeing her.

[lunatica]

54. I really liked the dress she wore on one of those occasions

when there were fireworks and the audience were in cars. They were up on an outdoor stage. It was a black dress with an asymmetrical hem and large pink flowers. She wore beautiful pink satin high heels. She was just gorgeous!

[Demsrule86]

25. Melania is a good looking woman if you like icy Eastern European types. But she has no

taste. Even though her figure is good, her clothes do not become her. I have never seen her looking good except once...don't know where she was but she wore a longish skirt and dress and flats...and actually a real smile. That is the only time she ever looked human to me.

[Snake Plissken]

62. She kind of looks like the banjo player from Deliverance with long hair and breast implants

Now I'm not saying that the banjo player from Deliverance wasn't good looking, I'm just not attracted to him.

[Irish_Dem]

35. Right, and she takes her evening clothes to work so she can get dressed at the

college before she heads out to evening events.

Can you imagine Melania doing that?

[Eugene]

12. This is exactly the Trump business model.

Wolkoff only provides corroborating evidence that Melania is as crooked as her husband.

Standard Trump business model:
1. Stiff the supplier
2. Tell supplier that association with Trump is compensation enough
3. (skipped this time) Wear the supplier out with litigation if they sue - This time it's criminal.

The real surprise here is that Wolkoff thought she could associate with the Trumps without getting burned like everybody else.

[Irish_Dem]

57. People always think they will be the exception. Trump and Melania really like me, I will be fine.

They fall for the crap, hook, line and sinker.

[AirmensMom]

14. Wait, someone designs for Melania?

I'm not into fashion at all, so what do I know? But Melania always wears the most horrible clothes I've ever seen. Actually, she and Ivanka are both among the worst dressed women. Seems like you can always see what's underneath or, in some cases, what's not underneath. And the fit is always always bad. Sometimes I wonder if it's all a joke on them. Seriously, I've seen more attractive clothes from bargain stores.

In any case, thanks for taking the plunge and reading it so we don't have to. I can't wait until the trash gets taken out on January 20. Jill Biden has more class in her little finger than that skank will ever have.

[Dorian Gray]

17. Melania and Ivanka

Dress designer. They don't have their own personal sense of style. They just wear the designers that they think are big names and go with the runway look.

Jill Biden, Michele Obama, and Laura Bush all dress for themselves. They may wear designer clothing, but they choose things that fall into their style choices/make them feel good. And they don't have to wear runway looks. Michele did this best, but all three of them have a more natural relationship to clothing than any of the Trump women have.

[Dorian Gray]

18. I didn't include Hilary

for two reasons. 1) She was a candidate herself and not only a first woman and 2) she is known more for her pants suits which she chose for her political life than anything she wore as first lady.

[Irish_Dem]

31. The Trump women have used extensive plastic surgery to conform to Trump's fantasy

woman. Human Barbie Dolls.

They have lost themselves and don't seem comfortable in their own skin or have personal
styles.

With the all the plastic surgery, their body shapes are distorted and clothes don't hang well.
And the flashy, dramatic, over the top fashion seems to overwhelm them. The clothes wear them not vice versa.

In marked contrast to Jill B. and Michelle O.

[Ilsa]

41. And Ivanka and Malignia wear those

shoes designed to torture women, even though neither one of them needs the height providdd by the stilettoes.

[Irish_Dem]

42. Right, Trump must like the stilettos, part of a sexual fantasy of some sort.

Even the daughters in law all look and dress like a Barbie Doll.
Stilettos too.

[Manifestor_of_Light]

51. Melania was once a beautiful girl.

I saw a picture of her when she was young, and she was a beautiful girl, before all the plastic surgery and cheek implants
and bolt-ons, etc. Now she looks creepy like she's a cobra or something. YUCK.

[Irish_Dem]

56. I agree. She mutilated herself to make Trump happy. All the women around him do it.

Really sick.

[EX500rider]

19. "But Melania always wears the most horrible clothes I've ever seen"

I have quite liked some of her outfits:

?w=800

[highplainsdem]

23. The evening gown isn't bad, but that suit always reminds me of a bad Barbie doll outfit. She's

worn a lot worse outfits than those, though. Those were some of her less ridiculous and unflattering choices.

[Irish_Dem]

44. Oh yes, some of her outfits are much worse. nt

[Irish_Dem]

30. I'm mixed about the evening gown. Nice, but would like to have seen something more gorgeous for Buck

Palace. The long gloves seem off somehow. And she should have worn some bling jewelry.
It is all a bit plain looking and oddly out of place.

The white day suit, oh my. I don't know why women with unlimited funds cannot get clothing to fit them properly.

Front bodice above and below belt is wrinkled, poor fit.
The asymmetrical peplum jacket hem is an interesting idea.
But on Melania it just looks like she got dressed in the dark.
Some areas of the suit are too big, others too tight.

I like the shape of the hat on her, but it is a poor fit, one view shows it covering
the top half of her face, makes her look like she is wearing mummy's hat on dress up day.

I think these are not bad looks, just don't reflect a person who is supposed to be
a former model with impeccable style sense and money to afford the best.

[AirmensMom]

37. I'm with you.

I am very hard to fit, being petite and small. Yet I can manage better fitting clothes, even buying online. Nothing really seems to fit her well. Same goes for him. OK, he doesn't have a nice body. But there are ways to flatter less-than-perfect bodies. She has a fine body, although the big fake kidneys make her a bit top heavy, IMO. That might make it tricky to find stuff off the rack. But when's the last time she had to buy something off the rack? I'm thinking the designers and/or fitters just don't like her very much.

[Irish_Dem]

43. Yes The fake kidneys throw off the balance and shape of her outfits.

I think she looked much better before her surgery.

Ha, right, no off the rack for her.

Good point, the designers probably have it out for her since she is known to not pay her clothing bills.

Oh and don't get me started on Trump's wardrobe. Yes he is going to be hard to fit, but his clothing is so bad,
it doesn't even look like he uses a reputable tailor. Maybe he doesn't pay his tailor either and they dress him
to look like a complete clown in retaliation.

The tux he wore to Buck Palace to have diner with the queen made him a laughing stock to the world.

[RobinA]

61. My Major Issue

with Melania is the constant belted stuff. Nobody looks good in jackets with that wide belt, especially not with the big kidneys. Both she and Ivanka need better undergarments if you ask me. But then, so does Camilla.

[Retrograde]

45. The suit would get attention on a runway

but in real life it overwhelms the wearer. Asymmetry is hard to pull off, especially if the wearer is, well, stiff, lifeless, and artificial. For someone who supposedly was a high-fashion model*, Mel just doesn't seem to know how to wear clothes. Or her dressers just hate her.

*Or so it's claimed. Has anyone ever seen any of her early portfolio, back when she claims she was working in Paris and Milan? Even a third or fourth-tier model should have had one.

[Irish_Dem]

47. Exactly I don't mind the asymmetric peplum hem, but it does not look like it was cut correctly.

And Melania cannot carry it off, especially due to the poor tailoring.

Right, Melania is generally off the mark in terms of matching her clothing to the event.
She wore stilettos and a huge wide full skirt and tight sweater to plant a tree for god's sake.
My favorite photo of her.

I think she was a "model".
Not a fashion model.

[Demsrule86]

26. I was going to say, I can dress myself better out of Walmart.

[Irish_Dem]

33. I have observed that style and being well dressed is not about money.

I have seen women with over a $1000 on their backs who missed the boat.
Other women with an outfit pulled together from Walmart, Target or TJ Marshall's can look fabulous.

[smirkymonkey]

53. I also think their fashion sense is pretty much criminal.

They always look completely ridiculous and out of place to me. I don't understand why anyone gets the impression they are stylish because they are clearly anything but.

They may wear designer clothing, but just because it's from a designer, doesn't mean it's from a good designer, or one who isn't trying to make women look as ridiculous as possible.

[Irish_Dem]

59. She doesn't pay her clothing bills, maybe the designers make her look ridiculous on purpose. nt

[Vivienne235729]

20. And people think she is a good person, better than her husband.

She's just as bad as trump. Maybe even worse bc at least we can see him coming.

[Irish_Dem]

34. I know, when a First Lady says "F--- Christmas decorations for the WH"

there is a big piece missing in her character and sense of public duty and
responsibility.

Right, she is so quiet, we thought she was the nice one.
We were so wrong.

[Vivienne235729]

52. In the beginning, I gave her the benefit of the doubt thinking she was an abused woman.

Then, I saw cracks in that. Her true colors started to slowly come out. Her wearing that jacket was it for me. Then I remembered all the birther bullshit that she totally bought into. She is a heinous person. I read somewhere also that Trump actually came to her for advice on his VP. She told him to go for Pence bc he doesn't have the drive and wouldn't overshadow him. She's a true snake. I sometimes wonder if she's a plant there to keep him in line.

[Irish_Dem]

55. Right, the jacket was the big tipoff. She was perfectly revealed for what she is.

At this point nothing would surprise me.
Of course she could be a Putin agent.

[ehrnst]

21. No surprise.

[highplainsdem]

22. Typical for Trump. He refused to pay the caterer for his second wedding, too, claimed the publicity

was more than enough payment.

[cwydro]

28. I enjoyed that book, and it reminded me of the Andrew Young book about John Edwards.

I don’t think either author realized how much they were revealing their own lack of morals.

[Retrograde]

48. Neither woman comes off well

Melania - before she married Trump - needed Stephanie Winston Wolkoff's connections at Vogue to help polish her image and give her a thin veneer of culture. Winston Wolkoff needed the Trump's money and later fame to get her into their circles - visits to Mar-a-lago and the White House, along with rides on Air Force One, are pretty nice perks. Winston Wolkoff comes off as a social climber herself: the name "Winston" comes from her stepfather, son of famed jeweler Harry Winston, and she did not adopt it until she was in her late 20s. She seems to be a competent event planner, but still lacks the business sense to insist on a clear contract up front.

Melania comes across as shallow and self-centered. The event in the book that struck me most occurred during an early visit by the Japanese Prime Minister and his wife. Now, traditionally the US First Lady hosts wives of visiting dignitaries, often giving them a token gift to represent the country and showing off American institutions such as a private tour of the Smithsonian or some other cultural site. Mel blew off Mrs. Abe on the first day in DC, decided that a pashmina shawl (fashion accessory of the early 2000s, available worldwide) would be an appropriate gift, and suggested a "spa day" at Mar a Lago's private spa would be an appropriate activity for the Japanese First Lady, because that's Mel's idea of a good time. Remember that Mel has access - if she wants to bother - to a staff and etiquette and protocol specialists whose job it is to make sure these faux pas don't happen. But she just doesn't care about anything accept maintaining herself, enriching herself (according to the book she wanted to use the White House to promote a cosmetics brand - or was it jewelry?), suing anyone who mentions her son, and living high on the taxpayers' dollars.

[Irish_Dem]

60. OMG never heard this story. How very offensive.

The Japanese are formal, proper, polite to the nth degree.
Set great store by proper etiquette, appropriate gifts and welcoming activities.

Asking Mrs. Abe to run around in a spa robe and slippers had to be an insult.
You can buy a pashmina shawl at TJ Max. And it does not represent the US at all.

I think Melania is lazy, and not very bright.
And just doesn't give an F.

[coeur_de_lion]

49. That is how the trumps have always been -- all of the trumps not just Mango asshole and kids

They consider it payment enough that you can list them as one of your customers. Seriously.

Wonder why they stiffed so many small time contractors? That is why. They knew the small guys didn't have the money to pursue them legally.

They ruined a lot of small contractors.

[kskiska]

50. One thing from the book that stood out

was when she asked the author, "Why do you care so much?" Apparently, Melania just doesn't care at all.