In a Moment Calculated to Showcase a Fresh Start

In a moment calculated to showcase a fresh start, Justin Trudeau and his soon-to-be cabinet walked together to the swearing-in ceremony that would make his new government official. But it was Trudeau’s wife, Sophie Grégoire, who stood out among all the dark-suited new ministers in a brilliant white coat adorned with a red poppy. Under that white coat, Sophie sported a striking knee-length, navy-and-white dress embellished with flowers and designed by Montreal-born, London-based Erdem, the same designer worn by Kate, the Duchess of Cambridge, when she and Prince William arrived in Ottawa in 2011.

“Sophie Grégoire in Canadian designer @Erdem at Justin Trudeau swearing-in. Kate Middleton meets Olivia Pope,” enthused Globe and Mail columnist Nathalie Atkinson on Twitter, referring to Kerry Washington’s character on Scandal, who has never met a white garment she wouldn’t wear, coffee, mud and red wine be damned.

While the Huffington Post has crowned Sophie “Canada’s next style icon” and Metro hasdebated “the politics” of her wardrobe, she has also done what many models can only dream of: posing with her husband in the Library of Parliament for a yet-to-be-releasedVogue photo shoot.

In almost a decade of conservative black and blue cuts, Stephen Harper’s wife, Laureen, didn’t once make the fashion news as Sophie has in the last few weeks. She “is very personable and compelling,” said Anita Clarke, founder of the Toronto fashion blog I Want—I Got. “She’s not afraid to take chances with her wardrobe, which I’m really enjoying.”

picture: http://www.queenieaustralia.com/formal-dresses

Sophie was styled for the swearing-in ceremony by Jessica Mulroney, who works in public relations for the Kleinfeld bridal boutique at Hudson's Bay. Mulroney is also the wife of Ben Mulroney, the son of former prime minister Brian Mulroney. (Jessica Mulroney didn’t respond to an interview request; the Liberal party declined a request for Sophie.) CTV’s eTalk, which Ben hosts...