Michelle Obama unveils new haircut as she turns 49

As Michelle Obama turned 49 her office unveiled her new Twitter identity, @FLOTUS, and a second tweet revealed her new blunt bob, with heavy bangs.

Dressed in a burnt-red, elbow-sleeved patterned jersey dress, Michelle Obama showed off her new hairstyle, reminiscent of Katie Holmes’ chop in 2008, when she met with Inaugural citizen co-chair David Hall earlier today.

Michelle Obama has always had shoulder length hair, but since her entry into the White House in 2008, she has so far preferred to keep her look loose and flowing – or tied back.

Her new cut, sharper, more sophisticated, comes in the wake of supermodel Karlie Kloss’ new bob, after she cut off seven inches of hair late last year.

The New York Times coined this return to shorter hair, “The Karlie”, last night.

So far the response to Michelle Obama’s new do’ has been positive, with thousands of Twitter users agreeing in unison that they “love” her new bangs.

In an age of the overused term “style icon”, Michelle Obama proves again she is one of the few modern women to deserve it.