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Republican presidential candidate and former Massachusetts Governor Mitt Romney smiles as his wife Ann Romney speaks during a campaign event at the Exhibit Edge building in Chantilly, Virginia May 2, 2012.BENJAMIN MYERS/Reuters

It's not exactly J. Crew.

If you like the blouse Ann Romney wore when she appeared Tuesday on CBS This Morning with her husband, presumptive Republican nominee Mitt Romney, it will set you back a cool $990 (U.S.).

Fashion aficionados immediately zeroed in on the distinctive garment as a featured item from New York designer Reed Krakoff's Spring 2012 collection. And while designers often send out freebies to political wives hoping for a bit of free publicity, a spokesperson for Mr. Krakoff denied his company had anything to do with the blouse showing up on network TV.

By all accounts, Ms. Romney bought the piece herself, though the Romney campaign has yet to confirm or deny that.

The blouse's big bird motif is not the only thing that has tongues wagging in Washington, as pundits question whether paying a cool grand for a shirt is the best strategy for the wife of a candidate whose vast wealth has become a potential political liability.

President Barack Obama's campaign began running a new television ad this week that portrays Mr. Romney as a corporate raider interested only in accumulating personal wealth.

"It's just what you expect from a guy who had a Swiss bank account," the ad's narrator says.

First Lady Michelle Obama is also known as having expensive taste and has become a fashion plate in her own right. But Ms. Obama has also deftly portrayed herself as a practical shopper who wears off-the-rack styles from J. Crew.

Last fall, she was spotted shopping at a suburban Washington Target outlet, sparking questions about whether the jaunt was an exercise in image-making or a genuine attempt at bargain-hunting.

Officials from the Obama campaign refused to criticize Ms. Romney's fashion choice this week, in keeping with a vow from both sides to ensure that the spouses of both candidates remain off limits during the campaign.

But Ms. Romney's wardrobe is likely to come under increased scrutiny as the campaign unfolds and her $990 blouse may end up as a talking point among Obama supporters, right up there with her two Cadillacs, dancing horses and multiple residences.

Ms. Romney's appreciation for the finer things in life contrasts with her husband's purported penny-pinching. He plays golf with clubs bought at K-Mart.

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