Met Gala 2024 Beauty Trends: Boho Princesses and Bling Queens Embrace Garden Fairytale
Despite TikTok’s sponsorship, there was a dearth of TikTokers on the red carpet after the previous years’ influx, and blatant attempts at virality were few and far between. Makeup and hair looks generally fell into two main camps for the “Garden of Time” theme to celebrate the “Sleeping Beauties: Reawakening Fashion” exhibition: bold glamour referencing vintage looks or fresh-faced, boho-themed hair, skin and makeup to evoke the event’s emphasis on gardens and florals. Host Zendaya accomplished both looks in one night, with a full outfit change that also involved a beauty switch-up from heavy and dramatic to floral and ethereal.
Bringing Back Boho
While the classic early aughts flower crown was not to be seen, boho references could be found in updated versions such as Zendaya’s full head bouquet and Amanda Seyfried’s all-silver leaf tiara. Many hairstyles featured flowers ranging from a light scattering on celebrities including Taraji P. Henson, to two roses on Kylie Jenner’s sleek bun. Ariana Grande, meanwhile, opted for fluttery eye decals to achieve a similar effect on the face. Lana Del Rey went with her own anti-flower crown made of branches to accompany her Alexander McQueen look.
Beachy, mermaid-like boho waves were also a common sight on the red carpet. Sienna Miller, Chemena Kamali, Emma Mackey and Zoe Saldana wore them for Chloé as the brand continues its push to bring back peak 2006 boho fashion. Other celebrities sporting the waves included Jessica Biel, Harris Reed, Kylie Minogue, Kendall Jenner, Karol G, Kim Kardashian and Lana Del Rey. The “Sleeping Beauty” theme also inspired the long, wavy, loose hair looks. Kendall Jenner’s hairstylist Tamás Tüzes explained, “The Renaissance inspired the dress, so we wanted the hair to resemble that period with a modern touch.”
Heavy on Drama, Light on Viral Moments
Del Rey’s crown of twigs and Zendaya’s flower headpiece were among the biggest beauty statements of the night, while social media stunt-worthy looks were few and far between. Even Doja Cat’s just-got-out-of-the-shower running mascara look was tame compared to last year’s prosthetic feline face, but Karol G came through with prosthetic elf ears.
“Our Creative idea was to transform Karol G into a beautiful queen of the fairies,” said hairstylist Cesar Ramirez of her look, which he created using Aveda products.
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Heavier makeup evoking a more vintage feel could be found in its most dramatic form on Gen-Z stars such as Zendaya (for her first look) and Emma Chamberlain, while others like Gigi Hadid went with classic red lips.
Still Sparkling
Despite the emphasis on gardens and florals, silver, sparkles and all things bling are going nowhere thanks in part to the Beyoncé effect. While the music superstar herself wasn’t present, silvery, shiny beauty looks accompanied a wide range of rhinestone and diamond-encrusted gowns. Sydney Sweeney was covered in body and face glitter, while ultra-obvious highlighter has made its comeback, shining on the cheekbones of Jennifer Lopez.
The Euphoria-led face gem trend could still be spotted on the red carpet this year. FKA Twigs arrived covered in face gems to match her Stella McCartney look covered with lab-grown diamonds, while Keke Palmer wore a burst of gems on her face to compliment her custom silver sequinned Marc Jacobs gown.
Fresh-Faced Princesses
Merging the shiny silver aesthetic with the heavy emphasis on natural looks this year was Elle Fanning’s glassy skin look to match her ice princess gown, as makeup artist Erin Ayanian-Monroe said the goal was to create a “glistening quality” with the L’Oréal Paris-sponsored look.
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And, unsurprisingly, romantic, floral-inspired blushy beauty looks were prevalent. Makeup artist Charlotte Tilbury also opted to give Phoebe Dynevor a simple, flushed look for a garden party. Using makeup from Ilia, makeup artist Dana Delaney created a natural look with a pop of bright blush on Ayo Edebiri to match her floral Loewe gown. “I wanted her to look like she was blooming from within,” said the artist in a statement.
Facialists were also eager to highlight their skin prep on social media—Augustinus Bader did the looks for 12 celebrities, including Dynevor, Miller and Saldana.
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