The Extravagant and Outlandish Beauty Styles at the 2023 Met Gala

The fashion industry’s biggest night, the Met Gala, took place on May 1, 2023. Celebrities from various industries, including film, television, music, modeling, sports, art and culture, gathered to support the Metropolitan Museum of Art’s Costume Institute. Attendees dressed to impress all while paying tribute to late fashion designer, Karl Lagerfeld.

The Costume Institute’s spring exhibition, “Karl Lagerfeld: A Line of Beauty,” which opens to the public on May 5, was the theme for this year’s Met Gala. The exhibition honors Lagerfeld’s clean lines and simple elegance throughout his fashion career, notably with Chanel, Fendi, Chloe, Balmain, Patou and his eponymous line from the 1950s until his death in 2019.

The gala was co-chaired by Michaela Coel, Penelope Cruz, Roger Federer, Dua Lipa and of course, Vogue editor-in-chief Anna Wintour. Wintour is notable for pairing designers with celebrity attendees for the ultimate red carpet reveals. Attendees showcased elaborate hair and makeup moments, which is a staple of the Met Gala.

Some notable standouts were Emily Ratajkowski in Tory Burch with a blingy pattern inspired by Chanel handbags, Nicole Kidman dressed in the exact blush gown from her 2004 Chanel No.5 campaign and Penelope Cruz wearing an archival Chanel dress similar to Lagerfeld’s “Couture Bride” muse.

This year’s theme was straightforward, inviting tons of black and white, bows and chains. The biggest hair trend of the night was lengthy locks, featuring cascading curls on Rita Ora, center-parted sleek below-the-bottom glass hair, wet-look strands on Kidman, and thigh-length braids on Ariana DeBose. As for makeup, exaggerated bold brows and kohl-rimmed eyes were popular, as well as all shades of beige lips.

Scroll through to see every over-the-top look on the 2023 Met Gala red carpet!