Happy Met Gala Monday to all who celebrate. If you鈥檙e an A-lister like Rihanna, Dua Lipa or Zendaya, you鈥檝e been spending the day in a swanky New York hotel suite鈥12-person glam squad in tow鈥攑repping for one of the biggest fashion events of the year: The Met Gala.
To recap, the Met Gala (actual name: the Costume Institute Benefit) is an annual fete that gathers the world鈥檚 most famous and fashionable people on the steps of the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York City for a high-fashion costume party, overseen by Vogue鈥檚 Anna Wintour.
I鈥檓 Liz Guber, contributor, and your guide to this evening鈥檚 looks, inspired by the dress code: “The Garden of Time.” Let鈥檚 get into聽all the floral, time and fragility-themed fashion of the night.

Zendaya at The 2024 Met Gala in her second look of the night.
Jamie McCarthy Getty Images9:20 p.m. She’s back! Zendaya returned to close out the carpet in a second showstopping look, this time a flower-topped hat and sweeping black gown.
According to stylist Law Roach’s Instagram, it’s by John Galliano for Givenchy circa Spring/Summer 1996, and the hat is by milliner Philip Treacy from Spring/Summer 2007.
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9:15 p.m. That鈥檚 another Met Gala in the history books. Overall? Much like the recent red-carpet awards season, there were no giant misses but not a ton of whimsical winners. Most celebrities leaned heavy into florals or archival looks. My best-dressed goes to Lana Del Rey, Demi Moore, Zendaya and Elle Fanning.
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9:05 p.m. Whither Met Gala regulars like Bella Hadid, Beyonc茅, Taylor Swift, Blake Lively and Rihanna? Many expected Rihanna to arrive late as usual聽, she鈥檚 down with the flu and will be skipping this year鈥檚 gala. RIP to whatever iconic look she would have worn.
9 p.m. With the bulk of the red carpet behind us, it鈥檚 safe to say that most celebs took the 鈥淕arden of Time鈥 theme literally, going heavy on florals 鈥 an easier, safer point of inspiration to work with than the concept of time or the ephemeral nature of fashion. Anna Wintour admitted as much in interviews, calling the theme “confusing.”

Cardi B attends The 2024 Met Gala.
Jamie McCarthy Getty Images8:40 p.m.聽Now here’s one way to shut down the Met Gala carpet: By taking up all of it.
Cardi B鈥檚 black chiffon Giambattista Valli gown rivals Rihanna鈥檚 iconic yellow Guo Pei robe-gown from 2015 in size and show-stopper status.
Not vogue leaking her phone password like this 馃拃
鈥 shreya shetty 馃嚨馃嚫 (@shreyashetty8)
Halfway up the stairs, she checked her phone, caught in the act by the livestream.聽

Gigi Hadid attends The 2024 Met Gala.
Jamie McCarthy Getty Images8:30 p.m. Gigi Hadid handed out yellow roses to fans waiting outside her hotel on her way to the Met. Her charming gown is by Thom Browne, and features tumbling ruffles and yellow-rose appliqu茅s.

Doja Cat attends The 2024 Met Gala.
Dia Dipasupil Getty Images8:20 p.m.聽Doja Cat emerged from her hotel wrapped in a white towel, but by the time she got to the Met, she had changed into a Vetements wet-look dress 鈥 the cool effect was achieved with a lot of hair gel.聽The dress references a John Galliano collection from 1986.
Still, nothing could top Doja’s cat prosthetics of Met Gala 2023, when she referenced Karl Lagerfeld’s cat, Choupette.

Lana Del Rey attends The 2024 Met Gala.
Marleen Moise Getty Images8:15 p.m.聽Hitting the sweet spot between costume and high-fashion, Lana Del Rey鈥檚 forest nymph look features a veil held up by antlers made of twigs. It鈥檚 Alexander McQueen, created by the brand鈥檚 recently appointed creative director Se谩n McGirr and referencing a look from McQueen鈥檚 鈥淲idows Of Culloden鈥 collection of 2006.

Kim Kardashian attends The 2024 Met Gala.
Dimitrios Kambouris Getty Images8:10 p.m.聽Kim Kardashian is wearing...a pilled sweater? Now we鈥檝e seen everything. Otherwise it鈥檚 the usual Kim K fare, by way of Maison Margiela, designed by John Galliano: An extremely, concerningly snatched waist and a platinum dye job.
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Meanwhile, Kylie Jenner is serving a 1950s throwback, complete with an exaggerated cone bra.聽It鈥檚 archival Givenchy鈥攋ust like her sister Kendall鈥檚.

Da’Vine Joy Randolph and Zac Posen attend The 2024 Met Gala.
Jamie McCarthy Getty Images8 p.m. Oscar winner聽Da鈥橵ine Joy Randolph is wearing a custom denim gown made by Zac Posen for Gap.聽Posen, a beloved New York designer, closed his eponymous label in 2020. He was recently appointed as Gap鈥檚 creative director, and this is a great way to stir up some buzz around his new role.聽

Kendall Jenner attends The 2024 Met Gala.
Dia Dipasupil Getty Images7:45 p.m. Kendall Jenner has gone the archival route with an Alexander McQueen for Givenchy Couture gown from 1999. The evening has lacked a ton of archival looks, so this one is nice to see for fashion history lovers.
鈥淚鈥檓 the first human to wear this dress; it was shown on a mannequin,鈥 says Jenner, adding she couldn鈥檛 tailor or alter the dress in any way. This recalls Kim Kardashian’s historic and controversial re-wear of Marilyn Monroe鈥檚 鈥淗appy Birthday, Mr. President鈥 dress at the 2022 Met Gala.
Their mom, Kris Jenner, arrived at tonight’s event a little earlier, and joked that she hasn鈥檛 seen her kids in a while. So just a casual, run-of-the-mill family reunion.

Rita Ora and Taika Waititi attend The 2024 Met Gala.
Dia Dipasupil Getty Images7:35 p.m.聽Rita Ora is wearing a Marni look that resembles a beaded curtain over a full body stocking鈥攕he says some of the beads are thousands of years old. It鈥檚 Ora’s 10th Met Gala. 鈥淚 just love having a companion now,鈥 she says, as she turns to her husband, Taika Waititi, dressed in a brown leather suit.

Demi Moore and Harris Reed at The 2024 Met Gala.
Dia Dipasupil Getty Images7:25 p.m. Thank goodness for Demi Moore for bringing the drama! She’s here with Nina Ricci creative director Harris Reed, who designed her dress using archival wallpaper. 鈥淔ashion needs to be about risk-taking, having fun and celebrating beauty and creativity,鈥 says the British-American designer, who is definitely a talent to (continue to) watch.
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7:15 p.m. 鈥淗ow am I going to eat later?鈥 asks Greta Lee in her Loewe dress, which features a high neckline that partially covers her face. Fashion people problems. (Incidentally, Loewe designer Jonathan Anderson is a co-chair of tonight’s gala.)聽

Lauren Sanchez attends The 2024 Met Gala.
Jamie McCarthy Getty Images7 p.m. There have been rumours going around that Anna Wintour thinks Lauren Sanchez, fianc茅e of Amazon billionaire Jeff Bezos, has 鈥渂ad taste鈥 and for this evening, to ensure she’d look the part. So did it work? Well, her mirrored, rose-themed Oscar de la Renta ball gown is fine, I guess?
Tyla getting lifted on the stairs at the .
鈥 Pop Base (@PopBase)
6:55 p.m.聽South African pop star Tyla (“Water” is her breakthrough track) might be tonight’s sleeper red carpet hit. Her custom Balmain dress captures the time theme perfectly鈥攊t鈥檚 designed to look like it鈥檚 made of wet sand, complete with an hourglass handbag...
...but watching a video of her needing assistance to get up the Met steps in the stiff gown showed how much these stars sacrifice comfort for an iconic moment.
Katy Perry. That鈥檚 it.
鈥 javi (@jxries)
6:50 p.m. This, above, is not Katy Perry arriving at the Met Gala! But it聽is a fake AI image of Perry circulating on social media that many thought was real鈥攊t has 3.7 million views on X so far...

Sarah Jessica Parker and Andy Cohen attend The 2024 Met Gala.
Dimitrios Kambouris Getty Images6:50 p.m. Sarah Jessica Parker, who showed up with Bravo honcho Andy Cohen, is no stranger to the Met Gala or a showstopping headpiece. She鈥檚 wearing a precious tea-length Richard Quinn number featuring a cage skirt and extra-long pearls. But the hat is the star of the show.

Mindy Kaling attends The Metropolitan Museum of Art’s Costume Institute benefit gala.
Evan Agostini Evan Agostini/Invi6:45 p.m. Mindy Kaling has arrived in a swirly, sculptural and shimmering dress by Indian designer Gurav Gupta, which has a name: The Melting Flower of Time. 鈥淚t makes me really happy to rep talented geniuses from my community,鈥 she says.

Colman Domingo attends The 2024 Met Gala Celebrating “Sleeping Beauties: Reawakening Fashion.”
Jamie McCarthy Getty Images6:35 p.m. Colman Domingo was the best-dressed man of the recent red-carpet awards season and another hotly anticipated Met Gala guest. He did not disappoint with his聽brilliantly proportioned caped satin suit by Willy Chavaria, accessorized with a handful of calla lilies.
He says he鈥檚 sitting at the same table as Cardi B: 鈥淚t鈥檚 going to be a vibe.鈥 The seating chart is famously controlled by Anna Wintour and often completed mere hours before the gala begins.

Sienna Miller, Chemena Kamali, Greta Gerwig, Emma Mackey and Zoe Saldana attend The 2024 Met Gala.
Dimitrios Kambouris Getty Images6:25 p.m. The boho crew has arrived: Sienna Miller, Emma Mackey, Greta Gerwig and Zoe Saldana are all wearing Chlo茅. Their looks are designed by the brand鈥檚 new head designer, Chemena Kamali, who is attending with them. While the frocks (and Greta鈥檚 cape and trousers) are all pretty, they read more music festival than Fashion Olympics; something tells me this squad won鈥檛 be topping best-dressed lists at the end of the night.聽

Jennifer Lopez attends The 2024 Met Gala Celebrating “Sleeping Beauties: Reawakening Fashion.”
Dia Dipasupil Getty Images6:15 p.m. Co-chair Jennifer Lopez isn鈥檛 straying too far from her wheelhouse in a bodycon naked dress encrusted with crystals. But it鈥檚 custom Schiaparelli Couture and it works for her; I鈥檓 also into the low-key messy bun and understated makeup where a more traditional updo and heavy glam would have been the expected move.
Lopez tells live-stream host LaLa Anthony that her dress is made with two million beads and it鈥檚 inspired by butterflies. Asked what it means to be a co-chair, she says, 鈥淚t鈥檚 not that bad鈥擜nna calls you and it鈥檚 quite the honour.鈥 We can safely assume that a BTS team of assistants did most of the heavy-lifting鈥攕hocker!

Zendaya attends 2024 The Metropolitan Museum of Art’s Costume Institute benefit gala.
Evan Agostini Evan Agostini/Invi6:12 p.m.聽Zendaya鈥攅asily one of the most-anticipated guests and one of the evening鈥檚 co-chairs鈥攊s wearing a dreamy, whimsical custom Maison Margiela gown. The brand, helmed by John Galliano, is off to a very strong start at this year鈥檚 gala. Galliano referenced his own design from 1999 for this look鈥攙intage made new.聽
zendaya in custom margiela by galliano inspired by christian dior haute couture spring 1999. headpiece by philip treacy, makeup by thee pat mcgrath herself. NO NOTES鈥︹
鈥 鉂 (@saintdoII)
The gown is embellished with 3D beetles, feathers and fruit, complete with a fascinator.
6:05 p.m.
Is there any controversy surrounding the Met Gala this year?
Unionized workers from Cond茅 Nast, the media company that owns Vogue, threatened to set up a picket line outside the event. 鈥淢eet us at the table or meet us at The Met on Monday,鈥 the union posted on social media on Saturday.
There鈥檚 also an Italian model, Eugenio Casnighi, currently going viral on TikTok for claiming he was 鈥渇ired鈥 from working as a greeter on the red carpet after he 鈥渦pstaged鈥 Kylie Jenner at last year鈥檚 gala when the Internet couldn鈥檛 get enough of him when he appeared in the background of a picture of her.
5:55 p.m.聽
What is the theme of the 2024 Met Gala?
This year鈥檚 official dress code is 鈥淭he Garden of Time,鈥 which Vogue, the official media mouthpiece of the Met Gala, says was inspired by a 1962 short story by the English novelist J.G. Ballard. Coles Notes: It鈥檚 dystopian science fiction about a garden filled with flowers that can slow down (but not stop) the passage of time, and there鈥檚 an angry mob en route to attack the garden鈥檚 aristocratic owners.聽
It seems the Met Gala will lean more into the enchanted garden鈥檚 nature theme than the juxtaposition of a countess playing her harpsichord as the downtrodden proletariat storm the walls of her Arcadia in a society plagued by inequality. Some have pointed out the 鈥渄elicious irony鈥 of an event that charges $300,000 for a table choosing this story as its theme in a time of financial hardship, such as聽
As is tradition, the broader theme is tied to a new exhibit at the Costume Institute. This year, it鈥檚聽鈥淪leeping Beauties: Reawakening Fashion,鈥聽which will feature 250 鈥渞are鈥 items from the museum鈥檚 collection that encompass 400 years of fashion history, and will include high-tech simulacrums of pieces that are too fragile to be displayed. The exhibit is loosely organized into land, sea and sky-themed zones. 鈥淚t is very much an ode to nature and the emotional poetics of fashion,鈥 says curator Andrew Bolton.
What will the celebrities be wearing? Who did Anna Wintour ban this year? All the burning questions, answered.
What will the celebrities be wearing? Who did Anna Wintour ban this year? All the burning questions, answered.
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