Met Gala 2024 wildest moments: Rita Ora's naked bodysuit to Tyla's sculpted sand dress

Publish date: 2024-06-20

The Met Gala has played host to some of the most outlandish sartorial moments in history, and 2024's red carpet was no exception. 

With tickets to fashion's chicest night of the year costing upwards of $75,000 each, designers, beauty teams and ateliers spend months imagining looks for the A-listers that attend, using the steps of the Met as a stage to display their craftsmanship.

WATCH: The most jaw-dropping looks from the 2024 Met Gala

The first Monday in May of 2024 saw a fleet of best-dressed stars step into the spotlight, as well as some weird and wonderful looks that have set the Internet ablaze. 

Zendaya's ethereal woodland goddess look Kim Kardashian's controversial cardigan

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What was the 2024 Met Gala dress code?

The Met Gala is a charity fundraiser for The Costume Institute, and celebrates the opening of The Met's spring 2024 exhibition: "Sleeping Beauties: Reawakening Fashion".

If you're wondering why there wasn't a fleet of stars cosplaying Disney princesses on the red carpet, for clarity, this wasn't the dress code; it was the event's theme. 

The dress code of the Met Gala was actually "The Garden of Time" inspired by JG Ballard's short story published in 1962. It is about the overturn of aristocracy by "an immense rabble," and is seen as an intoxicating metaphor of the inability of money and beauty to prevent death.

Tyla

Making her Met Gala debut, Balmain fashioned a dress made of sand for South African singer Tyla, who had to be carried up the steps of the Met in her ultra-delicate, sculpted garment. 

The attention to detail was unmatched, with the 'Water' hitmaker wearing glittering sand glued to her shoulders and wrists, along with water-droplet nails and a sand-timer clutch bag nodding to 'the sands of time'.

"I can see Tyla's crystal-drop nails becoming a major trend in 2024, especially thanks to their versatility and ability to create unique and glamorous beauty looks," says Gabriela Jarkovska of Nail Perfection by Gabi. 

"Whether it's incorporating actual crystals into nail designs or using nail art techniques to mimic their sparkle and shine, crystal-inspired nails are some of the most eye-catching and elegant manicures."

Lana Del Ray

Miss Del Ray commanded the famed Met steps in a bespoke ensemble by Seán McGirr for Alexander McQueen. Wearing an animalistic crown of branches beneath a billowing, draped veil, Lana's look was anything but ordinary. 

The 'Video Games' hitmaker graced the carpet in a silk, corseted dress crafted from double georgette and tulle – all hand-embroidered with hammered bronze-bullion hawthorn branches, "inspired by the patina and form of sculptures made by the Swiss artist Alberto Giacometti," writes .

Sarah Jessica Parker

Turning heads in a Richard Quinn birdcage-esque dress, Sarah Jessica Parker's Met Gala dress was no ordinary silhouette. 

Dripping in crystals and hand-embroidered botanical motifs everything from her rippling waist-length hair to the impossibly long string of pearls around her neck boasted eccentricism and maximalism.

Everything apart from her nails, that is. SJP opted for simple, short, silver nails rather than following suit with ultra-long extensions like many attendees

"Almost all of my clients are opting for natural nail lengths nowadays," adds Gabi. 

"In my opinion, there has been a major uptake in minimalist, natural nails that focus on simplicity, cleanliness and effortless beauty. I love that SJP's nails are sleek and simple."

Lizzo

over Lizzo's weird and wonderful vase-inspired dress from Paris-based label Weinsanto. 

The '2 Be Loved' hitmaker looked like she had stepped out of Alice in Wonderland with her sculpted corset dress and headpiece, taking the botanical theme to the next level.

Rita Ora

There's a fine line between couture and costume, and we'd argue Rita Ora's 'naked dress' at the 2024 Met Gala falls into the latter category. 

In what was arguably one of the more outlandish fashion moments on the steps of the Met, Rita graced the spotlight wearing a Tom Ford ensemble. 

As Rita told during their livestream of the event, some of the beads are from the first and second century BC, making them "older than anyone on this planet."

Amanda Seyfried

You'd have to look twice to recognise Amanda Seyfried as she climbed the steps of the Met looking unrecognisable with a silver pixie cut. 

actress switched up her honey-blonde hair for a shimmering platinum-hued chop styled in romantic coils beneath a silver crown.

Kim Kardashian

Aside from her impossibly snatched waist in her Maison Margiela Artisanal by John Galliano gown, Kim Kardashian's peculiar choice to wear a grey cardigan over her shoulders has sparked the biggest internet debate since her diamond earring dropped into the ocean. 

The SKIMS founder layered her antique corset with an off-the-rack grey cardigan that even showed signs of pilling and had mismatched buttons. 

A last-minute malfunction cover up or a stroke of sartorial genius?

Cardi B

Rapper Cardi B made sure nobody missed her entrance as she dominated the steps of the Met in her impossibly huge tulle dress. 

The star required nine helpers to fan out her billowing gown, bringing the flow of entrances to a standstill as she had her moment in the sartorial spotlight.

Zendaya

There's a reason why Zendaya is co-chair of the Met Gala. 

Thanks to the expert craftsmanship of her beloved stylist, Law Roach, the Challengers star embraced all that is weird and wonderful about the Met, stepping out for her first look of the night wearing an iridescent peacock blue dress by Maison Margiela.

Adowa Aboah

British model Adowa Aboah used the Met Gala as her stage to announce her first pregnancy - and she looked breathtaking doing so. 

Baring her blooming baby bump, the Burberry muse exposed her stomach in a ruffled crop top and billowing puffball skirt.

Amelia Gray

Encapsulating all that is creative, magical and playful about the Met, model of the moment Amelia Gray made her Met Gala debut in a light-up terrarium dress from Jun Takahashi’s sensational spring 2024 show. 

Behind-the-scenes footage shows the dress is so delicate it needed screws to fasten.

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