Most sustainable: Emma Watson
@calvinklein
Actress and activist Emma Watson proves that not every Met Gala gown is a one-wear affair with her custom made Calvin Klein outfit. The designers worked in collaboration with Eco Age, a company encouraging sustainable business growth, to create the eco-friendly dress made of sustainable cotton, satin and a taffeta, which was woven from the yarn of recycled plastic bottles. However it is not just the world saving credentials of this dress that makes it amazing: as a design it is both quirky and stunning. The overall shape complete with train and off the shoulder sleeves is reminiscent of a fairy-tale ball gown, while the simple and classic monochrome and a cut out front revealing tailored trousers simultaneously modernise the look and create a more practical alternative to an oversize skirt. All whilst still maintaining a sense of sophistication and grace.
Most extravagant: Claire Danes
@zacposen
This gown is spectacular in daylight, but looking at it you would never imagine what it was capable of when the sun goes down. Although a fairy godmother could create a dress of this standard with the mere wave of a magic wand, the reality of creating this dress by Zac Posen was not so easy. It took 6 people 600 hours to complete as piles of a light gossamer fabric imported from France had to be layered over a hollow skirt structure to ensure that the LED lights and 30 individual battery packs did not make the dress too heavy to walk in. Extra lights were installed at the edges of the fabric to enhance the outline of the dress and give the sense of sparkle. Claire Danes, a close childhood friend of Posen was a great choice to model the design, as her blonde up-do and princess physique complimented it perfectly. Cinders meets the Met Gala.
Best robot: Liu Wen
@liuwenwl
The metallic glimmer of model and Estee Lauder ambassador Liu Wen’s silver laser cut leather Iris Van Herpen dress reflected the ManusXMachina theme of the Met Gala perfectly. The robot-like artificial clean cuts and colour were contrasted against the use of a natural material. The dress fits Wen’s body shape giving the dress a very human element. Wen was also allowed input into her hair and make-up and opted for a natural look, with just a touch of bright lipstick, which allowed full attention to be placed on the dress. It is from Iris Van Herpen’s QUAQUAVERSAL collection, the aim of which is to move away from traditional tailoring techniques, which Van Herpen does through the folding and weaving seen in the body of this dress. It keeps the ball-gown theme with a mesh skirt, which has the added bonus of making Wen’s cute silver sandal heels still visible.