The Met Gala is held on the first Monday of May at the New York Metropolitan Museum of Art, and has been a staple for fashion and pop culture. Met Gala, formerly known as the Met Ball, is a yearly fundraising Gala traditionally attended by A-list celebrities dressed in high-end designer brands according to the decided theme by the co-chairs.  The In recent years past themes included: House of Chanel, Heavenly Bodies, Camp (a term for overly cheesy fashion), and many more. The co-chairs of the 2022 Met Galla were Regina King, Blake Lively, Ryan Reynolds, and Lin-Manuel Miranda. Anna Wintour, Tom Ford, and Adam Mosserias. This year they decided on Gilder Glamour for the 2022 Met Galla but what is Gilded Glamour?

‘Gilded Glamour’ refers to the gilded age of the late 1800s. Think Netflix’s original show Bridgerton, and the broadway show Hamilton or The Great on Hulu which are all set in the mid to late seventeenth century. In the west, women in this time wore long dresses with tight-fitting tops, usually a corset, and long flowing skirts with a statement hat or jewelry. Men were seen in a traditional modern suits with longer coats and top hats. Patterns were also appearing more frequently in men’s pants and women’s dresses.

Traditionally the Met Galla was only attended by Hollywood’s elite. A-list celebrities like Blake Lively, Taylor Swift, Zendaya, Beyonce, Harry Styles, and others with the same status were the only ones invited. However, in recent years, most likely due to the rise of social media influencers like the Kardashians, Emma Chamberlain, and Addison Rae, who was invited to the Met Galla alongside entertainment superstars. 2022 Met Galla was attended by Blake Lively, Ryan Reynolds, Megan Thee Stallion, Lizzo, the Kardashians, Pete Davidson, Sebastian Stan, Olivia Rodrigo, Conan Gray, the mayor of New York City, and many others.

The majority of the guest list went on trend rather than on theme. Many celebs like Olivia Rodrigo, and Sebastian Stan, opted for bright colors and accessories but little to nothing resembling the gilded age. As much as we love the rising superstar Olivia Rodrigo, her dazzling light purple dress and matching purple pumps were more “Sour Prom” than gilded glamour. Sebastian Stan wore the trending hot pink we’ve been seeing lately in a puffy suit form.

Other celebrities seem to have mixed up the time period because it’s just so easy to do that. Kim Kardashian went in the iconic Marilyn Monroe dress she wore during her birthday song to President John F Kennedy. Not only do people think her wearing the dress is disrespectful and a tad weird, but it’s also not on theme whatsoever! Ms.Monoe wasn’t even alive during the gilded age.  Alexa Chung, Gemma Chan, and Hailey Bieber also failed to do a quick google search on what the gilded age was.The three women stepped onto the carpet in beautiful gowns giving major 1920s vibes.

Other celebrities showed up giving us absolutely everything, Blake Lively, Lizzo, Emma chamberlain, and even a reporter documenting the event understood the assignment. Emma chamberlain did a more minimal effort look but she still successfully paid an homage to the gilded glamour with her corseted top design and jewelry, which included a Cartier princess crown and necklace. Génesis Suero, a reporter for Telemundo, was assigned to capture images and conduct interviews with the many guests at the met but she left the Galla with Twitter and TikTok in a storm about her perfectly crafted cinderella dress. Lizzo, the famous pop/rap musician, recently got a more invested following on TikTok so it is no surprise that she stepped out giving gilded age in her own way. Lizzo is seen wearing a black corset as a mini dress with a giant black and gold coat designed by Thom Browne. While some people are questioning if she followed the theme, her fans are coming to her defense by pointing out her corseted details and the giant coat which gives off the evil villain of a Disney movie vibe. Last but certainly not least. the Blake Lively. Blake is known in the Met world for always having her dress match the carpet and this year she did not disappoint. Blake along with her husband, Ryan Reynolds, strutted up the stairs in a beautiful copper-colored dress with a giant bow on the rear, then while we were all mesmerized by her at the top of the stairs, a group of men in suits crowded her as they carefully unpinned the bow to reveal her transformed dress with a minty green crawling up from her train. Blake says her dress is structured after the gilded era blueprint for their dresses but the design is an homage to New York’s prized possession, the Statute of Liberty. The color change is a reference to the oxidation process of the copper statue after all these years and her crown resembled lady liberty’s own crown perfectly.

While we saw some amazing looks this year, is it really that hard to follow the theme?