The Best Makeup Looks on the Met Gala 2023 Red Carpet
Met Gala 2023, a.k.a. fashion’s biggest night out, is finally here. But even though we’re constantly refreshing our feeds to see what our favorite celebs are wearing on the iconic Met steps, it should be noted that we’re equally excited to see all the hair and makeup looks. There’s no denying that glam can make or break a look—but luckily, this year’s attendees seem to have enlisted the best skin care experts and makeup artists to ace the red carpet.
The biggest makeup trends of the night—specifically Monday, May 1—are no surprise. Minimalist and clean-girl makeup ruled the red carpet, with stars opting for flawless skin and pink cherub cheeks and lips. Celebs like Jennie Kim, Maya Hawke, and Ashley Graham gave us a master class in soft glam and made the case for less is more. Meanwhile, the rockstar-girlfriend aesthetic proved alive and well with stars like Adut Akech, Kerry Washington, and Emma Chamberlain wearing heavy kohl-lined eyes, black eye shadow, and lipsticks that would make Jenny Humphrey proud.
Ready to take it all in? Scroll on to see the best makeup looks at the Met Gala 2023 red carpet.
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Penelope Cruz
Cruz looked every inch the Chanel bride with glowing skin and soft glam makeup by Charlotte Tilbury. To get her skin red-carpet ready, facialist Iván Pol treated Cruz to a sculpting facial. Tilbury used the Hollywood Beauty Light Wand in Spotlight & Pinkgasm to create her rosy, angelic cheeks.
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Quinta Brunson
Brunson complimented her black and pink gown with a wash of pink on the lids and heavily lined eyes. For some extra drama, makeup artist Jessica Smalls added Lilly Lashes before using Glossier to create a makeup look that is “beautiful and soft, like the iconic Chanel Camelia flower,” Smalls said in a press release. “I lined Quinta’s lips with a deep brown liner to define lips and used Glossier G Suit in Lane and applied Glossier Lip Gloss in clear for a juicy pout.”
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Ice Spice
The rapper made her Met Gala debut in a full face of Maybelline with icy frosted eye shadow and the perfect glossy lip. Makeup artist Karina Milan was inspired by Lagerfeld’s muses and channeled Old Hollywood glam, highlighting the crystals in the gown with fine shimmer for the eye look, and adding in Lifter Gloss for a beautiful shine without any stickiness.
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Kim Petras
The “Unholy” singer piled on the white eye shadow to complement her black-and-white gown—and we’re not mad about it. Makeup artist Gilbert Soliz mixed eye products from MAC Cosmetics and topped things off with the Reflects Pearl Giltter to create the bold look. “The look expresses Karl’s stylistic language,” said Soliz in a press release. “We wanted to create something that played with his favorite shades, which are black and white, so we went with a modern bold Cat Eye that was contrasted with the soft cloudiness of the white eye shadow.”
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Emma Chamberlain
Chamberlain leaned into the trending emo goth glam aesthetic with kohl-lined eyes and a deep nude lip by Lancôme. “Her fabulous structured Miu Miu two-piece and matching headband are a bit more polished, so we wanted to complement and balance that with deeper, more edgy makeup,” said makeup artist Kelsey Deenihan in a press release. “We decided to go with a ’90s brown lip and a rough, blue smoky eye to complete the look.” Her skin was prepped by facialist Iván Pol.
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Halle Bailey
The subtle shimmer in Bailey’s makeup was the perfect match for her romantic bob.
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Jennie Kim
The Chanel ambassador and Blackpink member proved less is more with clean skin, classic black liner, and a muted nude lip.
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Yara Shahidi
The siren eye is still a trend to get behind, as shown by Shahidi. She finished off the look with lined lips topped with brown lipstick.
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Whitney Peak
The Chanel ambassador leaned into the Old Hollywood vibes of her dress with perfectly diffused eye shadow and a matching nude lip. To prep the skin, makeup artist Tyron Machhausen used the No. 1 de Chanel Revitalizing Serum and Rich Revitalizing Cream and the Hydra Beauty Essence Mist, before a creating a luminous base with Chanel Les Beiges Sheer Healthy Glow Highlighting Fluid in Sunkissed and Les Beiges Healthy Glow Foundation Hydration and Longwear. “I love mixing a couple of drops of the with the foundation for an incredible lit-from-within glow,” he told Glamour.
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Ashley Graham
Makeup artist Ivan Nunez used Revlon products to create a look inspired by Graham’s pink satin and black velvet gown. “I decided to give her a classic ’90s glam, matte skin, flushed rosy blush, matte smoky eyes, and a beautiful matte lip. A timeless and beautiful look for the Met Gala,” he said in a press release.
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Kerry Washington
Washington also went the grunge-glam route with black smoky eyes and nude lips. To accentuate the eyes, makeup artist Carola Gonzalez used Eylure London Luxe Cashmere No.6 lashes to create a dramatic, smoky eye. “These lashes were perfect to complete her eye look,” she said in a press release. “They really shaped the eyes in the most flattering way and really made them pop.” Gonzalez also used a variety of Neutrogena products to prep Washington’s skin and finish off her makeup look.
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Nicole Kidman
Kidman recreated her iconic Chanel No. 5 commercial by rewearing the feathered gown she wore in the ad, as well as the same flawless soft glam makeup. She prepped her skin with Seratopical Revolution’s new DNA (Deep Nano Actives) Complex to achieve her signature youthful and glowing complexion.
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Adut Akech
Another emo goth-glam moment came from model and Chanel muse Akech, who paired clean skin with bold black lipstick.
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Salma Hayek
Hayek went monochrome by matching her red dress to her fiery Charlotte Tilbury Matte Revolution Lipstick in Walk of No Shame lipstick. Makeup artist Sofia Tilbury also used the new Magic Body Cream on Hayek to create a full-body glow.
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Maya Hawke
Makeup artist Mary Wiles created a “romantic mod makeup look” with Le Rouge Français products. “We wanted to go for a cool-girl look—a little bit sort of magical, but pretty and enhancing her own features with the lovely products that are just really naturally enhancing,” said Wiles in a press release. “The whole look is based on bridal, so it’s a white dress, and I wanted to be sure that she had a little bit of color but still looked really natural, young, and fresh.” To add a natural flush to the skin, Wiles applied Garance Royale Cream Blush in Cléopâtre on the apples of the cheeks, blending it up and out. She followed this with Pasiphaé Lip Oil as a highlight to add some glow.
