Met gala 2021: these hair looks stole the show

Once a year, the Met Gala floods our Instagram feeds with a sea of celebrity fashion statements, ranging from the cutting edge to the “should have been left on the cutting room floor” – and 2021 was no different, especially when it came to hair. Held last night (13 September) with ‘America’ as this year’s theme, celebrities were given a wide creative canvas to play around with when it came to their looks, and some pulled out all of the stops. We spoke with a number of renowned experts in the hair industry and asked who they believed stole the show, as well as for their insight on how the looks were created.

Alicia Keys

https://www.instagram.com/p/CTyQxvRoRIZ/ “This year’s red carpet was full of gorgeous hair and I particularly loved Alicia Keys. Once again she showed us that simple is beautiful, and you don’t need to be extra in order to stand out. She opted for a super sleek, straight ponytail, with the centre parting giving her look a fresh, modern feel and complimented her boss b*tch outfit perfectly. “The key to nailing a style like this is patience and product. You need to work hard to really smooth the hair down and ensure there is no unwanted texture or bumps in the hair. I like to use a pomade style product or a flexible hold gel. This will also give the hair that shine we saw on Alicia last night. Her gorgeous hairstyle was finished off with a scattering of rhinestones across her head towards the hair tie at the nape of her neck.” - Jay Birmingham, celebrity stylist  

Cara Delevingne

https://www.instagram.com/p/CTyJL8dKm4h/ “For me, the stand out at the Met Gala last night had to be the incredible Cara Delevingne. As well as her statement outfit and bold shimmery red eye shadow, her hair caught our eye. She chose a deep side parting with one side of her hair pinned back behind her ear and draped behind her shoulder. This small tweak to your style makes your hair appear more glamorous and put together.  “Cara’s look had an edge though with the addition of lots of texture and the wet look that we love. Her hair was styled into really rough waves which tumbled down to her waist and framed her face perfectly. At ROAR, we are all about celebrating individuality and standing out from the crowd – Cara definitely did that and we love it.” - Brian ‘Leo’ McCallum, owner of ROAR Hair and Beauty  

Megan Fox

https://www.instagram.com/p/CTyP4gLsYbj/   “This year, the A-listers went all out, and for me the stand out look of the evening was the absolutely sensational Megan Fox. Wearing a red, lace crimson Dundas floor length gown, it certainly offered the wow factor. With this strong updo style, Megan created the perfect look. “Megan’s hair was pulled back into a sleek and strong rope braid with a heavy, full fringe adding to the statement look. The sleekness of the hair and the strength and texture in the rope braid gave a powerful overall look, one that captured everyone's attention on last night's red carpet.” - Kevin Paul Finnell, creative director of F&M Hairdressing  

Hailey Bieber

https://www.instagram.com/p/CTyDN9Mo2Z7/ “The Met Gala is one of my favourite events, one that allows those attending to step out of their comfort zones and embrace their creative vision. Last night, I just loved Hailey Bieber – the look of classic simplicity goes a long way and I adored this.  “Hailey was wearing a classic, strapless Saint Laurent Gown, and styled her hair in textured, loose beach waves. Parted in the middle, the hair flowed gracefully over her shoulders and allowed the gown to speak for itself. Using a slight texture to the waves allowed her to add a touch of creativity to the look.” - Gill Berry, European design team member for JOICO  

Billie Eilish

https://www.instagram.com/p/CTx3h7SIw_k/ “Billie Eilish wowed on last night’s Met Gala red carpet and was definitely one of my favourite looks from the night. Opting for a Marilyn Monroe inspired look, Billie wore a voluminous peach corset ball gown and had her hair styled into a Marilyn inspired crop, full of texture and gorgeous waves.  “Parted slightly to the side, the look was full of volume, created at the roots to give the style an overall lift. The hair was then loosely tonged throughout to add more texture and a double dimension, with the fringe swept to the side for a more enhanced finish.” - Philip Bell, partner for Ishoka Hair & Beauty  

Gigi Hadid

https://www.instagram.com/p/CTy61jeLV9t/ “The most stand out hair look from this year’s Met Gala came from the stunning Gigi Hadid. The supermodel showcased her brand new, fiery red, Jessica Rabbit-like locks for the first time and paired the hue with a high retro inspired ponytail that was full of volume and extra long in length. “The hair going into the ponytail was kept incredibly sleek, perhaps with the help of a serum or gel to ensure there were no flyaways, allowing all eyes to be on the top of the ponytail, which had even more statement volume and looked to be teased to create a pompadour like effect. The ponytail itself was complete with large cascading waves that looked to be created with a large curling barrel wand, and then brushed out for separation and to provide more volume to the look. The look was completed with a dazzling crystal embellished barette from Prada to ooze even more glamour.” - Suzie McGill, owner of Rainbow Room International’s Uddingston Salon, ambassador for Schwarzkopf Ambassador and international artistic director at Rainbow Room International   Olivia Rodrigo https://www.instagram.com/p/CTyDyNeqkfd/ “Olivia Rodrigo sported a very edgy hair look at this year’s Met Gala and pulled it off just perfectly. Her hair was worn in a statement middle parting, slicked back off her face and the back of her hair styled into knots with the ends left out to fan at the back for a youthful and trendy finish. The hair looked incredibly polished, whereby a number of shine products would have been used to create the dazzling mirror like shine that she had on the night. “When creating sleek looks like this, I always like to use a backcombing brush and a light gel to take the hair back off the face, picking up any baby hairs along the way and keeping them in place all night long with a gorgeous shine. When creating the knots, distributing some oil through the hair before creating them is also a good idea to continue the high shine throughout the look. Finish by misting with a shine spray or light hairspray to give the hair a further lustrous finish and hold.” - Karen Thomson, owner of KAM Hair and Body Spa

Don't miss the award-worthy hair looks from this year's NTAs.