Blake Lively's Ultra-Detailed Met Gala Nails Deserve Their Own Museum Exhibit

When it comes to the Met Gala, Blake Lively is one of the most reliable celebrities out there. She can be trusted to follow themes, her hair and makeup always support the ensemble, and she always just looks so happy to be there — a breath of fresh air among too-cool-to-care celebrity. Thanks to her consistency and well-documented love for fashion, Lively was a natural choice to help host this year’s festivities — true to form, she made it her best appearance yet. While her jaw-dropping, Statue of Liberty-inspired gown undoubtedly stole the show, Blake Lively’s Met Gala beauty look was full of hidden details all orchestrated to help tell the story of her Gilded Age look. Her hair, makeup, and nails were the unsung heroes of the evening — and TZR has all the pro-issued details on exactly how it was created.

Makeup artist Kristofer Buckle helped develop Lively’s gilded glamour beauty moment, using a host of Charlotte Tilbury products to bring the antique-toned look to life. “Blake’s look was inspired by warm-toned metals and coppers, starting with a bronzed contour on the skin,” Buckle explained in a press release. “Her eyes were washed with a combination of matte browns for structure and metallic rose golds and coppers to play off her Versace gown. I made her lips a gentle terracotta tone to bring an optimistic brightness to the monochromatic makeup palette.”

While the products Buckle used featured plenty of familiar favorites, there’s a noticeable stand out among them — a brand-new Charlotte Tilbury bronzer that might just be a summertime makeup game-changer. The Beautiful Skin Bronzer won’t be released to the public until May 19, but Lively proved to be the perfect beauty guinea pig — and in fact, she’s the very first person to wear the new bronzer. The cream formula features both vitamin D and hyaluronic acid for blendable, believable color all over.

After prepping the skin with tried-and-true Charlotte Tilbury picks like Charlotte’s Magic Cream and the new Collagen Superfusion Facial Oil, Buckle got to work on the makeup. Those matte browns and metallic tones he mentioned came from Eyes to Mesmerise cream eyeshadow in Chocolate Bronze and shades from the Luxury Palette of Pops in Pillow Talk. The Matte Revolution Lipstick in Sexy Sienna gave Lively her terracotta-toned lip color, topped by a glossy coat of the Charlotte Tilbury Collagen Lip Bath in Gold.

Just as enchanting as the makeup, though, were Lively’s nails, custom created to mimic the same State of Liberty patina seen in her gown. Celebrity nail artist Elle Gerstein used KISS Gel Fantasy Sculpted Nails in Back It Up as the manicure's base, dressing them up with carefully-crafted details for a couture feel inspired by New York City architecture.

“Inspired by major NYC landmarks like Penn Station and Grand Central Station, the chrome tip and underside of the nail are meant to represent the dome of the window of the Gilded Era, while the stones and crystals are reminiscent of the ceiling in Penn Station,” Gerstein explained in a press release. She used copper-pigment foils and tiny, intricate beading to bring the look to life.

Rounding out Lively’s larger-than-life look is the hair, a waterfall of golden waves created by celebrity hairstylist Jennifer Yepez using Dyson tools. Smooth, shiny, and the perfect canvas for Lively’s tiara, it’s the ultimate finish touch.

Ahead, shop some of the key products used in Blake Lively’s 2022 Met Gala look.

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