Editor’s Note: Featuring the good, the bad and the ugly, ‘Look of the Week’ is a regular series dedicated to unpacking the most talked about outfit of the last seven days.
Imitation, it is often said, is the greatest form of flattery and it appears Cara Delevingne agrees. The British model and actor arrived at the after-party for the 2023 Met Gala in honor of fashion powerhouse Karl Lagerfeld in full Lagerfeld cosplay.
The look, which came complete with a white feather wig, was a more playful rendition of the evening’s theme. Wearing a strapless black Karl Lagerfeld dress, a floating white shirt collar and cuffs, as well as the designer’s signature fingerless leather gloves, Delevingne’s outfit straddled costume and couture.
In recent years, celebrities have revived public interest in the after-party — proving it is anything but an afterthought. The rules are a little looser, the cameras fewer, and in recent years: the outfits more exciting. It’s the perfect place for an A-lister to slip into something more comfortable, whether that means shorter, softer, or even sillier. Janelle Monae arrived in a bikini, while Billie Eilish wore a New York Knicks cap and a tracksuit. An outfit too uncouth for the red carpet? Save it for the after-party, the not-so-secret realm where celebrities can let their hair down — or stuff it into a fun wig.
Nailing Lagerfeld’s shock of white hair was of great importance for Delevingne, who was a close friend and muse to the designer for a decade. Her feathered wig was a custom piece by stylists Anthony Perez and Danielle Priano and took over six hours to create, as each faux feather (made from silk) was hand-sewn on. At the Met Gala, her homage was less obvious —choosing an enveloping white shirt cape and black aviator sunglasses, alongside a gray tousled wig as a nod to the late Lagerfeld.
“(There’s been) a lot of emotions,” she told Vogue at the event, “honestly, I cried on the way here a little bit… I owe him so much and it’s an amazing way to remember him.”