The first Monday in May means one thing — it's time for the Met Gala, and I can't help but be glued to a live stream of the red (or this year's case, green) carpet to see the looks arrive. What I noticed while watching outfit after outfit hit those infamous stairs is that the overarching trends we saw this year reflect what we're seeing in interiors, too.
Really, it's the case every year — after all, fashion and interior design tend to go hand in hand to some degree, and it wasn't hard to find on-trend room schemes that reflect some of the best looks that celebrities wore to the 2024 Met.
This year's theme for the fundraiser for the Met's Costume Institute was The Garden of Time, inspired by the Sleeping Beauties: Reawakening Fashion exhibition. We saw lots of literal gardens, as well as lots of archival fashion pieces which reflect the exhibition's theme. However, there were lots of unexpected takes on the theme when it came to both style and color. Here's what that means for the interior design trends we're using this year.
1. Blue and Green Should Always be Seen
Co-chair of this year's Met Gala (and always getting the looks so right on her recent press calls), Zendaya was always going to be a highlight of this year's carpet. And her Maison Margiela gown for 2024 is channeling a color combination that would have once proved a little controversial.
We've already answered the question: 'do blue and green work together?' and the answer is a resounding yes. It's a color palette that's add freshness to spaces in design right now, and if you need an example of how it works, take a look at this room at this year's San Francisco Decorator Showcase by Jon de la Cruz of De La Cruz Interior Design.
2. Unexpected Red
With so many lush green and soft pink floral interpretations of the theme, there's one color that was quite unexpected to see crop up again and again on the Met Gala's carpet — red. Most noticeably sported by Shakira, everybody's favorite fashion influencer Wisdom Kaye and actor Morgan Spector (who you might know best from The Gilded Age), red on red on red was the order of the night.
And it's fair to say this color is making waves in interior design this year, too. We've already seen the 'unexpected red theory' bring red accents to the forefront of decorating as a viral trend, but at the world's biggest design fair in Milan this year, red was also everywhere. So whether you're looking for a pop of red, or want to embrace color drenching like this beautiful bathroom by Australian designers Grotto Studio, red's the color to play with right now.
3. Silver Resurfaces
We've been in such a cycle of brass-y gold tones in design for such a long time, that it was inevitable cool metallics would make a comeback. Mixed metallics were all over the carpet last night, you only have to take a look at Serena and Venus Williams gold and silver looks to see that both metal tones are undoubtedly both popular choices right now.
However, it was Kim Kardashian's Maison Margiela look that brought to mind a recent project by Workshop APD that I think says a lot about design right now. The mix of silver and textures of gray (a neutral that dare I say is also due a resurgence) showcase that metallic sheens can be tempered down, while still offering the wow-factor you're after.
4. Modern Gothic
There was an overarching dark, near-gothic aesthetic that was, for me, potentially the most surprising take on the Garden of Time theme this year, however, with a surprisingly dark story by J G Ballard cited as inspiration for the carpet, perhaps it shouldn't have been completely unexpected.
From Gwendoline Christie's bold look above, to dresses worn by Dua Lipa and Kendall Jenner, outfits that were dark, vampy, yet sculptural and textural — something we're seeing in the adoption of dark color trends in interiors now, too. Black on black, alongside deep burgundy and purple, lends itself well to this look we're calling modern gothic, and this jewel box kitchen, designed by Kristen Peña of K Interiors, feels like something new and exciting in the design world right now.
5. Textural Whites
It's undoubtedly a time in interior design where color is being embraced fully, but for those who are doing neutrals so well, there's a lightness and prettiness to their approach which we can see reflected in looks like Ariana Grande's and Sarah Jessica Parker's, and don't skip over the beautiful sheer white dress worn by actress Greta Lee.
Dreamy, romantic, but full of detail, it's a look Livingetc is calling The New Pretty, characterized by ruffles and sheers. The white plaster relief in the Parisian apartment designed by Stephanie Coutas feels particularly app for this year's theme, too.
6. Pastels With Black
Traditionally, light, chalky hues haven't made comfortable bedfellows with the harshness of black, but not only was this intriguing combination of colors used a lot on the Met Gala's carpet this year to marry the trends of softness and gothic harshness in many of the outfits, but it's something we're seeing in interiors, too.
When it comes to colors that go with light blue, baby pink or even shades of trending lilac, black is being adopted by designers as a way to make decorating with pastels feel more grown-up — these colors feel more contemporary and less kids' bedroom than before in this combination.
