Much like a first love, everyone remembers their first Met Gala. For Daisy Edgar-Jones, three things stood out during her first Met appearance in 2022: how she felt (“I was excited to take it all in”), Sarah Jessica Parker’s veiled fascinator by famed milliner Phillip Treacy (“[It was] the wildest and coolest thing”), and not timing her arrival with a trusted friend so they could walk in together.

“I remember I arrived at the carpet really early and wanted to meet my friend there, but he was running late,” Edgar-Jones laughs as she tells me the story over Zoom the day before the First Monday in May. “So I ended up sort of standing at the entrance like I was welcoming people into the Met.”

Today, the Twisters star is making her third appearance at the 2026 Met Gala—a professional, practically!—and her excitement for fashion’s biggest night is still palpable. Edgar-Jones and her stylist, Dani Michelle, spent the months sending references to each other of corsets and bodices, trying to figure out exactly how to honor a woman’s body in a way that felt artistic and elevated. McQueen, designed by Seán McGirr, felt like the natural choice to do all of those things.

“They’re so iconic,” Edgar-Jones says of the storied fashion house. “They’re really good with that tension between beauty and destruction. This design explores [the idea that] structure and that fragility can coexist.” Made of ivory silk georgette and floral heritage lace, the actor’s custom-made McQueen fall/winter 2026 sculpted dress is adorned with intricate three-dimensional Lyon lace appliqué and a stunning shredded tulle Banshee embroidery. Edgar-Jones describes it as “rough” and “undone” ripped fabric that perfectly sums up the theme. “It just felt like it really honored this idea of costume, art, and fashion,” she says. To finish out the look, she wears jewels from Boucheron—the Laurel Earrings, the Silhouette bracelet, and the Silhouette brooch to be exact—as the key jewelry pieces.

When it came to beauty to match the vibe, only her longtime glam team of Jo Baker and Bryce Scarlett—along with a newer addition of Estée Lauder products, where Edgar-Jones is a spokesperson—would do. “We wanted to keep an air of London ‘cool girl next door’ who threw on a dress and didn’t really think about her makeup,” Baker tells Vogue. “Instead of being overly polished or overly precise, we went for classic and cool.”

Baker uses yet-to-be-released Estée Lauder’s new Essential Eyeshadow Stick in Sugar Plum (a soft taupe shade coming in June) for hollowed-out, moody eyes. To get that “raw” and “girl next door” feel for the skin, she uses the ORA Method LED Guasha to sculpt the cheeks and a combo of the Estée Lauder Bronze Goddess 01 Bronzing Power and the Futurist BlushMaker Dewy Cheek Tints in shades Stolen Glance and Skinny Dip for that natural-looking flush.

Scarlett also kept on theme with an undone, raw-texture vibe with the hair, keeping it down and more casual. Celebrity nail artist Naomi Yasuda has created a bespoke “Cloud Ombré” shade with Beetlesgel's Milky White Gel to act as an extension of the McQueen gown. “The white and milky cloud ombré was our immediate instinct once we saw the dress; we didn't really entertain a bold color,” Yasuda tells Vogue. “We felt right away that the white tones would best capture that specific ethereal energy. We did briefly play with a more reflective glazed finish, but quickly realized it was a bit much. We ultimately went back to the ombré to keep the look more angelic and seamless with the dress.”

For Edgar-Jones, the beauty prep started well before Monday. She says she’s been focused on staying hydrated. She drinks water—and loads of it—and turns to hydrating skincare products like masks and the Estée Lauder Advanced Night Repair Serum (“It’s such a great way to set up your makeup and really make it glowy,” she says).

Baker loves pairing the serum with the classic Estée Lauder Double Wear Stay-in-Place Foundation, saying the skincare and makeup work together perfectly to give you that light touch. All you need is five dots—one on the forehead, one under each eye, and one on each upper cheek—for buildable coverage, she says.

“You just want to know that it's going to last the whole night because you don't get touched up,” adds Edgar-Jones. “It's so brilliant because it has this really natural finish, but it really stays and I love that.”

Of the many things to look forward to tonight, she’s most excited to see what Met Gala co-chair Beyoncé is going to wear, and hopefully run into her dear friend, Gracie Abrams. “It’s nice to know you have a really great pal in there,” Edgar-Jones says. “We’re going to go out dancing.”

One thing she says she won’t have to worry about through shimmies is her glam smudging. The makeup application for the evening starts with Double-Wear Foundation, which Edgar-Jones describes as a product she knows is going to “last the whole night.”

Speaking of going out dancing, one should never sleep on the Met after parties. Edgar-Jones says she isn’t too stressed about which ones to hit tonight, and her game plan is to just go with the flow. “I might do a little bit of the rounds and go everywhere. I'm just chasing the vibes tomorrow night—that's my major plan,” she says. “I'm really excited to get in, and have a big cocktail and lots of fries.”

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