You Can Officially Purchase This Fashion Girl's Met Gala Dress at Mango
In case you missed it, turned off all social media, and talked to absolutely no one last night or today, the 2019 Met Gala was last night. To no one's surprise, the red carpet looks were out of this world—but more so than usual thanks to this year's theme, Camp: Notes on Fashion. We saw gowns and getups draped on celebrities from all the heavy-hitting designers including Gucci, Saint Laurent, Versace, and more, but there was one fashion girl's dress that deserves a moment in the spotlight for other reasons.
For the first time in the history of the brand, the fast-fashion retailer Mango was represented on the Met Gala red carpet. The brand dressed fashion icon Sofia Sanchez de Betak in a gown customized in collaboration with Mango's design team, Sofia, and her stylist, Mimi Cuttrell. Unless you took the time to scroll through our detailed red carpet coverage here, you might have missed the fact that Sofia's dress is from Mango, simply because it fit right in with the theme and the dress code of the evening.
The unique thing about this collaboration is that the retailer has announced it will be producing a similar version of Sofia's dress in addition to a very complementary capsule collection. All of this, including the almost identical version of Sofia's dress, will be available for purchase on June 3. Sofia's replica dress will be priced at $499, and the other pieces in the capsule will be priced anywhere between $100 and $130. Met Gala looks for under $500? Now that's something we never thought we'd be reading about.
Ahead, check out photos of Sofia on the red carpet last night, some behind-the-scenes shots of her getting ready, and read our exclusive Q&A with her where she talks about the collaboration process, her day leading up to the Met, and more.
Can you tell me a little bit about your experience working with Mango on your Met Gala dress?
It was definitely a challenge because time was limited and we made it happen, but it came out really well and exciting. We wanted to have the dress and also to be able to sell it in stores (online and the New York flagship) so that people could buy a red carpet look at Mango. It was a challenge for the brand to be able to produce this—we just finished the dress, and the timing was quite short. It was fun because the theme of the event was camp, and we were using the concept of dressing as a mango—the colors, the accessories—so it’s quite an ironic concept, and it came out beautifully, still feminine and elegant and at the same time funny and like a wink of the eye.
What inspired the dress?
We were inspired by the mango fruit itself, and we were making a full look out of it.
How did you accessorize it?
We definitely went for statement accessories—huge earrings, kind of Tropicana, sparkly and fruity (mango of course!). We did a very cute sparkly clutch with a mango shape and maybe something in the hair.
Walk us through your Met Gala day—from morning to arriving on the red carpet.
The weekend started with yoga and stretching and Pilates with my trainer, followed by a facial. Then I did my hair color, a haircut, nails—and then on the day of the Met Gala I did interviews, hair and makeup, photo shoots, videos, Instagram takeovers, you name it.
Then when we were ready, we headed uptown around 5 p.m. or 6 p.m. because there is a lot of traffic around the arrival, and they give you a precise timeslot to arrive. So I got there at around 6:30 p.m. and I walked up the stairs. Once you arrive at the top, you meet the hosts and then you go to the exhibition and the cocktail party, which is followed by dinner and the party and the after-party and then finally going back home!
What is one thing you can share with us that no one tells you about attending the Met?
I think that some people don’t realize that there are many people attending that are not on the red carpet and not necessarily in fashion that are extremely interesting people to meet and have the pleasure to have dinner with. And also that there is a great exhibition, people don’t really talk so much about that but the Costume Institute exhibition is amazing always.
What has been your most memorable Met Gala moment ever?
I guess my first red carpet was super intense. It was my first time, and I was super scared, but thankfully I didn’t fall or break a leg (laughs). Also on my way to my second Met Gala with my team in the car where there was also my best friend, I told them I was a few weeks pregnant, so it was quite exciting and I was wearing a dress where you could see my belly so when I see these pictures now I smile at the thought that my baby was a tiny, tiny little thing in my belly.
Next up, be sure to check out the G-string thong dress Hailey Bieber wore to the Met Gala last night.
Lauren Eggertsen is currently the editorial director of Who What Wear and has worked at the company for over eight years, where she started as an associate editor and has since worked her way up. Lauren has over 10 years of experience in the fashion editorial space, starting her career with internships at Marc Jacobs, Marie Claire, and The Zoe Report, where she was later hired as their editorial assistant. Lauren has worked in the Los Angeles and New York Who What Wear offices but currently calls L.A. home. It is here where she leads and manages Who What Wear's fashion team and oversees all day-to-day editorial content and large tentpole moments. This includes all of the runway, trend, and shopping-driven content that ultimately helps to build a strong brand reputation within the industry. Lauren's role also includes helping to set the fashion direction for all original photo shoots and often styles many of the celebrity cover shoots, including big names like Kaia Gerber, Normani, and Kristen Stewart.
She has also attended multiple fashion weeks, including New York, London, Milan, and Paris, where her personal style has been featured on sites such as Vogue, Harpers Bazaar, and Elle. She prides herself on discovering and supporting small brands and on her knack for a good vintage shopping find. When she isn't working, she enjoys researching and dining at reputable restaurants around both her neighborhood and the globe.
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