AuctionsMay 06, 2025
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5 ‘Superfine’ Met Gala Jewelry Moments
Associate Editor Lauren McLemore shares her favorite looks from a night of style inspired by Black dandyism.
Opulent necklaces graced the necklines of celebrities on the 2025 Met Gala blue carpet, from event Co-Chair A$AP Rocky’s Bulgari 12-carat ruby and diamond necklace (left), to Kendall Jenner’s opulent Chopard diamond collar (center), and Coco Jones’ statement tanzanite and diamond necklace by India-based Manish Malhotra Jewellery (right).
Each year, the start of May signals the coming of several events I spend all year looking forward to—my birthday, the Kentucky Derby, peony season, and the Met Gala.
The annual event takes place at the Metropolitan Museum of Art as a fundraiser for its Costume Institute, and the theme of the evening is based on the institute’s upcoming exhibition.
This year’s spring exhibition, set to open Saturday, is “Superfine: Tailoring Black Style.”
Inspired by curator Monica Miller’s 2009 book, “Slaves to Fashion: Black Dandyism and the Styling of Black Diasporic Identity,” it’s the first Costume Institute exhibition dedicated to men’s style since 2003, when the museum opened “Bravehearts: Men in Skirts.”
The 2025 Met Gala dress code was Tailored for You, inviting guests to interpret menswear.
So, naturally, brooches were everywhere, from a pin featuring a lab-grown diamond made from tequila to unique vintage curations.
Celebrities brought their most dapper looks to the blue carpet, opting for all types of suits and accessorizing with canes and top hats, as well as elaborate statement necklaces, elegant diamond pieces and sizeable colored gemstones.
Here are a few jewelry moments from the 2025 gala that I still haven’t gotten over.
Massive Gemstone Necklaces
Speaking of all the great things about May, the month’s birthstone had quite the moment at the Met Gala when Priyanka Chopra Jonas stepped out in a showstopping emerald necklace from Bulgari.
The “Magnus” necklace features an emerald weighing more than 240 carats, the largest faceted stone ever set by the brand.
It’s part of Bulgari’s new “Polychroma” high jewelry collection, set to be officially unveiled later this month.
The annual event takes place at the Metropolitan Museum of Art as a fundraiser for its Costume Institute, and the theme of the evening is based on the institute’s upcoming exhibition.
This year’s spring exhibition, set to open Saturday, is “Superfine: Tailoring Black Style.”
Inspired by curator Monica Miller’s 2009 book, “Slaves to Fashion: Black Dandyism and the Styling of Black Diasporic Identity,” it’s the first Costume Institute exhibition dedicated to men’s style since 2003, when the museum opened “Bravehearts: Men in Skirts.”
The 2025 Met Gala dress code was Tailored for You, inviting guests to interpret menswear.
So, naturally, brooches were everywhere, from a pin featuring a lab-grown diamond made from tequila to unique vintage curations.
Celebrities brought their most dapper looks to the blue carpet, opting for all types of suits and accessorizing with canes and top hats, as well as elaborate statement necklaces, elegant diamond pieces and sizeable colored gemstones.
Here are a few jewelry moments from the 2025 gala that I still haven’t gotten over.
Massive Gemstone Necklaces
Speaking of all the great things about May, the month’s birthstone had quite the moment at the Met Gala when Priyanka Chopra Jonas stepped out in a showstopping emerald necklace from Bulgari.
The “Magnus” necklace features an emerald weighing more than 240 carats, the largest faceted stone ever set by the brand.
It’s part of Bulgari’s new “Polychroma” high jewelry collection, set to be officially unveiled later this month.
Priyanka Chopra Jonas in the “Magnus” emerald necklace in platinum with an octagonal emerald weighing more than 240 carats, carré diamonds, buff-top emeralds, round diamonds, and pavé-set diamonds
Anne Hathaway in Bulgari’s “Cosmic Vault” necklace in white gold featuring a 123-carat royal blue sugarloaf sapphire, 331 buff-top sapphires, and more than 85 total carats of diamonds
It’s not Chopra Jonas’ first time wearing a significant gemstone to the Met Gala.
The actress and producer debuted the “Bulgari Laguna Blu” diamond at the 2023 Met Gala just weeks before it sold at Sotheby’s, becoming the most valuable gem set into a piece of Bulgari jewelry ever sold at auction.
Other Bulgari brand ambassadors and “friends of the house” also wore pieces from the Polychroma collection at the Met Gala, including Anne Hathaway, who wore the “Cosmic Vault” necklace featuring a blue sugarloaf sapphire weighing more than 120 carats.
A Jewelry House Debut
Another jewelry debut took place on the Met Gala carpet on Monday, this time launching an entirely new venture.
“F1” actor Damson Idris premiered his new fine jewelry company Didris, showing up to the event in pieces he designed.
He paired his red Tommy Hilfiger suit with a brooch that featured, according to Vanity Fair, an 11-carat emerald with accenting tourmalines and tsavorites, as well as a pendant necklace in yellow and rose gold with green tourmaline.
Thoughtful Portraiture
If there was one celebrity I knew would nail the theme, it was Jeremy O. Harris, and it’s safe to say he delivered.
The Tony-nominated playwright and screenwriter, who recently wrote an article for Vogue about what it means to be a modern dandy and penned an essay for the “Presence” section of the exhibition’s catalog, got serious about the details of his Met Gala look.
The writer worked with jeweler Benjamin Hawkins on a custom one-of-a-kind ring featuring a 2.20-carat peach brown pear-shape diamond set in gold with a guilloche enamel base and a portrait of Harris in a diamond frame.
A shot of Jeremy O. Harris on the red carpet posted to Balmain’s Instagram story
Jeremy O. Harris’ ring features a portrait depicting him in in 19th-century attire
The ring references the stand used to hold the Order of St. George egg, jeweler Benjamin Hawkins said.
“The portrait of Jeremy features him in 19th-century attire wearing a silver collar and a pearl earring and is enameled using the same techniques used in the portraits of the tsars in Carl Faberge’s 19th- century eggs,” explained Hawkins.
“The crown on top of Jeremy is also in keeping with crowns used to top the enameled portraits of royals depicted on the original eggs.”
The engraving under the enamel references Frederick Douglass’ cane, Hawkins added, using a mix of fonts in keeping with the style of engraving at the time.
I also loved actress Adrienne Warren’s personal take on her jewels, opting for custom lockets by Maggie Simpkins featuring photos of her loved ones.
Pearly Whites
White was a trend at the Met Gala this year, with celebrities including Zendaya, Madonna, and Anna Sawai sporting all-white suits to the event.
Speaking of sporting, remember when Olympic track and field champion Noah Lyles wore the coolest diamond chain-link necklace while competing at the 2024 Summer Games?
“The crown on top of Jeremy is also in keeping with crowns used to top the enameled portraits of royals depicted on the original eggs.”
The engraving under the enamel references Frederick Douglass’ cane, Hawkins added, using a mix of fonts in keeping with the style of engraving at the time.
I also loved actress Adrienne Warren’s personal take on her jewels, opting for custom lockets by Maggie Simpkins featuring photos of her loved ones.
Pearly Whites
White was a trend at the Met Gala this year, with celebrities including Zendaya, Madonna, and Anna Sawai sporting all-white suits to the event.
Speaking of sporting, remember when Olympic track and field champion Noah Lyles wore the coolest diamond chain-link necklace while competing at the 2024 Summer Games?
It turns out, the star athlete’s style extends beyond the track. He hit the Met Gala blue carpet in a South Sea pearl necklace by Ana Khouri that, I have to say, is very dandy indeed.
Yvonne Orji in Yoko London’s white gold South Sea pearl earrings
Another pearl look worth a mention—“Insecure” star Yvonne Orji’s pearl earrings by Yoko London, a perfect addition to her sewing supplies-studded blazer.
Diamonds Down The Back
Diamonds certainly took center stage at the gala this year and there was no holding back on big, flashy pieces.
However, my personal favorite was one of the more understated pieces of the night.
Kerry Washington wearing this Chopard necklace from the brand's Haute Joaillerie collection featuring 120.16-carats of diamonds, styled to drape down her back, was such a moment.
When done well, this style will never not be a classy look. Chef’s kiss.
A close second favorite was Kendall Jenner, also in Chopard. Her elaborate necklace, seen in the header image, featuring more than 85 total carats of diamonds set in 18-karat white gold, made me pause the livestream twice for a closer view.
There’s always an experimental element to the looks at Met Gala, and watching attendees push the boundaries of the theme is what makes it so exciting.
As was evident on the carpet, this year’s theme proved particularly powerful.
Ahead of the gala, Vogue published an explainer on Black dandyism that reads, in part, “The sharp suit, the polished shoes, the bow tie—these were not just fashion choices; they were ways of asserting one’s right to exist on their own terms.
“In a racially segregated America, the Black dandy’s outfit became a form of resistance, an elegant middle finger to a society that sought to define them by race, not character.”
As in most creative industries, we see rule-breaking in jewelry often, but the empowered self-expression on the Met Gala carpet this year was inspiring.
I loved this blurb from Nastya Ivlieva’s (@lostinjewels) take on three on-theme looks: “That dandy spirit of ‘I created myself.’ Every ruler, every tequila shard, every brushstroke in that tiny portrait all saying the same thing: You don’t get to define me.”
I couldn’t have said it better myself.
There’s always an experimental element to the looks at Met Gala, and watching attendees push the boundaries of the theme is what makes it so exciting.
As was evident on the carpet, this year’s theme proved particularly powerful.
Ahead of the gala, Vogue published an explainer on Black dandyism that reads, in part, “The sharp suit, the polished shoes, the bow tie—these were not just fashion choices; they were ways of asserting one’s right to exist on their own terms.
“In a racially segregated America, the Black dandy’s outfit became a form of resistance, an elegant middle finger to a society that sought to define them by race, not character.”
As in most creative industries, we see rule-breaking in jewelry often, but the empowered self-expression on the Met Gala carpet this year was inspiring.
I loved this blurb from Nastya Ivlieva’s (@lostinjewels) take on three on-theme looks: “That dandy spirit of ‘I created myself.’ Every ruler, every tequila shard, every brushstroke in that tiny portrait all saying the same thing: You don’t get to define me.”
I couldn’t have said it better myself.
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