‘It’s electrifying’: how designers race to prepare Met Gala outfits for the A-list

When Aimee got invited to the Gala, she let her stylist, Felicity Kay, know that she wanted to work with me on it. We’ve followed each other on Instagram for ages. I spent a few days doing sketches and sent them over. Both Gabby and Aimee chose the first sketch that I did – maybe my gut instinct was quite good. Aimee’s jacket is made of this beautiful wool; her look was informed by a few things: the sapeurs of the Congo, references of Black dandies from the States, as well as a picture of Diana Ross where she’s wearing a suit with a train at the back. Her socks have flowers on which represent the national flowers of Nigeria, as I’m Nigerian. It’s really chic, a spin on traditional tailoring. She’s wearing Cartier brooches on the lapels. At the hotel fittings, [everyone] was running around with suitcases and garment bags; it’s like Times Square inside, but it’s electrifying.

With Gabby, I’d gone to see the American Vogue team when I was in New York last November. I told them I really wanted to do the Met. [Then] they ask to see sketches. I sent about 15 different ideas and mood boards for each one. And they came back and said we’d love to do something with Gabby Thomas (the US gold 200m Olympic champion). I looked at Jacob Lawrence’s Harlem Renaissance series, which is one of my favourite collections of paintings of all time.

We pulled the red colour from that. The look features structural curves on the shoulder which reflects the track she runs on – she always beats people on the curve. When I started to draw it, I was looking at a picture of [the model] Iman wearing a three-piece white suit, with a halterneck. For the skirt, I was thinking about [the shapes] often worn at Nigerian weddings, they really accentuate your hips. It’s all silk and there are over 10,000 beads in the whole look. On the train, there’s beaded Cherokee flowers which are the symbol for Georgia, where Gabby lives. This has been my life, I’ve been waking up in the night panicking, but it’s been amazing. It’s been a dream of mine for 20 years.

The theme was so on point for me, I had to be part of it. Having people think about what they’re wearing, to consider every single proponent that puts together a look, that’s what makes a dandy. At first, we had emails from the Costume Institute requesting garments for the exhibition which features three of my pieces. With Nick Jonas, the request came from Vogue. He’s part of a show that Bee Shaffer, Anna Wintour’s daughter, was producing, and he sat on the Vogue table. We dressed a few other people and had an atelier set up in our hotel with special tailors to assist. We did two fittings with Nick. I was looking at 18th-century paintings and how fluid the necklines were; I wanted to have a scout collar which wraps around. His second look for the afterparty was based around zoot suits; it’s in a green pinstripe. He loved them at the fitting, saying: “This is amazing.” Anna Wintour signed it off.

Stefon Diggs [the American footballer] is very much in touch with his own style. His request came through quite last-minute. He said he wanted to feel like James Brown; I wanted to make sure he looked as suave as he did at his previous Met Galas. He’s got a faux fur cape which trails the floor, his trousers have an exaggerated pin dart in the front in black nubuck. We’ve pulled it all together in about two weeks, which isn’t recommended! I haven’t stopped, but it’s all worth it. It’s a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.

My relationship with Leon started last year. I [have huge] respect [for] his artistry, his music, and music has been a big part of my brand since the beginning. We looked at the research imagery: James Baldwin, Miles Davis, a lot of 70s references with the cut and the fit of the outfit. We worked on a pinstripe which we produced in Yorkshire using three yarn colours of a dark indigo, navy and orange, with a hand-knitted cravat and handkerchief in the pocket square, which is referencing a Mali mud cloth design.

[At first] we did sketches which we shared to Leon's team, his stylist and Vogue, where Anna signed off the design, and their feedback was that they were really happy with what we created together.  We worked on two fittings: one two days before the Met, where we went through the cuts, the tailoring, the fits, the measurements; then a final fitting on the day of the Gala at the Chelsea hotel, where we put everything together and created the final piece.

Exhibiting a collection look in the exhibition, as well as dressing Leon, has created a really powerful moment for myself and the brand, and I'm very humbled to be part of this experience. To me, Black Dandyism is a powerful representation of craftsmanship, rebellion and culture. I hope the bespoke outfit I’ve created reflects a harmony between our crafts and tells a shared story.