Charli XCX's Met Gala Hair Smelled Like Flowers, Too

It'll come as a surprise to no one that Charli XCX doesn't sacrifice her personality for a red carpet look.

"Charli always wants to feel like herself, but elevated. Confident, cool, and not overly done," celebrity hairstylist Matt Benns tells Byrdie.

Her style on Monday, May 4 was a fantastic example. For this year's Met Gala, part of that red-carpet-worthy elevation came via a hair perfume that brought a 4D element to the gorgeous resin iris (paying homage to Van Gogh’s Irises!) on the front of the artist's Saint Laurent gown. But the hair itself—based in her natural hair texture and secured at the very top of her crown—also sold the story of "Charli as art."

Ahead, Benns shares exactly how the look came to be—and how you can copy it yourself at home.

Charli XCX's Half-Up, Half-Down Hair

Appearing on the red carpet in a seemingly plain black gown—the background info on that iris really sold it—Charli's long, dark waves were pulled back and fashioned into a tumbling half-up, half-down style.

"For Charli’s look, we were inspired by the resin flower on her dress," explains Benns. "We wanted to do a half-up, half-down style that still felt true to Charli’s natural, lived-in texture. It had to feel effortless, but still powerful enough for the carpet. The height at the crown gave it that drama, while the texture kept it feeling like Charli."

How They Got the Look

When prepping Charli's hair for the big evening, Benns started things off with WavyTalk's Smooth Barrier Heat Protectant Spray. "That gave us a good foundation to diffuse and then curl to complete the look," he says. The diffusion arrived via the Wavytalk Turblow Pro hair dryer, which brought out her natural texture.

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Once the hair was dry, he created the foundation for the style by gathering everything from the ear and above and securing it tightly. Her natural waves were made even bigger by swapping between the Wavytalk Power Wave and Curlmaker Pro’s 3/4 inch and 1/2 inch irons. Then he teased, added some texture spray, and used "a nice strong hairspray to finish and have her Met Gala ready."

"Do not overthink it. Start with your natural texture, then enhance it," he explains. "Pull the half up section high on the crown, secure it tight, and then add movement with different size irons. Tease only where you need lift, and finish with texture spray so the hair has airiness instead of looking too polished."

The Final Step

As mentioned, Charli's hair gave off the scent of roses thanks to the "final mood piece:" a spritz of hair perfume.

"The final touch was the Atomic Rose hair perfume from Inito Parfums Privés. I misted it through the hair right before she stepped out so she looked great and felt great," says Benns. "It added a layer to the look, something you do not necessarily see in the photo, but you feel when you are getting ready. It makes the whole moment feel more complete."