Stella McCartney, Vrai Sustainable Jewelry Met Gala Collaboration: Details

Stella McCartney made a statement on the Met Gala red carpet.

The fashion designer took to the steps of the Metropolitan Museum of Art on Monday evening for the annual Met Gala with her guests Cara Delevingne, Ed Sheeran and his wife Cherry Seaborn, all wearing fine jewelry from McCartney’s new collaboration with lab-grown jeweler Vrai. The celebrities wear unique pieces as well as other fine jewelry styles available for purchase.

“The theme of the Met Gala, especially this year, ‘Sleeping Beauties: Reawakening Fashion,’ can be interpreted in different ways by different designers,” said Vrai President Mona Akhavi. “For us, that interpretation was that there needed to be an awakening in the fashion and luxury industry to do things in a better way. We have done pioneering work, especially in the diamond industry. We have been very vocal about the harmful effects of mining and have drawn inspiration from that. The core value was the driving force behind this. It just matched this year’s exhibition theme; a more perfect harmony could not have been.”

McCartney echoed this sentiment, saying: “We are both passionate about advocating sustainability and creating more transparency in the fashion industry. It’s been a long time coming, and this was the perfect year to collaborate for the Met Gala.”

The Delevingne Met Gala red carpet look is perhaps the most striking of McCartney’s collaborations with Vrai. The model walked the carpet wearing a backless hooded bodice designed with more than 500 lab-grown Vrai diamonds. According to Akhavi, the jewelry has the emissions equivalent of recycling 11.3 tons of waste.

While the headpiece is a one-of-a-kind creation, Delevingne’s Vrai arm cuff, made with 129 carats of lab-grown diamonds, will be available for purchase through the collaboration.

“Cara’s look is the first time we have created a high jewelery piece where the diamonds are worn on the body,” Akhavi said. “That positions us in a place where we can be seen as a luxury jewelry brand – just like some other heritage houses that are pushing the boundaries of what jewelry means and what diamonds mean when it comes to creativity and design. It really expresses that person’s individualistic style and self-expression.”

Sheeran also wore a unique creation for the 2024 Met Gala. The Grammy-winning musician walked the red carpet wearing a Vrai diamond-encrusted bow tie, diamond cufflinks and a ring-cut diamond lapel pin. Seaborn also wore several necklaces, earrings and bracelets from the collaboration.

“We are very inspired by taking Mother Earth and want to showcase truly handmade, unique looks from 100 percent sustainable materials,” Akhavi said of the collaboration. “Of course, Stella uses innovative textiles that are cruelty-free and ethical, so it made sense to combine that with our Vrai-grown diamonds.”

McCartney himself also wears a range of styles from the Vrai and Stella McCartney collaboration.

McCartney’s collaboration with Vrai is ongoing. Following the debut of their Met Gala collaboration, the fashion designer and jeweler will release another sustainable jewelry collection at McCartney’s Spring 2025 runway show this fall.