Lili Reinhart's Hairstylist Reveals The Historical Inspiration Behind Her Met Gala Hair — EXCLUSIVE

When it comes to major fashion events like the annual Met Gala, I typically turn to celebs I've loved for years to deliver the night's best looks. Style icons like Sarah Jessica Parker, Lady Gaga, and Blake Lively are guaranteed to dress to theme and serve crowd-favorite fits, but this year, there are definitely some ~newer~ starlettes on the rise giving me a lot to love. Exhibit A, of course, is Lili Reinhart's 2019 Met Gala hair and dress, which are somehow even more breathtaking than her debut look at last year's Gala. I love Reinhart most for her genuine personality, her quick, funny wit, and so much more, but for tonight, I'll sing the praises of her style alone, because girl came ready to slay the Best Dressed lists.

OK, maybe Reinhart isn't exactly a new celeb anymore, but I associate her solely with Riverdale, so in my mind she's still a bit of a red carpet newbie, especially when it comes to high-fashion affairs like the Met Gala. That doesn't meet she's had trouble adjusting, though — in fact, her look last year was one of my favorites. If you need me to refresh your memory, Reinhart wore a glitzy mini gown with a long train by H&M, proving that she really is the girl next door.

Nothing I've bought in H&M has ever looked this damn chic, but go off, girl:

She climbed the steps with boyfriend Cole Sprouse, and their love single-handedly melted my cold heart:

Besides the fact that I loved how she looked, I also knew Reinhart was pumped to be at her first Met Gala, which made me like her debut ensemble even more. Prior to walking the steps, tweets from 2017 surfaced in which Reinhart said she'd one day attend the event only "in her dreams." Her dreams came true, and I love a happy ending with a side of silver minidress.

This year, Reinhart lived her Met Gala dreams a second time, strutting her stuff in an off-the-shoulder turquoise Salvatore Ferragamo top and shorts with a long, long train:

She served modern-day Marie Antoinette realness as she strutted her stuff alongside boo Cole Sprouse:

Love. Love. Love. Did I mention I love this look? The ensemble is major, but what really gives it its campy flair is that updo and that pigmented pinky flush on her cheeks. Personally, the hair is my favorite part, and it was styled by David Stanwell using Dove products. "The inspiration for Lili’s look was a Marie Antoinette/Versailles vibe," Stanwell told Elite Daily. "We wanted an editorial fashion forward version of a take on something quite grand."

If you want to copy Reinhart's vibes, Stanwell broke down an easy way to imitate the look. "To achieve [the] look, if you have natural curls, let [it] dry natural and just piece by piece back comb and pin in [to the] crown of [the] head," he told Elite Daily. "Just keep pinning and creating the wave as you go. If you have naturally curly hair like Lili does, let your hair dry naturally, then use a mousse to boost roots," he said, recommending the Dove Style + Care Volume & Fullness Mousse ($5, walmart.com) as a guaranteed way to achieve "effortless lift!" Noted.

After that, it's all about creating the shape. "Using a curling iron, bend pieces of hair around the iron to tighten waves, and pin strands up at the crown of your head to complete the look," advises Stanwell. "As a final touch, spray Dove Style+Care Compressed Micro Mist Extra Hold Hairspray ($8, walmart.com) all over hair to keep strands in place," he says, and the look will be complete.

If you do all that correctly, it should look something like this:

Is this her best look yet? TBH, it might be. That's not to say she hasn't wowed me in the past, though, and I don't just mean at last year's Met. Reinhart has solidified herself as a red carpet darling, and I've honestly never seen her show up to anything with a hair out of place.

She served lacy gray lewks at the Five Feet Apart premiere this year, in support of boyfriend Cole Sprouse:

And her fluffy Khlyie Couture dress from the Golden Globes was ~red hot~ if you know what I mean:

And to solidify her red carpet queen status, let me rewind to the 2018 Teen Choice Awards, because this hot pink sequin moment was honestly everything:

I love that Reinhart always takes risks and pulls them off with a sophisticated ease — it's what made her such a great candidate to slay this year's campy theme, after all. TBH, I'm already excited to see what she wears next year, since she's proven that she'll nail it every single time.