Blunt micro bangs and gelled swirls: At the 2025 Met Gala the fringe was firmly in focus

Pamela Anderson sent social feeds into a frenzy when she paired a silver Tory Burch gown with a brand-new chin-skimming bob and razor-straight micro fringe, trading her signature beach waves for something altogether sharper. She was not alone. Zoe Saldaña unveiled a cropped bob with pin-straight baby bangs that skimmed mid-forehead, giving her Thom Browne tuxedo dress a mod kick. And co-chair Anna Wintour? Her perennial blunt bob-and-bang combo was (of course) in attendance.

Call them kiss curls, finger waves or gelled swirls – glossy coils stamped onto foreheads became the evening’s most photographed detail. Simone Biles wore a swooping S-shape that nodded to 1920s Harlem nightlife, while Sydney Sweeney softened her low bun with twin curlicues that looped artfully across her temples. Ayo Edebiri covered two trends at once, gelling her micro fringe into the perfect curl.

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At the softer end of the spectrum Blackpink’s Lisa balanced her trouser-less Louis Vuitton blazer with a tousled '90s bun, caramel ribbons of hair grazing her cheekbones. Nicole Kidman folded a newly cropped pixie into a faux chignon, leaving a loose wave to brush one eyebrow, while South African singer Tyla channelled Josephine Baker with blonde pin-curls stacked into a sculptural knot, an asymmetric fringe lending instant old-Hollywood allure.