Kim Kardashian is known for pushing the boundaries with her daring Met Gala looks – and last night’s outfit might be her most extreme one yet.
The reality star, 43, shocked onlookers with her astonishingly tiny waist at the star-studded event at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York.
The mother-of-four, who was once famous for her curvaceous figure, showcased an extreme body transformation in a custom silver armoured Maison Margiela corset and sheer lacy skirt.
The SKIMS founder completed her shocking ensemble, which was designed by John Galliano, with a pair of towering silver heels and a grey knitted cardigan.
However, the show-stopping outfit sparked concern from social media users – with one writing on X: ‘How many ribs did Kim get removed????’
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Pictured: Kim Kardashian showcased an extreme body transformation in a custom silver armoured Maison Margiela corset and sheer lacy skirt at last night’s Met Gala
Kim Kardashian flaunts her TINY waist at the 2024 Met Gala
‘Jesus, she’s gonna be in the hospital by the end of the night,’ another said. A third wrote: ‘Kim Kardashian does it again. I wonder how she breathes in that.’
So how DID Kim Kardashian squeeze into John Galliano’s tiny corset? From breathing lessons to crash diets, here FEMAL reveals of the extreme lengths the star has previously gone to to fit into her Met Gala looks.
Breathing Lessons
The reality star is no stranger to corseting – and previously revealed the extreme lengths she’s willing to go to achieve the results she wants.
In 2019, Kim wore a corseted dress by Thierry Mugler that took eight months to complete and was made to look as though she was dripping diamonds.
Following the event, Kim revealed on Instagram that she had to undertake corset breathing lessons to fit into the extremely figure-hugging dress, which was inspired by Sophia Loren in the film Boy on a Dolphin.
She gushed: ‘I learned so much about couture from this genius man [Thierry Mugler], it was beyond couture, it was art! 7 months in the making and fittings in Montreal, Paris and LA.
‘Corset breathing lessons from none other than Mr. Pearl. It was worth it all!!!’
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The SKIMS founder completed her shocking ensemble, which was designed by John Galliano, with a pair of towering silver heels and a grey knitted cardigan
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The reality star (pictured), 43, shocked onlookers with her astonishingly tiny waist at the star-studded event at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York
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Kim Kardashian previously took breathing lessons from expert corset-maker Mr Pearl ahead of the 2019 Met Gala (pictured)
Mr Pearl – whose full name is Mark Erskine-Pullin is a world-renowned corset-maker who worked with Thierry Mugler since 1989 and went on to collaborate with Vivienne Westwood and Alexander McQueen.
The designer – who reportedly has an 18-inch waist and wears corsets everyday of the week – has also created corsets for Dita von Teese, Kylie Minogue and the late Pete Burns.
Although Kim has not confirmed if she underwent a corset breathing refresher lesson, Mr Corset has previously worked with John Galliano, who designed her Met Gala outfit this year.
In an interview with Dazed in 2019, Mr Pearl raved about what he considers the benefits of wearing corsets.
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Pictured: Mark Erskine Pullin – a.k.a Mr Pearl – in the 1990s. The corset-maker reportedly has an 18-inch waist
He said: ‘It elongates the spine. It places everything in order, in a way. Your mind also has to be in order to wear it, and so this is a very positive feeling. I would say it enhances one on a daily basis in a very positive way – a positive frame of mind.
‘It also prevents you from becoming unduly stressed, because if you become stressed the corset can really aggravate you. In a way, you can’t let yourself go there. So it sort of balances you, really, which I think is important in today’s world. Because everything is all over the place and it’s so stressful.’
Wearing SKIMS shapewear
What’s more, it’s also possible that the Met Gala outfit was an opportunity for Kim to plug her shapewear brand SKIMS, which she founded in 2019.
After all, Kim regularly models the brand both on social media and at red carpet events.
In an interview with the Los Angeles Times, Kim revealed that she wore SKIMS’ core control shorts and a bespoke Mr Pearl corset for the Met Gala Mugler look.
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Pictured: Kim Kardashian in an advert for her shapewear brand SKIMS, which she founded in 2019
Pictured: Kim Kardashian famously wore her own SKIMS shapewear at the People’s Choice Awards in 2019
She told the publication: ‘We had to stitch them and tailor them a little bit because they were early samples, but that was so cool because it really shaped everything.
‘I couldn’t have worn that outfit without it.’
A few months later, she wore SKIMS’ high-waisted bonded shorts underneath the Versace snakeskin dress she wore to the People’s Choice Awards.
Earlier this month, Kim modelled a skintight spaghetti strap dress from the brand’s new cotton line.
In March 2021, Kim opened up about what she set out to achieve with SKIMS and why she loves wearing the designs.
Speaking to Vogue Arabia, Kim explained: ‘I used to cut up and sew different styles of shapewear together to create the silhouette I wanted because I could never find the shape I was looking for.
‘Other brands would either flatten my curves, pinch into my skin or roll down. I would also dye pieces with tea bags to match my skin tone as there was such a limited offering of colors on the market.
‘All this experimenting made me notice a gap in the market and realise that there hadn’t been any innovation in this space for so long. It felt like the perfect time to bring a fresh perspective to the shapewear industry that would feel relevant for today.’
Crash Dieting?
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Pictured: Kim Kardashian seen wearing Marilyn Monroe’s famous ‘happy birthday Mr President’ dress at the 2022 Met Gala
Kim Kardashian struggles to get into Marilyn Monroe gown
In May 2022, Kim Kardashian famously revealed that she went on a crash diet to fit into Marilyn Monroe’s iconic sequin dress, which the late Hollywood star wore to sing happy birthday to JFK in 1962.
The reality star previously admitted that she cried when she couldn’t squeeze into the historic dress during the first fitting.
Months later in an episode of The Kardashians which aired in November, she even called herself a ‘shapeshifter’ as she did all that she could to fit into the frock.
On the Met Gala red carpet, Kim told La La Anthony, who hosted Vogue’s livestream, that when the dress didn’t fit, she was still determined to lose weight to get into it.
She explained: ‘I had this idea to put it on and to try it on, and they came with armed guards and gloves. I tried it on and it didn’t fit me, and so I looked at them and said give me like three weeks, and I had to lose 16lbs, down today, to be able to fit this.
‘It was such a challenge, it was like a role, I was determined to fit it.’
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The reality star (pictured) previously admitted that she cried when she couldn’t squeeze into the historic dress during the first fitting
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Kim Kardashian later said she thought she would fit into Marilyn’s dress as the star ‘was extremely curvy’
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Iconic: Kim Kardashian transformed into Marilyn Monroe for the Met Gala at the Metropolitan Museum of Art in New York City in 2022; as she arrived in the late star’s $5 million gown she wore in 1962 (right) to wish President John F. Kennedy a happy birthday
Kim later told Vogue she went on a ruthlessly strict diet deadline in order to slim down and wear the dress to the Met, admitting she hadn’t eaten ‘carbs and sugar in three weeks.’
She said she thought she would fit into Marilyn’s dress as the star ‘was extremely curvy.’
Kim said: ‘I imagined I might be smaller in some places where she was bigger and bigger in places where she was smaller. So when it didn’t fit me I wanted to cry because it can’t be altered at all.’
Speaking about her she lost weight, Kim explained: ‘I would wear a sauna suit twice a day, run on the treadmill, completely cut out all sugar and all carbs, and just eat the cleanest veggies and protein. I didn’t starve myself, but I was so strict.’
Met Gala fans criticised Kim’s decision to crash diet for a dress, with one tweeting: ‘The kim kardashian weight loss thing is f***ed up and NOT okay to talk about on national television where the youth will find it and bring it to therapy to defend their eating disorders.’
Another critic posted on Twitter: ‘Kim said she’s been avoiding carbs and as soon as the night is over she’s ordering pizza. Eek, restricting yourself for dramatic weight loss to basically binge afterwards isn’t healthy or worth it. We are all enough as we are.’
‘Kim Kardashian looked beautiful at the Met Gala, but she has promoted unrealistic body standards for YEARS (diet teas, waist trainers, $$$ procedures, etc) and her talking about losing 16 Ibs in 3 weeks to fit into Marilyn’s dress (which no one should get to wear) is appalling,’ agreed another.
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Kim Kardashian looked ready to join the cast of Yellowstone as the show finishes shooting its fifth and final season. The 43-year-old reality TV diva was seen in a cowgirl hat and boots while posing on a vintage car at a California ranch
Another pointed out Kim’s position of responsibility as a mother of four, writing: ‘North West and my daughter are just days apart in age and I’m struggling to comprehend how Kim K can be at all comfortable sharing her rapid weight loss over the last 3 weeks, it’s irresponsible.’
It’s possible Kim embarked on another weight loss plan ahead of the Met Gala – as the star revealed she is now a size XS in SKIMS last month.
The 43-year-old reality TV diva was seen in a cowgirl hat and boots – which she wore the day before in another SKIMS shoot – while posing on a vintage car at a California ranch.
The beauty was modeling her latest nude-toned lingerie for her blockbuster brand SKIMS as she used the lush rolling hills as a backdrop.
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One interesting fashion choice that the A-lister made was wrapping herself in a grey knit cropped sweater
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Kim Kardashian’s astonishingly small waist was even more obvious from the back of the designer dress
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Kim Kardashian – who has previously described herself as a ‘shapeshifter’ – has her hourglass curves were on display last night
‘Drive off into the sunset in spring’s sexiest Cotton – coming tomorrow, May 1 at 9AM PT / 12PM ET. @KimKardashian wears the Cotton Rib Low Back Onesie, size XS, in Stone,’ the SKIMS caption read.
The Costume Institute’s spring exhibition falls on the first Monday in May every year and is held at New York City‘s Metropolitan Museum of Art.
This year the event is titled Sleeping Beauties: Reawakening Fashion while the dress code is The Garden of Time.
Jennifer Lopez, Zendaya, Bad Bunny and Chris Hemsworth are this year’s co-chairs. Also on the committee is Vogue’s Anna Wintour.
The honorary chairs for the evening are Loewe creative director Jonathan Anderson and TikTok CEO Shou Zi Chew.
‘This year’s co-chairs reflect a variety of career achievements, and all have distinct style histories with the Met Gala,’ Vogue shared.
The showcase will feature approximately 250 items drawn from The Costume Institute’s permanent collection – with many of the pieces too fragile to ever be worn again.
The pieces will all be displayed using elements such as AI, GCI, and more while playing up themes of land, sea, and sky.
‘It is very much an ode to nature and the emotional poetics of fashion,’ said Andrew Bolton, Wendy Yu Curator in Charge of The Costume Institute, of the upcoming exhibition.
