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How Lauren Sanchez Helped Design Blue Origin’s Flight Suits

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How Lauren Sanchez Helped Design Blue Origin’s Flight Suits

What do you wear for your first trip to space?

If you are like most people, probably whatever spacesuit or astronaut outfit the company (or government agency) you are flying with provides. However, if you are Lauren Sánchez — journalist, pilot, children’s book author, philanthropist and fiancée of Jeff Bezos, the second-richest man on the planet — you have another idea. You think, “Let’s reimagine the flight suit.”

“Usually, you know, these suits are made for a man,” Ms. Sánchez said recently on a video call from the West Coast. “Then they get tailored to fit a woman.” Or not tailored: an all-female spacewalk, planned in 2019, had to be canceled because NASA did not have two spacesuits that fit two women. (Instead they sent out one woman and one man.)

But Ms. Sánchez is part of the first all-female flight since Russia sent Valentina Tereshkova on a solo flight in 1963. She will be going up on a Blue Origin flight with a pop star (Katy Perry), a journalist (Gayle King), two scientist/activists (Amanda Nguyen, Aisha Bowe) and a film producer (Kerianne Flynn). Feeling like yourself is what makes you feel powerful, she said, and you shouldn’t have to sacrifice that because space has been — well, a mostly male space. Even if you are a space tourist, rather than a full-fledged astronaut.

So five months ago, Ms. Sánchez got in touch with Fernando Garcia and Laura Kim, the co-founders of the brand Monse, who are also creative directors of Oscar de la Renta (Mr. Garcia and Ms. Kim made Ms Sánchez’s 2024 Met Gala outfit). She wanted to know if they would work with Blue Origin, Mr. Bezos’ space company.

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“I was like: right away!” Mr. Garcia said over Zoom.

The result of their collaboration will be unveiled on Monday, when Ms. Sánchez and crew climb into the Blue Origin rocket in West Texas, and take off for their approximately 11-minute trip past the Kármán line and into zero gravity.

“I think the suits are elegant,” Ms. Sánchez said, “but they also bring a little spice to space.”

When Gayle King tried hers on, she said, she loved it. She thought the suits looked “professional and feminine at the same time.”

Which, when it came to space, happened to be “something we had never seen before,” she said.

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The Monse Blue Origin suits, which were produced by Creative Character Engineering, look like a cross between “Star Trek” (on top) and the outfits Elvis wore in his Vegas years (on the bottom) and are made of a flame-resistant stretch neoprene, rather than the shiny polyester-looking fabric of the original, baggier, Blue Origin suits, as modeled by Mr. Bezos on a flight in 2021. (Ms. Sánchez helped design those suits as well.)

Still, “We really didn’t know where to start,” Mr. Garcia said. “There’s no precedent. All the references are men’s spacesuits.”

Because Blue Origin fliers do not go out into space, Mr. Garcia and Ms. Kim did not need to incorporate the life-support system of the classic astronaut suit, but they still had to work within technical specifications.

“Simplicity was important, and comfort, and fit,” Mr. Garcia said. “But we also wanted something that was a little dangerous, like a motocross outfit. Or a ski suit. Flattering and sexy.”

Ms. Kim added: “I, personally, would want to look very slim and fitted in my outfit.”

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They batted ideas back and forth with Ms. Sánchez. “We even had a meeting on what underwear Lauren is going to wear,” Mr. Garcia said.

“Skims!” Ms. Sánchez responded.

The result is a body-con jumpsuit, with a compression layer, a slight mandarin collar, a dual-zip front that can look like it is open to the waist, a belt, and a zipper on the side of each calf, so the wearer can create a flared effect according to their own taste. “You’ll be able to zip or unzip,” Mr. Garcia said. (Ms. King said she liked the bell-bottom idea.)

The suits also feature a darker, ombre effect on the sides that works to shade the body, almost like trompe l’oeil. There are small pockets on the arms, but leg pockets were dropped because they were too bulky, Ms. Kim said. Every crew member was three-D body-scanned so the suits could be made exactly to their measurements.

“I almost put a corset in your suit, because I know you wouldn’t have been against it,” Mr. Garcia said to Ms. Sánchez.

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“I probably wouldn’t have,” she said. But “we’re going to be in zero gravity. So we have to be able to move.” When Ms. Sánchez first tried the prototype on, she said, “I was stretching. I was doing a back bend. I was like, ‘OK, let’s make sure it doesn’t split up the back in space.’”

Mr. Garcia said when he saw the suit on he thought, “Damn, you look good. You’re going up in space looking hot.”

Amanda Nguyen called the suits “revolutionary.” Clothes are about identity and representation, she said, and by allowing women to look like women, the suits are a statement that “women belong in space.”

Blue Origin is not the first private space company to enlist a fashion brand for help in outfit design. Axiom Space has also been working with Prada on their Extravehicular Mobility Unit spacesuit, otherwise known as the suit that NASA’s astronauts will wear when they walk on the moon during the Artemis III mission in 2026 (prototypes were revealed last October). Similarly, Elon Musk worked with the costume designer Jose Fernandez, the man behind the ‘fits of “The Fantastic Four” and “The Avengers,” on the SpaceX suits.

As to why fashion designers were suddenly so popular with the astrophysics set, Mr. Garcia said, “if we make suits look approachable and like something anyone could wear, then space might feel a little bit less distant.” Maybe, Mr. Garcia said, when people saw the Monse Blue Origin style, they might even think they “want to buy that spacesuit to go to the gym.”

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In fact, he went on, he and Ms. Kim were thinking they might “set up an office on Mars.” In both cases, he was joking. Sort of.

It turned out Mr. Garcia, Ms. Kim and Ms. Sánchez were already working on something else for Blue Origin, related to “the moon.” Blue Origin has been selected by NASA to develop the human landing system for the Artemis V mission to the Moon, but Ms. Sánchez would not say if Monse would have anything to do with that.

She was, however, excited to give space travel a new look.

“This isn’t what you would call ‘normal,’ but neither is sending six women into space,” she said. “If you want to do glam, great; if you don’t, great.” The point was everyone gets to choose.

Then she quoted something she said Katy Perry had told her: “We’re putting the ‘ass’ in astronaut,” she said.

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Lifestyle

Our 15 Favorite Looks at the 2026 Met Gala

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Our 15 Favorite Looks at the 2026 Met Gala

The Met Gala steps are a stage where celebrities strive not merely to look pretty, but to create indelible, avant-garde fashion moments. The most memorable looks tend to commit to the often abstract theme and take risks not typically seen on award show red carpets. Sometimes that works; other times it ends in disaster.

This year, guests stepped onto a mossy-looking, trompe l’oeil cobblestone carpet surrounded by a backdrop that recalled a Monet canvas. It was fitting for the evening’s brief: “Fashion is art.” It may be a bit on the nose for an event whose raison d’être is to raise money for the Metropolitan Museum of Art’s fashion-focused Costume Institute.

There were fake nipples and molded torsos; flowers and feathers; dripping jewels and one delightful burst of bubbles.

For close followers of our past most stylish lists, what follows is a shift in approach. Typically, we bring you a distillation of the looks that got people talking — the good, the bad and the most interesting. This year, since we now give you a chance to vote on your favorite looks, we’re saying, unequivocally, that these were ours (presented in no particular order).


In this Robert Wun gown, spurts of blood — in the form of delicate feathers — spring from incisions in the fabric.

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No other garment had quite the same movement as this frosty, fringed frock by Tom Ford that shimmied whenever Taylor struck a pose.


Inspired by the “Venus de Milo,” this primary-colored Thom Browne gown is a no-naked take on naked dressing.


In a sea of sequins and other opulent baubles, what at least presented as a pair of distressed denim trousers — by Prada — was like a palate cleanser.

If Vermeer’s “Girl With a Pearl Earring” made a meal of her signature accessory.


A look that was worth the decade-long wait for the star’s reappearance at the Met Gala.

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Gold adornments and jewel accents made Abrams look completely Klimtian in this peachy Chanel gown.

It’s goth meets grande dame. No engagement ring needed to get the people talking.


For the real heads: the Yves Klein Blue body-print dress from spring 2017, one of Phoebe Philo’s last collections at Celine.


Other men on the carpet looked as if they had tried needlessly hard when Martens, the creative director of Maison Margiela, appeared in this undeniable tuxedo. This is how every man should dress.

A profusion of bubbles continuously spouting from this teacup dress brought some joie de vivre to the carpet.

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It should be illegal to look so good for so long on so many red carpets.


Many tried corsets; several donned sheer skirts. But none managed to look quite so delicate, elegant and demure as Aboah did, in custom Simone Rocha.


More Yves Klein Blue, in whimsical curlicues by Valentino.

Stella Bugbee, Jacob Gallagher and Marie Solis contributed reporting.

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Lifestyle

Koreatown’s Wi Spa ups its game with a head spa, AI robot masseuse and more

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Koreatown’s Wi Spa ups its game with a head spa, AI robot masseuse and more

Wi Spa, with its hot and cold tubs, specialty saunas and napping nooks, has long been a beloved L.A. destination for rest and rejuvenation. Now Koreatown’s most popular spa is kicking up its wellness offerings, getting ahead of the self-care trend. Or a head of it.

Wi Spa is opening a head spa. It’s more than halfway through construction of Root Head Spa, slated to debut within the next two months. It will be located on the lobby level, in the space that formerly housed a gym, with seven individual treatment rooms.

The idea for this new edition began before the head spa trend became so popular in Los Angeles, says Min Jung, a Wi Spa manager. After researching the various types of head spas, Wi Spa decided to create theirs “in the Japanese Yume Head Spa-style,” she says. Treatments will clean, exfoliate and moisturize the scalp, and they will include a gentle head massage. (“Yume” means “dream” in Japanese, a nod to the sleepy state the treatment leaves guests in.)

“But this is not a massage, this is not a head wash, it is actually a scalp treatment,” Jung says.

Videos of Chinese and Japanese-inspired head spa treatments started popping up on social media in 2022 — the arc-shaped “waterfall bath” is especially visually intriguing. We chronicled the rise of the trend, which first began proliferating in Asian communities such as Arcadia, San Gabriel, Temple City and Rosemead, in 2024 and 2025 — now there are head spas across the city.

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Scrubbing the scalp aids circulation, strengthens hair follicles and helps to prevent dandruff, itchiness and inflammation, among other benefits, practitioners and dermatologists say. In our coverage, we said it “might be the most relaxing spa service in L.A.”

Wi Spa’s Himalayan Salt Sauna, a visitor favorite.

(Wi Spa)

An hourlong Wi Spa head spa treatment will cost about $150 to $200, Jung says, adding that prices are not yet set. That’s the upper end of average in L.A. for the treatment. Wi Spa’s $40 entry fee (which includes access to spa amenities) will not be waived with purchase of the head spa treatment, as it is with other Wi Spa services, such as a body scrub or massage, which typically exceeds $160.

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Also in the works: Wi Spa is planning to build a wellness center on its third floor, in what’s now a skincare area. The new offering will likely include an infrared sauna and a red light therapy bed, among other things. This past summer Wi Spa also opened a salon for blowouts, called Root Style Bar, adjacent to its women’s dressing room. So (cue the violins) guests no longer have to trek out to their car with wet hair or attend post-spa events with a DIY blowout.

Next up: a spa-wide renovation to freshen up existing areas.

In the meantime, visitors may not know: Wi Spa has an “Aescape” AI-powered massage robot on its premises.

Aescape massage robot at Pause Wellness Studio.

Reporter Deborah Vankin tries out the Aescape massage robot at Pause Wellness Studio in 2024.

(Christina House / Los Angeles Times)

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We wrote about Aescape when it debuted at Pause, a wellness center in Studio City — it performs a 3D scan of your body to deliver custom robot massages. (Cyborg butt massages are not to be underestimated.) There are now several Aescapes around L.A., including at Equinox gyms. Wi Spa leased theirs this past summer. Guests can book robot massages for 15 minutes, 30 minutes, 45 minutes or an hour for $1 a minute, making it more affordable than Wi Spa’s manual massage offerings.

We’re partial to the most affordable massage option at Wi Spa, however: the plush, blue-lighted massage chairs scattered throughout the spa. Bring cash. It’s just $10 for a 30-minute “luxury” full body massage — and it’s surprisingly effective.

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Lifestyle

Vote for Your Favorite Met Gala Looks

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Vote for Your Favorite Met Gala Looks

Vote for your favorite looks from the 53 below.

This page will order itself based on votes. Return to see how the race is shaking out before it closes.

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The poll closes May 5 at 6 p.m. ET.

  1. 1
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    Beyoncé in Olivier Rousteing.

    Beyoncé

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  2. 2
  3. 3

    Rihanna in Maison Margiela.

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    Rihanna

  4. 4
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    Nina Westervelt for The New York Times

    Sam Smith

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    Nina Westervelt for The New York Times

    Rebecca Hall

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  11. 10

    Nina Westervelt for The New York Times

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    Zoe Kravitz

  12. 11
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    Doja Cat in Saint Laurent.

    Doja Cat

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  13. 12
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    Jon Batiste in ERL Artisanal.

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    Jon Batiste

  15. 14
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    Eileen Gu Nina Westervelt for The New York Times

    Eileen Gu

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  17. 15
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    Suleika Jaouad in Christian Siriano.

    Suleika Jaouad

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  19. 17
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    Janelle Monae in Christian Siriano.

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    Janelle Monáe

  21. 19
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    Nina Westervelt for The New York Times

    Lisa

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  22. 20
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    Patrick Schwarzenegger in Public School.

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    Patrick Schwarzenegger

  25. 23
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    Colman Domingo in Valentino.

    Colman Domingo

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  27. 24

    Nina Westervelt for The New York Times

    Skepta

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  28. 25

    Nina Westervelt for The New York Times

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    Kylie Jenner

  29. 26
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    Nina Westervelt for The New York Times

    Sombr

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  31. 28

    Sabrina Carpenter in Dior.

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    Sabrina Carpenter

  32. 29
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    Connor Storrie in Saint Laurent.

    Connor Storrie

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  35. 31
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    Nina Westervelt for The New York Times

    Chase Infiniti

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  37. 33
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    Hudson Williams in Balenciaga.

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    Hudson Williams

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    Nina Westervelt for The New York Times

    Kim Kardashian

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  42. 38

    Madonna in Saint Laurent.

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    Madonna

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    Nina Westervelt for The New York Times

    Cher

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    Nina Westervelt for The New York Times

    Alysa Liu

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  55. 50
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    Stevie Nicks in Zara by John Galliano

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    Stevie Nicks

  57. 52
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    Rachel Sennott in Marc Jacobs.

    Rachel Sennott

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  58. 53

    Simone Ashley in Stella McCartney.

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    Simone Ashley

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