Serena Williams Had Her Hair Braided in Her Sleep For the 2018 Royal Wedding

Serena Williams may be the real Sleeping Beauty. The iconic athlete recently reflected on her memorable outfits and beauty moments in a Vogue video following the release of the cover story announcing her retirement from tennis. In it, Williams shared details about her leg-length braids for the royal wedding in 2018 — or, as she refers to it, "when my friend Meghan married Harry" — and how her hair had to be braided overnight to complete the look.

"What's so iconic about this, is I was like, 'Royal wedding? I'm definitely wearing braids,'" Williams said, recalling the prestigious event she attended with her husband, Alexis Ohanian. She wore a pink Versace dress, and her long braids were adorned with a matching fascinator.

Because she was going for such a dramatic look, it took two hairstylists who worked through the night leading up to the wedding braiding Williams's hair as she slept. "All night they were braiding my hair," she said. "I was so tired. I was like, 'I'm going to sleep.' So I lie down, and they just kept braiding until the morning, and they finally finished. It was a very long process, but it was so worth it."

After such a lengthy process, Williams decided to keep the braids in for the French Open she competed in a week later. She said she thought at the time, "I worked so hard at those braids, I'm gonna keep them in." Watch her discuss the look at the 8:59 mark in the video ahead.