D'Arcy Carden's Emmys Diary Includes A Facial, Belly Rubs, & Ted Danson

On Sunday, Fleabags, zombies, and vice presidents were honored at LA's Microsoft Theater for television's biggest night of the year — the 2019 Emmy Awards. D'Arcy Carden, star of NBC's The Good Place and HBO's Barry, was attending the ceremony for the first time with two nominated shows. To mark the occasion, Bustle asked Carden to keep a diary of her entire day — from the moment she woke up to the moment she left the after parties — and share it exclusively with us. Here's how her first Emmy Awards went.

6:30 a.m.: I wake up feeling anxious about MY FEET. I know this is going to be a long day in heels, and the first thing i think about when I wake up is that. My feet.

8:00 a.m.: I have the final fitting for my Romona Keveza dress with Erica Cloud, and her master tailer, Farrah in West Hollywood. Erica surprises me with a coffee and I couldn’t be happier. A stylist who goes ABOVE and BEYOND! She rules.

8:30 a.m.: I rush over to the Joanna Vargas salon in the Sunset Tower for a pre-Emmys facial with the lovely and wonderful Sora. I see Sora once a month, but this is an extra one, specifically for the Emmys. She makes me glowy and mega-moisturized. I feel fresh as a dang daisy.

10:00 a.m.: I text my husband, Jason, “Should I go to pilates or come home and chill with you and Pen?” He texts me back, “It’s the Emmys and you are going to have a long day. Come home and chill with us.” So I do just that! We drink coffee (Jason and me, not Penny), and talk (Jason and me, not Penny), and get belly rubs (Penny, not Jason and me).

I ask KB if I can Venmo her for lunch and she says, “You can Venmo me in f*ckin' friendship.”

12:00 p.m.: I arrive at a hotel downtown where I’m going to meet my sweet KB — that’s Kristen Bell — and we’re going to spend the next couple hours hanging, and glamming, and eating. We both have our amazing glam teams with us, mine includes Erica, and her assistant Maddie Louviere, and Kiki Heitkotter for hair, and Vanessa Scali for make-up. Room service isn’t running on Emmys Sunday for some insane reason, so someone runs to a Whole Foods nearby and gets a bunch of food for us to chomp on while we get our hairs blown out and our lips glossed up. I ask KB if I can Venmo her for lunch and she says, “You can Venmo me in f*ckin' friendship.” I like her.

2:30 p.m.: I'm leaving the hotel about a half hour late, which seems to be par for the course for awards shows? My glam team and I were feeling cocky about how much time we had, and then at the last minute I needed to be stitched in to the top of my dress and some hair and makeup touch ups and then all of a sudden I’m jumping into my car 30 minutes late. But keep in mind the red carpet is open for hours, so even though I’m “late,” I’m not really “late”… but still… I’m “late.”

2:45 p.m.: I arrive on the Emmys red carpet (which is actually a purple carpet) and, oh my Lord, it is insanely hot. Like 100 degrees. Or maybe 200? Everyone is dripping sweat and dabbing their face with blotting paper, their sleeve... whatever they can find. My genius publicist brought a little towel so I could blot my face like I was some kinda damn athlete! It worked.

I get to stand in line for red carpet pictures with my sweet Ted Danson and the beautiful Mary Steenburgen. I get to catch up with my old friends Aidy Bryant and Kate McKinnon, who are there for Saturday Night Live. I give a hug to the Brothers Meyers (Seth and Josh Meyers). I blot my face again, re-apply my lip, take a deep breath and step out to the swarm of photographers. I try to act natural but it’s almost impossible when all you see is a wall of cameras. I feel myself forcing a smile, but then I catch eyes with Ted and Mary who are a little further down the carpet, and I instantly feel 100 times better and more at ease. Word to the wise: Ted and Mary literally make everything better.

5:00 p.m.: Time to start the show! The Good Place is all sitting in the same area, but not exactly next to each other. I give hugs to the writers and producers and the other cast who I haven’t seen yet. I get to sit next to my gorgeous friends Manny Jacinto and Kirston Mann (costume designer for The Good Place). We are seated behind the cast of Succession and next to some of the cast of Russian Doll. Good company all around and everyone is super friendly and happy to be there.

We have a CHANGE! OF! SHOES! in the backseat.

7:00 p.m.: I get up during a commercial break to, you guessed it: pee! On my way to the bathroom I run into some of the cast of Barry, including Bill Hader fresh off his win! He introduces me to Sam Rockwell for some cool reason. Then I leave to, you guessed it: pee! And then run back into the show.

8:00 p.m.: Party time! First we go to the Governors Ball. The Good Place sits together. We drink Champagne and eat Impossible Burger Sliders (they’re a hit!).

10:00 p.m.: - 2:00 a.m.: After a little while one of the [The Good Place] writers, who is also one of my best friends, Jen Statsky and I hobble over to our car. We have a CHANGE! OF! SHOES! in the backseat. We take off our insane heels and I put on Converse High Tops (she puts on sandals). We are ready to rock and we head to the HBO party at the Pacific Design Center.

A bit later, we go to the Amazon party at the Chateau Marmont. Both parties are big and fun and fancy. It’s so surreal to see a mix of people you know and love from TV and people you know and love from real life! I can never *not* stare at the cast of Game Of Thrones when they are nearby. I closed the night out at the Fleabag party, where Phoebe Waller-Bridge lounged on a pink chair by the pool in her perfect dress with four Emmys laying around her. It was a sight to behold.

All in all, it was a great, weird night. We didn't win, but it really isn't about that. I feel very lucky to be included. I've watched the Emmys every year for as far back as I can remember, and getting to be there last night was something I'll never forget. OK, time for a nap.

Stylist: Erica Cloud

Wearing: Romona Keveza

Make-up: Vanessa Scali

Hair: Kristin Heitkotter

Facial: Sora at Joanna Vargas’ Salon

Reporting by Allison Piwowarski