Not unlike the allure of its namesake city, New York Fashion Week has long held a reputation for blurring the line between toughness and romance. And over the weekend, designers tapped into the exquisite tension between these two camps with a host of beguiling beauty looks on the runway. Offering a boundary-pushing alternative to the charm of a classic red lip, makeup renegade Isamaya Ffrech served up gothic indigo pouts at Christian Cowan, while a punk-meets-wild-child agenda translated to marbleized smatterings of pigment on the mouth at Eckhaus Latta. And with Chromat’s powerful anything-goes spirit, it’s only natural that graphic gazes—punctuated by primary yellow dots—fiercely eschewed convention. Of course, there’s plenty to be said for the irresistible panache of pretty, should the mood strike for face-framing flowers, fuzzy chignons, and eyes, lips, and cheeks aglow in a soft flush, as seen at Rodarte, Mansur Gavriel and Ulla Johnson, respectively. Here, six standout hair and makeup takeaways that sparked the imagination.
There’s a fresh way to wear flowers in your hair.
Statement florals have always been a calling card for Rodarte, but this season designers Kate and Laura Mulleavy took unbridled above-the-neck allure to the next level. Whether tucked into elaborate veiled updos or piled into loose lengths, garden-fresh roses in shades of crimson, fuchsia, and peach instantly transported its wearers out of a fairy-tale and onto the runway. A dreamy motif also turned up at Mansur Gavriel (shown), where one model’s shoulder-skimming cut was decorated with dainty yellow florals, playing off a gold-jacket-and-trouser combination ever so delicately.
The new romantic beauty is fierce and feminine.
True romance manifested on the runways in more ways than one. Always one for a touch of pink, designer Ulla Johnson punched up the vibrancy of her spring palette with washes of bright magenta on the mouth (shown) for a just-bitten lip, and then a few coats of matching mascara on the lashes for an unexpected pop of color. Then, at Brock Collection, wispy half-up chignons were decidedly whimsical, yet had plenty of modern appeal. The inspiration? None other than 18-year-old ingenue Liv Tyler in the 1996 cult classic Stealing Beauty.
Temporary tattoos just joined the ranks of ready-to-wear.
Dion Lee’s sleek Spring collection was swathed in filmy lace. So much so, in fact, that it was easy to mistake the cobweb-fine fibers of the temporary tattoo transfers that adorned the necks, shoulders, and torsos of select models, creating a trompe l’oeil extension of the show’s ’90s-esque bra tops and LBDs. With the minimalist body-art trend holding steady, the inky designs propose an elegant, more intricate alternative to the simplistic stick-and-poke tattoos of today.
Colorful makeup gets one step closer to abstract art.
There’s makeup, and then there’s makeup that turns the face into a canvas for bold and beautiful hyper-reality. It can be as simple as a stamp of unorthodox color, as illustrated by the blueish-black lips at Christian Cowan and cobalt arches at Marina Moscone, with makeup artist Fara Homidi setting out to achieve a “polished punk” vibe for the latter. And then there are the multi-media takes, such as Chromat’s gazes (shown), which were dashed with azure blue shadow and punctuated by daffodil-hued dots of paint underneath the pupils and on the outer edge of the brows, or Eckhaus Latta’s lips, layered first with high-shine clear gloss, then dappled with aqua paint to mimic fine marble.
The nail jewelry of the moment is fully coordinated to your clothes.
Toeing the line between manicure and jewelry, nail piercings make the case for accessorizing down to your tips. At Priscavera (shown), designer Prisca Franchetti accented her holographic, jewel-toned collection with sharp, transparent talons pierced with kitschy-cool acrylic gems. And bringing the trend poolside, Chromat complemented its sporty neoprene swimwear with periwinkle nails hole-punched with silver rings and see-through bead charms for an athleisure slant.
Vacation hair just got hotter.
As Bella and Gigi Hadid strutted down Prabal Gurung’s catwalk in his Rainbow Brite wears, they glistened from head to toe and instantly upped the ante on vacation beauty. And while their bronze-swirled cheeks and apricot lids evoked a balmy mood, it was their matte, windswept strands that brought the look home. Teasing the hair back messily and tying it with colorful twine, hairstylist Anthony Turner played up the fuzz and let loose strands hang rogue for a just-back-from-the-beach effect.
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