There was a decidedly edgy ethos to the hair and makeup at the New York fall 2010 collections, with heavily pigmented eyes and lips, untamed hair and old-school contouring all emerging as major beauty themes of the season.
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The Dry Season
Textured, imperfect hair replaced smooth, fussed-with styles. At Michael Kors, Betsey Johnson and Jill Stuart, hairstylists shelved silicone-based serums and glossing creams and instead relied on a blow-dryer and backcombing to create a dry, lived-in [in some cases, slept-in] look. At Marchesa, Frédéric Fekkai hairstylist Renato Campora went so far as to use dry shampoo to give the voluminous, old-world style a matte finish. Universally, flyaways were left untamed. “There’s nothing precise about it,” said Bumble and bumble hairstylist Jimmy Paul at Vera Wang. “We didn’t want it to look too perfect.”
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The Black Whole
Graphic black eyeliner injected an edgy, rock ’n’ roll vibe at multiple shows. “It’s black and intense,” said Stila lead makeup artist Sarah Lucero of the Brigitte Bardot–inspired look she created at Betsey Johnson on girls and boys. Geometry and face framing were the name of the game at Cynthia Rowley, where Val Garland for MAC affixed hard-edged, jet black lashes to eyes. “We’ve taken the lashes and straightened them so they look like a visor or a hood,” she said. “It’s interesting, but cool and beautiful.” At Jill Stuart, Charlotte Tilbury created an elongated cat eye, complete with lash extensions and multiple coats of mascara, while at L.A.M.B, she used inky charcoal for a retro smoky eye. “She’s smoldering and slightly feline,” said Tilbury of the wet, almost sweaty eye. “We want her to look like she’s been up all night.”
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Shadow People
Lids awash in densely pigmented colors offered a bold take on eye shadow. At Carolina Herrera, gradient-styled, smoky plum eyes featured deep eggplant shadow that diffused to lilac by the brow, while at Derek Lam, eyes were coated with a mix of two metallic blue eye shadows. “I’m playing with a dual color, covering the entire lid, from the lashes to the eyebrow,” said makeup artist and Estée Lauder creative makeup director Tom Pecheux. At Diane von Furstenberg, makeup artist James Kaliardos for MAC took the designer herself as inspiration, using black cream eyeliner as a base and layering on pigments in shades of blue and silver. At Rachel Roy, creamy shadow was layered thickly to create a metallic eye mask, and at Douglas Hannant, eyes looked as if they’d been liberally sprinkled with emeralds.
Baring All
For every heavily layered, smoky eye, a freshly scrubbed, clean face emerged. Luminous, skin shone through with nary a sparkle or bold hue in sight. The look was super simple, from barely there at Marc Jacobs and Charlotte Ronson to minimal, as at BCBG. Perfected bold brows at Thakoon, The Row and Narciso Rodriguez added some architectural edge to an otherwise natural face. “We want the girls to look happy and healthy,” said makeup artist Dick Page about the almost-bare faces at Marc by Marc Jacobs. “At the end of the day, you don’t know what happened—they just look gorgeous.”
Shades of Brown
From taupe to chocolate, makeup artists tapped the entire spectrum of brown this season to sophisticated effect. Most notable was the resurgence of contouring, as at Michael Kors, where Dick Page for Shiseido created customized colors to accentuate the apples of the cheek and sculpt the face. At Oscar de la Renta, Revlon’s Gucci Westman used a liquid illuminator and pressed powder for the illusion of exaggerated high cheeks, while at 3.1 Phillip Lim, Lisa Butler for Nars played with texture, creating matte complexions highlighted with shimmering pigments for a “three-dimensional” look. At Badgley Mischka, Charlotte Tilbury for MAC created an extreme sculpted look to offset the glamorous clothes. Said the makeup artist: “It’s very Avatar meets warrior princess.”
Opaque Matters
Make way for commanding pouts this fall, ranging from velvety and smudged to stained and perfected. Strong, brooding plums were plentiful, with Peter Som’s near-black hue, Kinder Aggugini’s powerful purple and Proenza Schouler’s darkly stained lips. “It’s about precision and it’s graphic,” said James Kaliardos for MAC at Luca Luca. The look at Ruffian was bright, with fuchsia lips underscoring a soft gray eye. Brighter hues also scored at Monique Lhuillier and Donna Karan, both of whom opted for red, with a powdery matte finish at the former, and a lacquered, precisely pointed pout at the latter. Though colors covered the full spectrum, there was a common denominator: All were strongly pigmented and opaque.
Under Wear
Chalk it up to the world’s current flirtation with all things vampires, but shadow falling below the eye created an otherworldly, up-all-night effect. At Altuzarra, a reddish-purple hue under the eyes gave a menacing touch to a smoky eye, while Alexander Wang and Cushnie et Ochs used bronze and earthy browns for a sculpted, sunken eye look. At Rodarte, gray smoke made eyes look deeply set and powerful for an effect that combined mystery and glamour.
The Ring Cycle
Styled as both classically glamorous and unexpectedly avant-garde, curly hair rocked the runway. At Nicole Miller, curls were glossy and defined, while United Bamboo’s modern take on an Afro style included a voluminous cascade of tight-but-texturized tendrils. At 3.1 Phillip Lim and Ports 1961 by Tia Cibani, waves were brushed out and bohemian feeling. “It’s fluffy,” said Odile Gilbert for Phyto, who created a Blondie-inspired look at Lim. “It’s big but it moves.” Tracy Reese’s wind-swept waves offered a more relaxed look. “It’s a soft but edgy texture,” said TRESemmé’s Jeanie Syfu of the style she achieved with a 1-inch curling iron and finger brushing.