NYFW SS 2016 Recap: Romantic Naturalism at Derek Lam

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Natural beauty: It’s always a trend that weaves its way through New York Fashion Week. It mixes the ideas of effortless-looking hair and radiant skin together—though, to achieve it, you’ll always need more than a few products and a good amount of skill. At Derek Lam’s show, that natural beauty ideal is present, but it’s mixed with attitude and a touch of romance.

Hair that “doesn't care” captures the natural texture and waves of the model's manes. "When I was trying to think of a name for this hairstyle, I thought, ‘I don't care, but I really do,’" says PHYTO Paris and BaByliss Pro USA lead hairstylist Orlando Pita. "Its undone hair that has a little bit of volume, but it’s tender and chunky. It’s not flyaways and frizzy. It has control and shine." To get the look, Pita applies PHYTO Keratine Extreme Exceptional Cream to damp hair, drying the lengths quickly with the new BaBylissPro Rapido and his hands in lieu of a brush. He then straightens and waves the hair with the BaBylissPro Nano Titanium 1" Spring Curling Iron by wrapping random sections around the barrel, starting at the roots and pulling the iron down toward the ends. "I don't want straight, flat hair, " says Pita. "Doing it this way gives me a little bit of a wave, a little bit of bend that happens naturally in the hair without looking like a curling iron did it." Combining PHYTO Huile Supreme Rich Smoothing Oil and PHYTO Huile Soyeuse Lightweight Hydrating Oil, he massages the two oils into the hair with his palms, explaining, “Working [product] this way into the hair allows the hair to turn piece-y and takes away the fluffiness." To finish, he mists with PHYTO Professional Phytolaque Soie Light Hold Hairspray.

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The makeup keeps in line with the theme of accentuating the natural beauty of the almost bare-face models. "We started with ‘natural’; that was the key word," explains Tom Pecheux, lead makeup artist for Maybelline. "So we did natural, but moved into a bit of a ‘spooky’ gentle eye." To create the mysterious eye, Pecheux curls the lashes but leaves the top fringe and lid bare, applying a coat of black mascara to the bottom lashes. Before the mascara dries, Pecheux mixes a coppery brown pencil, Maybelline Eye Studio Color Tattoo Concentrated Crayon in Creamy Chocolate, into the mascara for intensity at the root of the lashes. He then layers yellow and peach under the eye. "It gives that spooky feel. Derek is very controlled, but inside is a little spooky person that likes to come out here and there. He wanted something a little twisted."

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For the nails, JINsoon nail lead Jin Soon Choi chooses a deep oxblood shade, JINsoon Risqué, to contrast with the light Spring colors of the collection and complement the romantic details. “Derek’s adding a touch of romance into his sportswear, so we wanted to show something luxurious, chic and sophisticated," says Choi. She files the nails, keeping them short because "dark colors work better when nails are short or slightly medium length.” When applying Risqué, she notes that each model gets either one or two coats of polish color depending on the level of contrast needed to pair with the clothes.


—Kristyna Kane


Credits: Courtesy of JINsoon, Maybelline, Kristyna K

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