Mercedes-Benz Spring '10 Fashion Week NYC: BCBG Max Azria

Here in Manhattan, we're in the middle of spring '10 Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week. I kicked off the week with a visit backstage at BCBG Max Azria, in the tents at Bryant Park. The lead stylist, Bob Recine for Phyto, was busy backstage tending to the models' hair. "The look of the hair today is not so much a hairdresser's as it is the look of the love of mom pushing hair out of the way," he told me. "There are many new faces in the models this season and we don't want to bury them in hair and makeup."

To style the hair, Recine parted it in the middle and applied Phyto Pro Intense Volume Mousse 12 to the front of the hair, pinning it to the sides. He sprayed the back with hairspray to add a little texture. Before the show, he unpinned the hair then brushed it through to achieve a "glorified fluffiness."

Makeup and nails were equally simple. To place a simple emphasis on the eyes, Lisa Butler for M.A.C used a fan brush to apply mascara at the roots of the lashes, pressing in and onto the skin to frame the eyes. Moisturizer, concealer where needed, matte lip balm and clear mascara on the brows finished the look. "I want them to look like real people, in some ways a bit boyish," Butler says.

CND's Roxanne Valinoti and Angie Wingle took care of the models' nails, which were painted a full-coverage neutral shade using Putty nail color.