At the Carmen Marc Valvo show, held at the NASDAQ building in Times Square, guests like Ugly Betty's Vanessa Williams and Ana Ortiz were treated to a collection inspired by the Chinese film Lust Caution. The movie, an espionage flick set in the 1940s, also influenced Ted Gibson's modern bob and Romero Jennings' elongated eye liner and plum lips.
"Most people don't realize that the 1940s were all about the bob," said Gibson, who created a hidden braid at the nape of the neck and pinned the hair into a faux bob with a sexy wave. "The models are supposed to be detectives, so some are wearing amazing hats." Gibson used products from his hair care line, including Tame It Shine Lotion and Beautiful Hold Hairspray. "The hair looks effortless, which is what beauty should be," he said.
For the makeup, Jennings concentrated solely on the liner and the lips. He created longer eyes with black kohl liner, putting concealer on the lids and blocking out the brows with powder to really make the liner pop. Studio Fix mascara and fake lashes cut on a slant enhanced the elongated eye look. The lips were colored with a beet-colored pencil, then covered with powder to give them a matte finish. "Plum is the new neutral," Jennings said. "For dark lips, matte is best, while neutral colors should be glossy." The nails, painted with MAC Vintage Vamp, reflected the rich color on the lips.