Jimmy Paul and I backstage at Nanette Lepore
On Wednesday morning (sorry for the delay!), I got to see the runway show for one of my favorite designers, Nanette Lepore, and witness renowned Bumble and bumble stylist Jimmy Paul work his magic. Paul, who could not have been nicer and more gracious, was inspired by the hippie-bohemian lifestlye when creating 
the casual, textured look for the show. He dried Bb Surf Spray into the hair to give it a beachy look, and used a curling iron for additional curls where needed. Paul then placed random braids around the head, especially around the face. If the garment the model was wearing had detailing on the back, Paul pinned the hair into a loose bun. He used Bb Tonic to smooth out the top of the hair, and sent the models on their way to makeup, where MAC artist Polly Osmond and her team took over. Osmond created "nouveau bo-ho" look to complement the hair and clothing. She darkened the brows to create a focal point, then applied taupe shadow and black mascara. The cheeks were supposed to appear sun-kissed, a look she achieved by combining two MAC cream blushes: Brown and Devilish Orange (which looked somewhat scary on their own, but blended together for a very natural finish). Lips were given a slight pink stain with Brave. "This makeup is very easy and wearable," Osmond said — and I had to agree. Each model looked like they could have walked straight from the runway to the office or a party. [Sidenote: Backstage after the show, I overheard The Hills cast members LC and Lo and Mad Men star John Slattery and his wife, actress Talia Balsam, telling Lepore how much they loved the collection.]
Hairstylist Kevin Ryan works his magic at Milly
At Milly, the look for hair and makeup took inspiration from a period in time a few years later. "We're going for late '60s/early '70s style, when the rich hippies were going on holiday to Marrakech and hooking up with rockstars," said lead hairstylist Kevin Ryan. "In those days, even the practical seemed decadent." Ryan used Bb Surf Spray and a little bit of Elnet to give the hair texture, then pulled it back off the face into a braided
Romy Soleimani for MAC
half-ponytail. [Sidenote: Ryan and his partner Frank Rizzieri, who own R Session Tools, are coming out with at-home updo kits to be sold at Ricky's and in salons around Christmas. Rizzieri also told me that they're developing a line of styling products and a unique flat iron.] Makeup artist Romy Soleimani for MAC, gave the models an end-of-summer tan with sun-kissed cheeks, and made the eyes pop with lots of mascara. Lips were kept natural with a hint of baby pink. To match the natural, beachy look of the hair and makeup, nails were cut short and painted with CND Clearly Pink. "We wanted to make them pretty but simple," said CND team leader Amanda Fontanarrosa.
CND's Amanda Fontannarrosa goes wherever she's needed.
— Lori Morris, Senior Editor