Fall Fashion Week 2011

Fashion Week 2011: Re-introducing the curls

MoroccanOil hair treatments are all the rage right now for straight hair blowouts, but fear not, curly girl, it’s also surging in popularity as the latest trend in bringing beautiful, silky, smooth, glamorous curls directly to you. While New York’s Fall Fashion Week 2011 was largely one big, collective blowout of straight hair, plenty of designers sought out curl experts to represent! Tangles and tousles were peppered throughout – much to our appreciation – as evidenced by our Fashion Week curly coverage last week. Here are some beautiful examples of hairstyles from the runways achieved with MoroccanOil.

Glamorous curls were created by Peter Gray for Badgley Mischka

Stylist Orlando Pita created romantic yet modern hair for Vera Wang

What is MoroccanOil?

MoroccanOil is the brand name for the smoothing, styling, finishing and conditioning product containing the key ingredient argan oil. Argan oil is produced from the argan tree, native to Morocco, and contains fatty acids, vitamin E and phenols, among other things. Many experts regard it highly for its cosmetic properties and nutritional content. One of our own NaturallyCurly.com team members applauds MoroccanOil for its leave-in ability and shine quality, and believes it provides heat protection for her naturally curly 3a hair.

Tips for great curl care – straight from the source

We caught up with some of the world’s top celebrity hairdressers backstage at New York’s Fall Fashion Week 2011 to get their tips and advice for making curly hair look its best, both on the runways and at home.

Allen Ruiz backstage at New York’s Fall Fashion Week 2011

Allen Ruiz

1. “Product is key, remember you want product with both “slip” and “grip” meaning something with moisture to keep curls soft and frizz-free and something with “hold” or “grip” to keep curls defined.”

2. “The less you touch the hair with your hands, the more natural your curl will appear. Touching the hair causes it to frizz.”

3. “Diffuse the hair until it’s 85% dry using a diffuser with “fingers” so that you don’t actually have to touch the hair with your hands. Let the hair air dry the remaining 15% for a really natural, soft finish.”

NaturallyCurly.com talks to Allen Ruiz backstage at Fall Fashion Week 2011

Ouidad working her curl magic

Ouidad

1. “In addition to using conditioner, make sure you use a once a week deep treatment like Ouidad 12 Minute Deep Treatment Intensive Conditioner.”

2. “Don’t wash your hair every single day. Shampoo twice a week at the most.”

3. “Use a styling product in damp hair that is going to control frizz and define curls. I recommend Ouidad Climate Control Gel.”

NaturallyCurly.com talks to Ouidad backstage at Fall Fashion Week 2011

Menu Suvari sits front at center at Fall Fashion Week 2011

Create this ’70s inspired textured hair by Dai Michishita

Curl and texture continued to rock the New York City runways at the Rebecca Taylor and Band of Outsiders fall designer shows. The backstage Cutler for Redken hair team shares how to easily get two fashion-forward looks hot off the runways!

The Show

Rebecca Taylor: Hair by Dai Michishita (Cutler for Redken).

The Stars: Sophia Bush, Mena Suvari, Carmen Electra, Michelle Tractenberg, and Kristen Bell.

Hair Inspiration: 1970s “It” girl who can just roll out of bed and look amazing without even trying.

Get the Look

Step 1: Apply Cutler Volumizing Spray into damp hair. Blow dry without using a nozzle attachment and then go back in using a 3-pronged waving iron to create natural wave and texture from mid-shaft to ends.

Step 2: Brush hair out for to create a dry, airy, ’70s texture.

Step Three: Finish the hair with a light mist of Cutler Shine Tattoo spray.

Allen Ruiz

Allen Ruiz

We were lucky enough to catch up with salon owner and 2007 North American Hairdresser of The Year, Allen Ruiz, in between shows during NYC Fashion Week.

Allen, who splits his time between Austin and New York City, has some exciting things on the horizon. He was just recently appointed Aveda’s new Style Director for North America, a role in which he will be responsible for producing education curriculum and creating the hair for both ad campaigns and backstage at Fashion Week. Ruiz also just received word that he’s one of five finalists for the prestigious International Artist of The Year honor from the Canadian Mirror Awards.

Despite everything going on, Allen found the time to create the hair for five major Aveda-sponsored Fashion Week shows including John Patrick Organic, Christian Siriano of Project Runway fame, Jason Wu, Sophie Théallet and Allen’s personal fave, Rodarte.

Allen shares some of the trends coming out of this season’s shows, as well as how to easily achieve two of the more “wearable” designer hair looks he created backstage at the Rodarte and Sophie Théallet shows.

Allen’s Top 3 Fall 2011 Fashion Week Trends

1. Strong Dramatic Parts: “Whether on the side, or straight down the center, parts are not subtle or soft this season, instead they’re strong, dramatic and they command attention.”

2. Contrast in Texture: “Smooth and shiny at the crown and textured everywhere else. Texture has evolved from the previous seasons—it’s a lot looser, softer texture and curl than in seasons past.”

3. Accessories: “Scarves, berets, ribbons and everything else in between are great hair adornments, temporarily altering the appearance of your head shape and even hair color.”

John Patrick in Step with Mother Earth

Like many of the highly textured, locally crafted, recycled fabrics and organic materials embraced by John Patrick Organic, the hair complementing his Fall 2011 Fashion Week collection was just as purposefully textured and earthy.

Patrick’s passion for sustainability shows even in his selection of hair products. Working with Aveda, whose many certified organic products are often packaged in 100% post-consumer recycled packaging, allowed him to promote his back-to-earth message even on the runway. “Our collection this season is inspired by water,” says Patrick. “I love that the hair we’re creating evokes the salty, windblown feel of hair that’s dried after being in the ocean.”

The Aveda backstage hair team, led by Antoinette Beenders, Allen Ruiz and Jennifer Cimeniello, was able to create this natural, ethereal look by spraying Pure Abundance Volumizing Hair Potion, whose ingredients contain acacia gum, a natural bulking agent, into already-dry hair. The team proceeded to back comb the hair from mid-shaft to root using a fine-toothed comb. Next, they liberally applied the dry-delivery working spray Air Control for additional volume and texture at the crown. Small sections of hair were then pinned at the back of the head for a half-up look before the entire style was finally set with Aveda’s newest firm hold finishing spray Control Force.

Eco-friendly designer John Patrick worked with Aveda to create a natural, textured look

John Patrick Organic promotes his message even on the New York City runways

Great news for curly women and eco-consumers alike! “This is a sexy, next-day hair look that is easily achievable by the every day woman,” says Aveda stylist Allen Ruiz. “It’s especially great for hair that already has natural curl or wave.”

Rose McGowan and Sophia Bush front and center at New York’s Fall Fashion Week 2011

Hollywood Stars Check out Latest Fashion Trends

Hollywood fashionistas came out to Milk Studios in Chelsea last Sunday to check out the latest fashion trends by Tara Subkoff for Imitation during New York Fashion Week. Hollywood stars such as Liev Schreiber and his 3-year-old son Alexander, Rose McGowan, Sophia Bush, Chloë Sevigny, Gina Gershon, and Natasha Lyonne were all sitting front and center at the start of Sunday’s show.

Medium and large barrel curling irons create these beautiful pin curls

Ouidad says Curls are Back in a Big Way

Following an amazing backstage effort at the Rebecca Minkoff show earlier in the week, Ouidad and her hair team worked their curl magic a second time, turning out a seductive, femme fatale look inspired by the ’40s and ’50s hair styles worn by classic Hollywood icons such as Jane Russell, Marlene Dietrich, and Veronica Lake.

Says lead hairdresser Ouidad, “Curls are coming back to Hollywood in a big way. We will definitely see a lot of the old Hollywood glamour and hair styles on the red carpet this coming awards season. The good news is these glamorous looks are very easy for women to recreate at home.”

The Ouidad backstage team created the hair looks on 25 models using Ouidad products like Climate Control Heat and Humidity Gel, Tress Effects Styling Gel and Playcurl Volumizing Mousse. The hair was curled with medium and large barrel curling irons or set in pin curls to create a perfect S pattern shape that was than finished by running a wide-toothed comb and/or hands through the set curls to relax the hair into loose, sexy, whimsical wave.

On Saturday night at MILK Studios, Billy Reid showcased his much anticipated Fall 2011 collection, this time featuring both men’s and women’s looks. After winning the Best New Designer in America Award from GQ and the Council of Fashion Designers of America award and the CFDA/Vogue Fashion Fund award in 2010, Billy Reid worked closely with Marcos Diaz of ION Studio for Davines to make sure the hair was just right for the presentation.

The collection from Billy Reid expressed the relationship between the Billy Reid man and the Billy Reid woman—a relationship that complements each other. The Billy Reid women’s look was natural; she was soft, but there was a touch of masculine femininity about her.

Styling for Women

Diaz started by adding texture and volume

Defining texturizer maintains the waves and curls

To create the look for women, Diaz used Davines Defining Texturizer to add texture and volume to the hair. After a quick blow dry, he spritzed Davines’ newest product, the For Wizards No. 14 Sea Sale Primer on the hair. The Sea Salt Primer allows you to grab hair easily and makes pinning it up simple. He then used a 1.5” curling iron to create pin curls. After letting the curl set for 20 minutes, Diaz unrolled the curls and lightly brushed them out—think Brooke Shields in The Blue Lagoon. With a touch of Davines’ Defining Texturizer, to maintain the wave/curl, the general look was complete. Wizard’s No. 13 Mat Forming Ground to help tame frizz and flyaways.

At Home Tip: For easy, on the go waves in the morning, use Davines For Wizards No. 14 Sea Salt Primer before bed and put your hair into a loose bun. In the morning, just take out the bun and voila!

Styling for Men

Diaz started with Davines Defining Texturizer

Defining Wonder Wax completes the look

To create the look of the Billy Reid man, Diaz used the Davines Defining Texturizer and Defining Wonder Wax to create a windswept appearance.

Fall styles aren’t the only things showcased on the runways of Lincoln Center. Here are three major hairstyle trends coming from the fall 2011 runways of New York that you can easily achieve yourself with minimal effort.

Wearing hair to the side will earn you fashionista status this year

Side Dish

Want to be fashionable and on trend this season? Sound like a lot of work and effort? Wrong! It’s as simple as taking your comb and changing up your part. Shows like Porter Grey, Tadashi-Shoji are saying center parts are officially out. If you want to appear in the know this season, make sure to keep it to the side. To create an extreme side part, simply use your comb and begin your parting by aligning it with the outside corner of your eye. Try to keep it as clean and straight as possible for a really dramatic effect. To accentuate your parting, use a high-shine styling crème, gel or pomade to help smooth the hair down.

Wearing your hair any way on the side will earn you fashionista status this season. Not just extreme side parts, but also side-swept styles, including braids. To the left, to the left! Everything is to the side this season!

“Next Day” hair requires very little effort

“Next Day” Hair

Soft, “next day” hair is romancing the runways this fall. We saw it at Nicolas K, Rebecca Minkoff, G-Star and more. The great thing about “lived-in” hair being on trend is that it requires little to no effort on your part. Effortless chic doesn’t require a lot of product, either, as it’s a really soft, touchable, natural looking “next-day” look that you’re striving to achieve. In the morning, instead of washing hair and starting fresh, simply scrunch some volumizing or texturizing spray into your hair and go. Some other great products to create “next-day” hair are Aveda Pure Abundance Volumizing Hair Potion, dry shampoo like Kloranes, or even a great texturizing spray like Bumble and bumble Surf Spray.

Next-day curl—slightly disheveled and imperfect

One of the big trends today on the NYC runways for Fall 2011 seems to be next-day curl. Rather than having curls appear fresh, perfect and uniform without any strays or flyaways, it’s now all about hair looking slightly disheveled, next-day or even as celebrity stylist Rodney Cutler so eloquently described it, “Hair that looks like you’ve been living in the woods for three days.”

“We’ve seen a definite shift in curl this season,” says designer Rebecca Minkoff. “We’re creating next-day hair that’s soft, subtle, with volume and movement, like you just rolled out of bed.”

For the Nicolas K show, celebrity stylist Rodney Cutler easily created this next day texture by spritzing in Redken Nature Rescue and twisting the ends of the hair to create that lived-in, gritty, textured look. “This type of hair is a perfect compliment to the very edgy, street fashion that K was showcasing,” says Cutler.

Ouidad simply scrunched in Ouidad PlayCurl Volumizing Foam, went back into the hair with a curling iron, taking different size sections and wrapping it different ways around the barrel of the iron for variation in curl pattern.

“In seasons past, curls were uniform and perfectly kempt,” Ouidad explains, “whereas the curl we’re creating for this season’s shows is looser and natural – meaning there’s variation. It’s imperfect and not overdone.”

This is great news for curly women out there that don’t want to spend hours trying to perfect their curl. Next-day texture is low maintenance and easy to achieve, so go ahead and spritz in some curl-reviving spray, style with your hands and go—knowing that you’re totally on trend!

Australian-born hairstylist Rodney Cutler is a go-to name in the beauty and fashion industry. Beauty writers of top publications like Allure and WWD and producers of TV shows including “Make Me A Supermodel”, “The Today Show” and “Rachael Ray” all turn to Cutler for his expertise, hair tips, and skilled team of hairstylists. He has opened three successful salons—two in New York City and one in Miami—writes the most-read column on RachaelRay.com, and is the contributing grooming columnist for Esquire Magazine. Additionally, Cutler has been a long-time partner with Redken 5th Avenue NYC where Cutler Salons act as flagship salons for the brand and Cutler himself is a Redken brand ambassador.

In this video, we caught up with him backstage at the Nicholas K show at Fall Fashion Week 2011.