Vivienne Tam Creates A Japanese Garden with Retro Twist

Clean, natural hair and make up complemented the Japanese garden inspiration backstage at Vivienne Tam.  Lead Maybelline Makeup Artist, Andy Koh, incorporated a modern twist to 70's retro style by using metallic tones.  Koh shared how foundation was key for a fresh face using two different shades - a lighter shade for the t-zone and darker shade around the face for a structured look.  For the eyes instead of using a harsh line with an eyeliner like you would see on Twiggy in the 70's, Koh used a copper tone for that line on top of the gold base.  Another modern twist was to have natural looking lashes, although he used Maybelline's Falsies mascara, which builds thick lashes, he wiped the brush to remove the excess mascara and lightly applied to the eyelashes for a more natural effect.

Simple, organic and undone were the words used to describe the hair by Lead Stylist, Leon Gorman for Redken.  A deep side part and low ponytail twisted into a quick messy bun, held up by a combination of bobby and french pins, topped off by a light spritz of Redken Fashion Work 12 was all it took.  Gorman also shared for those with greasy hair to use dry shampoo to build that texture.

For a quick manicure, Incoco provided grey nail strips that were applied to the nails with no drying time needed.  It probably took as long as reading this sentence to apply them to the nails.

Calling out teens from the 90's - remember 7th Heaven?  Well, talk about an awesome flashback Beverly Mitchell, currently starring on The Secret Life of  the American Teenager, dropped by backstage and I had to ask her what was the essential beauty item in her kit.  Her answer: blotting papers!  A total lifesaver.  Trust, I had to use a couple today with this humidity.

Chinese Opera Beauties, Backstage Vivienne Tam

Vivienne Tam seemed like a theater production.  The theme was Chinese Oprah with a modern, edgy twist.

Leon Gorman, the lead stylist with Cutler and Redken created edgy updos that paired nicely with this seasons collection.  To create the look, he started by blow drying the hair straight with a round brush. Once dry, each girls hair was put into a pony tail and scrunched up into a bun by using a hair net (yes the ones you see women wearing in a cafeteria). Gorman used a hair dryer as he sprayed each girl’s hair to keep all the stray fly aways down. “The more we think about it the messier it gets,” he commented. The looked finished by having a Vivienne Tam hair piece sewn into under the updo.

Makeup was led by Maybelline's Andy Koh who commented, the idea behind the look is to “not have too much or too little anywhere,” but it was all about the eyes. He started the eyes with Maybelline Eye Studio in Pink Persuasion, a beige color all over the eyelid. Then, he added a thick layer of Maybelline Gel Liner in Blackest Black across the top of the lid with an eyeliner brush. Individual false eyelashes were added just to the outer corner of the eye to add a touch of drama in a modern way. For checks he used Maybelline Blush in FIT Deep Rose and Coral depending on the model’s skin tone where he applied it under the eyes and on the check bone to temple where he blended upwards. For lips, Maybelline Lipcolor in Born With It was his go-to.

Katherine Kim of Imcoo & Coco applied stick on nail color to just the tips of each nail to give the nails a luxury, glittery look. They looked like an old school French manicure with a twist.  The color was Imcoo & Coco Dry Nail Applique in Ruby Shoes.