ghd London Fashion Week 2013

spring/summer 2013

Guide to the season ghdhair.com For more information, images or quotes please contact: Hermione Russell, Jo Torn or Dominique Rock at Shine Communications. 020 7100 7100 Hermione.Russell@shinecom.com / Jo.Torn@shinecom.com / Dominique.Rock@shinecom.com

ghd @ghd #ghdSS13

"As decades whizzed by between shows, it was down to the skill of the stylist to reimagine iconic looks and give them a new strength."

Guide to the season spring/summer 2013 reality hits the runway

"it's that cool girls don't try too hard..."

Rebels rejoice. This season ushers in an entirely new manifesto as hair strays away from the classical blow-dries, elaborate up dos and floaty, feminine tendrils we’re used to seeing on the runway. It seemed that for the first time ever at Fashion Week, hairstylists in all four cities were united on one thing; giving catwalk hair a modern edge for a new era.

The runways took direction from how real girls wear their hair, offering an array of new hair icons. “For Spring Summer 2013, stylists took their cue from a mish-mash of references over the last fifty years giving them a ‘real girl’ spin for a cooler, quirkier take on hair than we’ve seen in years,” says Kenna, creative director for ghd. If there’s one thing that we can draw from Spring Summer 2013’s street inspired styling, it’s that cool girls don’t try too hard.

Decoding the styling directions for the new season requires a tantalising look through moments in history and modernising them. As decades whizzed by between shows, it was down to the skill of the stylist to re-imagine iconic looks and give them a new strength. Sixties styles reigned at PPQ, Moschino and Marc Jacobs and we encountered fifties punk and rockabilly references at Osman, and Aminaka Wilmont. At House of Holland, Jil Sander and Stella McCartney the ever-present nineties grunge aesthetic was replaced by an altogether new noughties era of polished minimalism, where ‘just washed’ well-conditioned, cool-girl nonchalance ruled; un-done hair gained a luxe edge.

In an act of rebellion, texture this season was decidedly diverse with an excess of product layered through hair to create a dual-personality. Dual-textured hair gave a fresh and modern feel to styles at the likes of Giambattista Valli, David Koma and Derek Lam, whilst the clever twists, knotted detailing and looped ponytails at Chanel, Marni and Fyodor Golan provided a chic alternative for those searching for a new-season up-do.

As ever, the foundation of the look was healthy, shiny hair as stylists wielded their power tools of choice; “Underpinning every look was a great blow-dry,” explains Kenna, “the at-home basic that every woman can master from their own bedroom.” And he should know. London based this super session stylist divides his time between the fashion capitals.

Known for his sexy styling and creativity, his work has graced the pages of Hunger, Vogue and GQ as well as designing the hair over the years at PPQ and David Koma.

Take four fashion capitals and one super stylist ready to dissect next season’s trends. It’s show time…

Guide to the season spring/summer 2013

"Say hello to sixties inspired chignons, amped-up beehives and super-straight hair."

"The trick to making retro styles modern is to subtly subvert one area."

Sophista-delic ppq

Say hello to sixties inspired chignons, amped-up beehives and superstraight hair. After last season’s love affair with all things vampish, there was a definite nod towards a new era this season as designers once again fell for the youthful innocence of the sixties and it’s softly sensual styling.

“As a decade, the sixties offered us so much in terms of hair; the teasing, the height, it’s all very flattering” explains Kenna. The decade that brought us the beehive also showed us super-straight hair for the very first time, “The sixties invented new techniques that were used to enhance a woman’s beauty. Even now hairdressers borrow those techniques, building on them to create futuristic looking styles.”

Taken literally at Moschino, hair was teased into frothy, statement beehives that took hairstylists an hours’ worth of arm-work per girl.

It picked up the pace at Marc Jacobs and Louis Vuitton where stylists whipped hair into a pumped up parody of the sixties up-do whilst Michael Kors trod a more subtle track with sleek, poker-straight lengths inspired by Penelope Tree.

Meanwhile, a more modern take on the decade was happening over at PPQ by adding exaggerated volume and a little teasing at the roots to impeccably blown out hair, “I didn’t want it to look too dated,” explained Kenna, “the hair was inspired by the sixties, but made relevant for today with a touch of modern detailing on the sides.” Trussed up and smoothed out to within an inch of its life, it gave the impression of a bouncy sixties bob from the front but when models turned to the side Kenna’s definitive futuristic spin on the Sixties was obvious, “The trick to making retro styles modern is to subtly subvert one area. I took the smoothed out texture and bent the ends under, but I made sure that the side sections were pulled back tightly. This gave the illusion of elongating the face and lifted the cheekbones.”

Such styles demand a resolute dedication to a thorough blow-out. In order to attain the maximum volume, smooth texture and shine needed to recreate a sixties finish, it’s all about the prep. Creating a slight bouff at the front with a flash of ghd style root lift spray and his trusty ghd air, Kenna ensured that the side were firmly slicked down by using ghd final fix hairspray.

three

Get the look

PPQ brought an upbeat mood of fun and glamour to the catwalk this season. With their explosion of prints, chiffons and dazzling accessories, they took us on a sexy voyage to the French Riviera where only a seriously glossy, bouncy blow-out will do.

four five

six

one one

Spritz ghd style root lift spray into damp hair, then taking a ghd ceramic vented brush (size 4) and the ghd air, blow-dry to create smooth yet voluminous hair. Direct the nozzle upwards, that way the all-important lift at the roots is created.

two

Starting on the right hand side, use the ghd tail comb to create a diamond shaped section from the bottom to the top of the ear approximately 2.5 inches wide. Repeat on left side so you have two diamond shaped sections then temporarily tie the rest of the hair out of the way.

three

Use the brush to scrape the sides up towards the crown plying them with ghd style final fix hairspray for a shiny and sleek finish. Pin in place then pull the top section of hair into a ponytail at the crown.

two four

Use the tail comb to lightly backcomb the front section of the hair creating height and then tease the base of the ponytail. This creates lift and becomes the scaffolding to the style.

five

Place a small hair donut over the base of the ponytail and secure it with pins.

six

Attach an elastic faux hair ponytail over the donut, secure the hair and then with the ghd V gold classic styler, bend the ends under. A mist of ghd style final fix hairspray tames any flyaway hairs for a pristine finish.

six

"energy seemed to stem from the duality in the texture..."

Sports couture david koma

Elegantly feral braids entwined around each other and deconstructed ponytails that look worn in texture; a more ‘wear and tear’ variation on the braided theme that has been developing for some seasons emerged. It soon became evident that designers were appealing to the everyday woman through the language of hair.

"Hair no longer has to be perfect, There are no rules..."

The key to modernising these ubiquitous summer styles is to weave through subtle nuances. Beautifully mussed up hair at Marni and Chloe was inspired by office girls; the kind who casually tie their hair up imperfectly whilst sitting at their desk, letting tendrils fall, and floppy, soft textured pieces stray around the face before twisting and pinning them up out of the way. At the other end of the spectrum, these casual styles were given a more dynamic, sportive twist. At Holly Fulton the hair emulated that of a Californian skater girl who plaits her hair to keep it out of her face pulling it into a series of dishevelled interconnected ponytails; whimsy with flyaways.

Over at Mulberry a matted halo of frizz surrounded delicately spun braids, entwined through a looped up ponytail that bound fallen tendrils together. Whilst at Balmain, what began as a ponytail transcended into a braided length; “in the past, plaits and ponytails have been figures of perfection, but this season what’s really interesting is that they’ve been treated with unreserved nonchalance,” explains Kenna, “hair no longer has to be perfect. What makes a style look modern is when you fuse the textures, add some shine amongst the dryness or unwittingly let the style you had in mind end up as something completely different. There are no rules.”

Meanwhile, David Koma served up a more dynamic twist as both hair and clothes from his tennis inspired collection were taken straight from centre court, “I looked at pictures from the 1970’s American Open; the female players would pull their hair into a ponytail and braid the ends. As pieces started to fall out, they would pull these pieces into another braid and connect the two together.” A kind of energy seemed to stem from the duality in the texture as Kenna added a ‘go-faster’ element; a horizontal “sweat band” of pristine polished sleekness around the head which gave way to an elegant plaited ponytail tied at the nape.

three

four

Get the look

Classic cuts of tennis attire were brought bang up to date with body-con cut-outs showing some skin.

Where fashion went, hair followed taking inspiration from the world number one, Victoria Azarenka‌

five six

one one

Give the lower section of the hair a liberal spritz of ghd style straight and smooth spray, then using the ghd air, quickly blow-dry the hair smooth, training the roots back toward the crown.

two five

Taking the top section of hair, add a generous amount of ghd style root lift spray for texture. Comb hair backwards to encourage raised line, the ghd detangling comb is great for this

two

six

three

seven

When hair is 90% dry, horizontally section across the back of the head about 1cm above the ear and 1cm below.

You should now have three sections of hair.

Run a ghd oval dressing brush over the bottom half to create a smooth texture then spray liberally with ghd style final fix hairspray and secure in a low ponytail at the nape.

four

Pull the sides of the mid-section back with a brush spraying ghd style final fix hairspray close to the roots to create maximum shine.

Join the top section to the tied ponytail and plait the top section into a braid, then join it to the bottom ponytail by tying at the nape of the neck.

Finish by running the ghd V gold max styler down the length of the pony and spraying with ghd style final fix hairspray.

seven

"The challenge is to do something unattainably perfect..."

Samurai sleek

At Fyodor Golan, ancient tribes and civilisation provided the inspiration for a slick ‘double-ponytail-knot-hybrid’ made more complex thanks to the elaborately constructed sections and their distinctly dominatrix edge.

Raked back from the brow with the ghd detangling comb, hair was combed through to create the texture of windswept desert dunes.

Bound, tied and knotted, elegant yet Amazonian, these aesthetically beautiful and unattainably perfected fierce warrior-like power-ponies suggested an inherent toughness and a penchant for perfection.

fyodor golan

It’s not often a simple hairstyle has the ability to make you feel tougher, walk taller and instil newfound confidence.

In this season of urban twists, iconic craftsmanship and unprecedented attention to detail, the challenge to do something unattainably perfect emerged as a strong trend.

Rigid, unbendable hair structures were styled up in a bid to balance out the flowing, feminine clothes and Asian influences.

Where ponytails didn’t make the grade, there was still an underlying sense of their structure; designers opted to construct shapes from their basic form with an abundance of wet-look, architectural finishes that were folded and knotted to a wildly creative effect. At Donna Karan the idea of origamistyled hair involved subjecting the humble ponytail to precision folds and meticulous bends, crowned with a Perspex band.

Whilst at Haider Ackermann hair was pulled back away from the face as the pony was made strikingly complicated; folded and twisted into a minimalist construction that had more than a hint of Geisha about it. This graphic aesthetic continued with deliberate sections and severe partings taking centre stage as at Iceberg, hair was bound over on itself in unobtainable perfection.

"This season, hair is about power, attitude and edge."

two

Get the look

A series of interconnected ponytails reinforce and accentuate the angles and panelling in the tribal inspired collection.

four five three

one one

Use the ghd air to smoothly blow-dry clean hair pulling the roots back toward the crown of the head.

two four

Create a diamond shaped section at the nape of the head and use an elastic band to secure a low centre ponytail.

Now is the time to dry the top ponytail with the ghd air on a medium heat and speed. Once dry, use the ghd V gold max styler to quickly flatten the ponytail. Next, tie an elastic band slightly above the first one (leave a 1.5cm gap) to create some height and make it stand out from the head. Repeat on the bottom ponytail.

three

five

two

Dampen the large remaining section of hair by spritzing on a cocktail of water and ghd style total volume foam.

Then taking the ghd detangling comb, swipe from the front to the back to create a raked texture. Secure with an elastic band in a high ponytail.

Tie the two ponytails together. Hide the elastic by wrapping a 2cm section of hair from the lower ponytail around the elastic band. Spritz with ghd style final fix hairspray to keep hair flat and shiny and then finish with a mist of ghd style final shine spray to ramp up the sheen.

"Welcome a new, edgier celebration of femininity."

The rockabilly rebel aminaka wilmont

After the grown up glamour of the autumn season, Spring/Summer 2012 ushered in a new dawn; the re-emergence of the eighties punky undercut. Shorn, sleek or slicked back, these severe styles were prevalent across the catwalks. Once regarded as the style synonymous with the stomping ground of the Kings Road, its recent comeback inspired stylists, borrowing inspiration from this fierce hair statement they gave it a distinctly feminine spin for spring. As Kenna points out, “The faux-undercut reveals the most closeted parts of the female silhouette.

There’s something inherently sensual about seeing a woman’s naked neck, ears and jawline.”

Welcome a new, edgier celebration of femininity.

With a DIY fringe and a gentle wave exposing the neck and lifting the features, at Aminaka Wilmont the faux-buzz cut lost its confrontational power and borrowed a little fifties spirit as Kenna put his own spin on things, “it’s a total fifties hybrid; rockabilly meets mod whilst the razorcut fringe lends it a modernity. There’s something slightly Dita Von Teese meets Alice Dellal to it.

Who would have thought it? That choppy, uneven, slightly too short fringe you cut in yourself at school has finally become fashionable. Uneven fringes were also seen sliced in at Prada and Miu Miu; short, sharp and blunt these face-framers embody a tough, rebellious spirit. One that is far more face-flattering than it appears at first glance.

At Mary Katranzou and Osman, stylists offset sleek sides by adding height to the top, whilst the devil was in the non-conformist detail at Rodarte with hair deliberately designed to trick the eye; a harsh horizontal parting divided what looked like a light shave on the left hand side created by flattening hair to the head using excessive amount of product and a lighter fluidity of hair on the other. Likewise Costume National and Roland Mouret constrained hair firmly down on one side of the head whereas at Giambatissta Valli, fingers were used to rake through the sides adding a certain softness to the texture setting it apart from these more severe styles.

"Fresh and youthful; edgy, quirky and slightly uncomfortable, the girl is a rebel with a pair of scissors in her hand."

five

three

Get the look

A precision fringe and faux-shorn sides added bold simplicity to billowing silk shirts and shorts in an array of colourful prints.

six one one

Lightly spritz ghd style root lift spray into damp hair and blow-dry using ghd air.

two

Clipping the top section of hair out of the way, use a brush like ghd’s oval dressing brush to smooth back the side sections of hair. Follow each stroke of the brush with ghd style final fix hairspray to ensure a sleek finish.

three

Taking the top section of the hair, pull into a pony just above the crown.

two four

Attach and pin two expanded hair pieces to the back of the head just above the crown, ensuring none of the back hair is visible and the slicked-back side sections are exposed.

five

Attach a faux fringe to meet the hair at the crown. Roughly trim the fringe just below the hair line for a very short, edgy finish.

six

Taking the ghd air and a ghd ceramic vented brush (size two), style the fringe to suit the face shape.

four

ghd V gold series

The style tools

plates so smooth you get gorgeous shiny hair.

What do contoured plates do? Well, they glide through hair giving you perfect results by evenly gripping and heating as they go. Plus every styler in the ghd V gold series has a rounded body, so even tricky flicks and curls are easy. All our stylers have universal voltage so they work perfectly anywhere in the world. They even switch off automatically. It’s perfect hair – no catches.

ghd style curl, volumise, straighten, protect, fix and finish. final fix hairspray, gives a firm yet soft-touch hold that helps to reduce frizz and is humidity resistant. root lift spray, contains a volumising complex that smoothes cuticles and leaves hair looking and feeling fuller after blow drying. straight & smooth spray (for normal/fine hair), a lightweight product that helps smooth and defrizz without flattening the style when blow drying or using a ghd styler. total volume foam, gives hair all-over volume whilst protecting natural moisture levels when blow drying. final shine spray, a lightweight mist that gives instant all over shine and static control to your finished style.

ghd brush collection brilliance from every bristle. ghd oval dressing brush, classic, natural bristle grooming brush. ghd ceramic vented radial brush, round ceramic brush available in 4 sizes. ghd detangling comb, perfect for detangling damp hair. ghd tail comb, great backcombing and sectioning.

ghd air™ the best blow-dry of your life. more hot air from ghd.

So what makes the ghd air™ hairdryer different? Well, almost everything. It’s more powerful than normal hairdryers, but it’s also quieter. It doesn’t just dry your hair, it can also help lock in moisture – so your hair will feel smoother and look shinier for longer. And it’s even shaped to dry your hair faster. It’s not just hot air, it’s a breath of fresh air.

time check David Ko ma

Trending topics

10 minutes

how long did the hair take for each model

Aminaka Wilmont

25 minutes

Fyodor Golan

20 minutes

PPQ

23 minutes

my soundtrack to the season

It’s important to have the right music to set the scene backstage and keep your team in the right frame of mind. Here’s a few of the tracks we listened to… Den Dennis – Sept 12, Sandford – Return of the Dungeon Gimp, Den – Summer Rain, Tom Hooker – Love Attack, Den & Sandford Live @ The Hit Factory, Hana & Dana – Champion, Den – 1 on 1, Latour – Blue, Den – London Fields pt. 3. For more fashion inspired tracks check Kenna’s playlist here: www.soundcloud.com/ kennaland-selected-cuts

and breathe...!

After my final show’s over, my team and I celebrate with high fives all round before heading straight to the Cat & Mutton pub in East London where the food and (many) drinks are on me!

Kenna takes us backstage into his world and reveals the hidden details that make up a Fashion Week show…

i heart ghd

This season, a great blowdry was at the heart of every style so I couldn’t have got through the season without using the ghd air. For me, it’s the power-tool of hairdryers. ghd style final fix hairspray is my ultimate product, we used 30 cans of it backstage in total this season.

i predict...

Alyona Subbotina is going to be the next big model.

I saw her at so many shows during LFW and she has been popping up in shoots I’ve been working on in NYC. She’s a strange yet serene beauty and big things are going to come her way. You heard it here first!

top secret

I work a lot in NYC, but I’ll always be a London boy at heart. Whenever I’m back at home I head straight to East London. It’s the place that inspires me most where people dare to be different.