The Best Beauty Looks From NYFW Spring 2017

The Look: The Newish Matte Lip How-To: In the days before matte lipsticks were rolling around in the bags of basically every woman everywhere, makeup artists had to improvise. They powdered, blotted, and then re-powdered creamy lipsticks to create that velvety finish. It was this backstage trick that makeup artist Mark Carrasquillo recalled when he created the look at Creatures of the Wind. Except this time, the powder itself was the statement. After applying (and yes, blotting down) Nars Velvet Matte Lip Pencil in Dragon Girl, Carrasquillo dipped a fluffy brush in Nars blush in Exhibit A and dusted it all over the lips. Sweep after sweep, the electric fuchsia brought a dimension of color and texture to the lipstick impossible to achieve on its own. And other than making one hell of a statement, there's also this: you can rest assured knowing this lip look will not budge. Photo: IMAXTREE

The Look: Not Your Average Red How-To: Jason Wu has always had a penchant for classic beauty. The man loves a red lip as much as the rest of us. This season, Wu served up exactly what you'd expect: a red lip. Kind of. Well, not really. "It's not your basic red, it's fluorescent red, if that exists," said makeup artist Yadim backstage. After applying a mix of two red lipsticks, he tapped some neon orange theater paint right in the center of the bottom lip. "It's a raver girl red," he says, imagining that girl thinking her basic red lipstick looks, well, basic. In his mind, she would smear on some neon paint before running out the door . The orange-red lips appeared on only a handful of models; the pop of color matched a similar shade on their gowns. All in all, it's the same Jason Wu girl we know and love, just cooler, sportier, and with a flair for neon. Photo: IMAXTREE

The Look: Wet Hair, Don't Care How-To: When you think of beachy hair, you don't really think of the look hairstylist Odile Gilbert created at Thakoon. But it was '80s supermodel Yasmin Le Bon on the beach in the Bahamas that served as the inspiration for the wet and shiny knots seen backstage. Gilbert used gobs and gobs of Kérastase Crème de la Crème blow-dry cream to totally drench the hair. After twisting it up and securing a bun high on the head, a small face-framing piece was untucked at the front. For Gilbert, the addition of the hanging piece was meant to add a sexy allure. For us, it grounded the whole look in reality: true beachy hair should never be too perfect, after all. Photo: IMAXTREE

The Look: Belted Hair How-To: We thought we'd seen it all when it comes to runway hair accessories. But Tibi's spring 2017 show managed to deliver both shock and delight: belts (yes, belts) were used to wrap and decorate the sleek ponytails seen backstage. And it looked damn adorable. Hairstylist Frank Rizzieri secured models' hair into sleek, low ponytails, then slipped on the custom made belt accessories much like you would a grosgrain ribbon. The end of each belt hung parallel to the ponytail. If nothing else, this look has inspired us to give new life to the collection of d-ring belts we've long since forgotten about. Photo: IMAXTREE

The Look: That '80s Glow How-To: You can blame it on Stranger Things. The '80s are back and they're fresher than ever; just look at the glowing pink makeup seen backstage at Adam Selman. After prepping and moisturizing the skin, makeup artist Emi Kaneko traced a rosy, multipurpose cream color (MAC Casual Color in For Your Amusement) across the cheekbones, up toward the eyes, and all over the eyelids, giving that distinct '80s draping effect. The color was also dabbed on the lips. But it's the way the skin looks shiny, raw, and unfiltered that makes this one of the coolest looks thus far. It might be the beauty nerd in us, but there's just something we love about classic application techniques twisted to appeal to a modern aesthetic. Photo: Getty

The Look: Beachy Everything How-To: Models walked around in flip-flops and airbrushed tee shirts backstage at Alexander Wang, their hair rumpled and scrunched into salty waves. We weren't at the beach or boardwalk (though we were near the water) at New York's Pier 94 warehouse, yet the inspiration was clear: these were surfer girls, done in Alexander Wang's style. Makeup artist Diane Kendal left the makeup quite natural, except for a mix of Nars multiples in a matte brown and rosy shade that she applied on top of the cheeks. "It gives a natural, kind of dewy, sunkissed look," says Kendal. "It's like they've been outside and they're a little sunburnt. That's the idea." The hair was a more involved process. Hairstylist Guido Palau and his team bleached the hair of 18 models for the show and cut shaggy bobs on almost half. The end result was a relaxed, surfer-boy beauty look that was undeniably cool. In other words, it was so very Alexander Wang. Photo: IMAXTREE

The Look: Hidden Braids How-To: Any beauty look that comes with a hidden surprise is a winner in our book. Backstage at Jonathan Simkhai, hairstylist Thomas Osborn hid a couple of woven, beaded braids within a fuzzy, textured style (He was dubbing it "desert drifter"). The one or two small braids were placed right near the left ear; each was adorned with a few colorful beads and string that complemented shades seen in the collection. The braids were a little hard to see (editors and photographers had to keep asking the models to pull them out for pictures)—but that was precisely the point. It was a subtle, quiet beauty statement that still made a big impact. Photo: IMAXTREE

The Look: Casual Elegance How-To: Victoria Beckham's aesthetic is a lot of things, but carefree is not one of them. Yet her spring 2017 collection showed off a more relaxed Beckham woman — the dressers were looser, the pants a little baggier. And that's the direction the beauty look went as well; while the hair was polished and sleek, the makeup took a bolder approach. Backstage, hairstylist Guido Palau was excited at the chance to use a flat iron again to achieve the straight, center-parted hair. "It's a very simple look, but when it's done well it becomes high-end and elevated," he said. "We don't do a lot of blowdries now, we don't do a lot of simple finishes using an iron. It's been a while." As for makeup, artists piled on emerald green and cobalt eyeshadow (from Beckham's collection with Estée Lauder), but they did so imperfectly. The shape was more painterly than graphic, which lent a carefree vibe to the entire look.

The Look: The Morning After Prom How-To: The runway at 3.1 Phillip Lim was scattered with crushed flowers and dirt. It was meant to look like a dance had happened there the night before, a sort of Western-inspired high school prom. In beauty, that theme translated to sharp black eyeliner and a deconstructed, '60s- inspired low ponytail. Makeup artists traced a black liquid NARS eyeliner all around the eye, from the top to bottom lid. After filling in the waterlines with a kohl pencil, they used a Q-tip dipped in micellar water to wipe away the liner just at the edges of the eye. The effect was a sort of play on negative space, as if the girls had been dancing all night and their eyeliner just stayed put. Let's just say that it's the coolest prom(ish) beauty look we've seen lately.