Tresemme styled low ponytails for the Prabal Gurung show at New York Fashion Week. Picture / Supplied.
Tresemme styled low ponytails for the Prabal Gurung show at New York Fashion Week. Picture / Supplied.
Fiona Ralph covers the width and breadth of Manhattan for New York Fashion Week, and the feasts in between.
Call me weird, but traversing the city is half the fun of New York Fashion Week. Plotting my daily route, I factor in the number of shows, the randomness of locations and how much eating and sightseeing I can fit in. I ponder if I should taxi, uber, walk (read:run and arrive late sweating) or take the subway - my mode of choice, the people watching and rush of heat and noise are worth any high-heel/stairwell pitfalls or missed stops.
Saturday, with two shows in quick succession and backstage slots before each, necessitates a personal driver in an unnecessarily large black SUV, which feels awfully Mr Big or Bass depending on your NYC TV obsession of choice. It's not Girls that's for sure, although my night in a Brooklyn beer garden certainly lends some ambience of that kind.
I'm here to scope the hairstyles created by Tresemme stylists for selected shows at Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week, of which Tresemme is the official hair sponsor. The first night brings a meet and greet with journalists and PRs from 29 markets; it's fun spotting the difference between Brazilian, Thai and Australian street style.
Checking into the hotel that morning I'm asked if I'm one of the hair models. It's a morale-boosting start to a tress-heavy week, where we're treated to hairstyles by Priv - an app which lets you request a hairstylist, makeup artist or beauty therapist to your room, office or apartment.
It's a growing trend for obvious reasons, with the likes of TheStylisted and Vensette in New York being joined locally in New Zealand by Flossie Concierge. A self-confessed Disney fan, I'm starstruck when my hairstylist tells me he was responsible for producing perfectly-coiffed princesses at Disney World before this gig. Understandably, I end up with a Rapunzel-esque flowing ponytail, which I rather love.
New York City skyline from the Rockefeller Centre at dusk. Photo / Babiche Martens.
Perfect princess, to my detriment, is not the look of the season - the hair styles at the shows are much less done. A ponytail yes, but lower and sleek, or messy with pieces pulled out. At Prabal Gurung it's an "active ponytail" parted and slicked back, using mousse almost like a wax or a natural grease. "It shouldn't look like it's wet - it should just look like it's sweaty", Tresemme stylist Paul Hanlon tells me, but I sense svelte models pull off the sweat better than I.
Annalise Sharma has no qualms hopping on board - the brand manager for Ruby is trialling different hair looks daily as part of the Tresemme 365 project, so she has to be open to anything. The project aims to eliminate "sleep styling" and encourage people to change their hairstyle as fast as they change their clothes. She's part of our Australasian posse, which includes InStyle beauty editor Hayley Bennett and Eleanor Pendleton, the blogger behind Gritty Pretty.
We regroup for lunch and dinners, eating degustation style more often than not. At The Stanton Social - a hip, three-level club-like eatery - we indulge, a little too much, in the likes of snapper tacos, tuna wontons, and simple (but oh, so effective and Americana) dessert delights like cookies and doughnuts.
Models styled by Tresemme wore messy or low and sleek ponytails, seen backstage at Phillip Lim. Photo / Getty Images.
Here, I bond with the relaxed, down to earth George O'Neil, Unilever's marketing director, about his move from human geography studies and environmental work to being one of the few men - aside from the hairstylists - on this press trip. He tells me the two worlds aren't too far removed - both industries are creative - and that not many people know of Tresemme's environmental policies, their current focus including a commitment to sustainable palm oil.
Back at Fashion Week, we pop in to Rebecca Taylor (fighting pavlova-style over who can claim her, us Kiwis winning, of course) where stylist Rolando Beauchamp is running mousse through the models' hair with his hands. He brings a personality pop to the team with his green paisley shirt, short shorts and fluoro green socks and sneakers (joinging the hordes of front row guests taking pleasure in the fact that comfort is back in fashion).
He tells us he's channelling India with his shirt, to complement the show's mood, inspired partly by the 60s, and the bohemian love affair with the country. The continent seems a popular choice this week - Tome looked to Indian artists Rukmin Devi and Dayanita Singh while Nepalese designer Prabal Gurung conjured the Himalayas.
Models styled by Tresemme wore messy or low and sleek ponytails, seen backstage at Phillip Lim. Photo /Getty Images.
On our last morning it's a breakfast buffet on the rooftop of the Viceroy, our edgy, bunker style, mid-town hotel, less than a year old. The dramatic view of Central Park and surrounding skyscrapers is the perfect backdrop for the many bloggers who need to capture their outfits of the day. We meet Harley Viera Newton, Tresemme's new It Girl - and veritable NYC scenester.
There's one last thing to do before I leave - it's past midnight but I can't resist an iconic Empire State Building moment. There's no star crossed lover waiting for me but the late hour means no queues. After admiring the striking art deco features and breathtaking bright lights, I somehow end up in a Hell's Kitchen dive bar with a crowd of Bronx-born locals. Before I know it, it's 5am, time for one more slice of gooey, meal-sized $1 pizza before racing the sunrise home in a yellow cab - another quintessential New York moment.
• Fiona Ralph flew to New York with Tresemme. See tresemme.co.nz for more hair inspiration. Visit DiscoverAmerica.com for bespoke travel ideas on New York.
