As one of the top ten internationally ranked stylists with Lifespa, I was thrilled to be chosen to represent them at New York Fashion Week. Working with Wella and Aubrey Loots was a dream come true and offered me the chance to challenge myself during this incredible fashion event. Keep reading to take a behind-the-scenes look at what happens at New York Fashion Week from the eyes of a hairstylist.

Creating a Vision for a Show

The first step when working at New York Fashion Week is helping to understand the vision of the show that you are working on. The designers meet to come up with the look for their brand, and after selecting models, they decide upon the hairstyle that best fits their vision for the overall aesthetic of the show. I’ve been lucky enough to work with styled brands such as Bronx and Banco, which have styled celebrities like Beyoncé, Miley Cyrus, and Doja Cat. As you can imagine, it’s an extremely fast-paced environment with lots of moving parts. It is, however, an incredibly rewarding experience.

Teamwork is a key element of making New York Fashion Week a success. I worked with makeup artists, photographers, and videographers to get the models ready to walk the runway. Touch-ups and changing looks are all part of the show, and we remain on hand for any last-minute changes to fit the designers’ vision. As with any live event, you never know what is going to happen on the day of the show, so you always have to be ready for unexpected events and changes.

An Artistic High-Fashion Fashion Environment

One of the best phrases I could use to describe New York Fashion Week is “organized chaos.” With a clear vision for the end product in mind, the teams collaborate together to ensure every element of the show is perfect. As a hairstylist, working with these other teams helps inspire you with your work, and it’s one of the best ways to continue to challenge yourself in your profession and learn new skills. Everyone working on the show needs to be adaptable and ready to make last-minute changes. Working at any type of live event naturally requires you to think on your feet, but the fast-paced environment and adrenaline help to create these incredible shows you see at New York Fashion Week each year.

Of course, I found some time while in New York to explore this incredible city. During our free time, we explored the city, ate delicious local food, and visited tourist sites such as Times Square. We even had time to squeeze in a Broadway show one day, and I‘m sure you can imagine that I loved seeing the artistic and styling side of the show.

New York Fashion Week was an experience that was a highlight of my career to date. While there’s a huge amount of planning and perfecting details leading up to the events and on the day, it’s well worth it for the end results. I hope to get the chance to work at New York Fashion Week again in the future and keep challenging myself to further my skills and experience.