sophie roberts

There was an eerie sense of déjà vu at this morning's Dion Lee show as once again models hair was painted backstage in the wings of Sydney's Opera House by ghd hair director Sophie Roberts. Unlike last year's white clay, which only adorned six models' heads, this year all of the girls had black-sprayed tight ballerina buns. Like last year, the makeup was all about luminosity and light with the skin being the focus of the whole look.

• Makeup: Napoleon Perdis for Napoleon Perdis
• Look: Natural, inner glow
• Colours: Nudes, creamy metallics
• Key products: Mighty Concealer Pen, Light Patrol Luminizer Palette
• Hair: Sophie Roberts for ghd
• Nails: Orly

Red lips and sleek strands made an appearance again at last night's final show, Lover. Lead hairstylist Sophie Roberts described the look as "handsome beauty" and cited the '70s as a reference. The deep-parted, side pony was paired with a "pre-Raphaelite" makeup look that saw lashes left bare, lips filled in with a bright blend of two cult MAC lipsticks and brows defined and extended to give the look a slight masculine edge. Skin was fair and luminous.

• Makeup: Noni Smith for MAC
• Look: Pre-Raphaelite beauty with a slight masculine edge
• Colours: Red
• Key products: Strobe Cream, Ruby Woo lipstick, Lady Danger lipstick
• Hair: Sophie Roberts for ghd

Keep reading for the hair how-to . . .

This was Sophie Roberts' last show for RAFW and she made it a good one. She wanted to mimic the idea of "Greek sculptures," so six blonde models were chosen to have white clay worked into the hair. The rest of the girls had gel combed through the top of the hair with a wide-toothed comb to create obvious rivets; the "wave-type formations" playing with "negative and positive space." The rest of the lengths were ironed through, Sophie said that there was "more fluidity" to the style this season, than last. Again, as we've been seeing lots of this week, the movement and softness at the bottom of the hair is in juxtaposition with the rigid, gelled top. Product-wise, Sophie used a little bit of ghd Maximise Mousse, a little bit of Reflection spray and that was it.

Hmm, Sophie Roberts had a bit of a tricky problem on her hands when she took the job as Hair Director for Zimmermann: she had to work a metallic collar into one of the model's styles. But Soph loved the collar so much that she promptly asked if all of the models could wear them! I'm pleased she did as I fell over heels in love with this ultra feminine and other-worldly look. She wanted a "veil of hair," that seemed "sophisticated" and "silhouette" was a word that kept cropping up backstage. She really wanted to focus on the "curvature of the neck" to tie in with the collar. I love it because it's light, it's airy and it isn't too 'done." There's a wispness there.

Natasha Severino created the Ginger & Smart makeup look using MAC products. There was no foundation used, but the skin had to be hydrated. The eye was contoured in taupe, which was blended to the brow and shaded under-eye to create a "halo of colour." The eyes also featured Gold Pigment in the centre of the eye and, unlike Lisa Ho, the lashes were bold with both False Lash # 36 and Zoom Lash mascara applied. The standout look  was the concealer-esque paint (which was in fact Polished Ivory Paint Stick) that featured on the centre of the models forehead and down the bridge of the nose. Interesting. Not entirely sure it's a trend I'll be picking up on.

The hair was all about the juxtaposition of texture, there was almost an undercut effect that was masterfully created by Sophie Roberts for ghd. The parting was a standout for me, it featured gelled horizontal sections across the head and then a 2-3 inch gelled vertical fringe, but the rest of the hair was left soft.

Keep reading . . .

The look over at Marnie Skillings was modern English Rose. Skin was luminous, cheeks were ever-so-lightly contoured and lips were graced with a pop of bold lilac or orange. There's your modern then. The lip colours were custom-blended by MAC Makeup Director, Noni Smith, using shades of aubergine, orange, fuchsia and white. Despite being a huge orange fan (see my earlier Carla Zampatti post), there's something compelling about the mauve-lilac shade. MAC Lipstick in Up The Amp ($35) is a close match if you're really not a fan of DIY mixing. Now onto the hair, which was inspired by the Teddy Girls of the '50s and artfully created by ghd Hair Director, Sophie Roberts. Sophie calls the quiffed Edwardian-esque style both "romantic [and] a touch tomboy." It's all about creating lots of texture with ghd Sea Spray ($35), spliting hair into two sections, braiding from the ear downwards and then knotting and rolling the plaits in on themselves until you reach the nape of the neck. Finish by creating a quiff at the front and pull a few strands loose. Simple! What do you think of the look? Like it? I LOVE it!

Photos courtesy of ghd