Inside scoop: Benefit's make up trends for AW09

Benefit Cosmetics was one of the proud sponsors for Vauxhall Fashion Scout again this season – After the success of S/S 09 last year, I just couldn’t wait to see the key trends and make-up looks that will be hitting our streets this A/W!

As public relations officer, most of my time this season was spent backstage checking out the A/W make-up trends and setting up interviews with press. Heading up the make-up team was the lovely Rachel Wood from Benefit, who talked though all the key looks and trends for next season. Working across some fab shows including Alexandra Groover, Harriet’s Muse, Hemyca and Ones to Watch, there were definite make up trends evolving...

The two key looks for A/W are a) polished and natural and b) extremely dramatic. For the natural look, Rachel explained it's all about getting the right base this season and keeping the eyes and lips as neutral as possible. Rachel used Non Fiction foundation (1) even on darker tones to create the look of a silent film star. Rachel buffed the foundation into the skin using the Benefit mini Buffer Brush (the one that comes with Bluff Dust) and really worked it into the model's complexions. To finish the look, Rachel applied a touch of Benefit Erase Paste (1) under the eyes and onto the cheekbones in a V shape and finished with a touch of Benefit Powderflage around the eyes, nose and chin for a hint of natural brightness. Sometimes Moon Beam or High Beam were blended into the foundation to give it an illuminating effect.

For the dramatic/vampish look Rachel created a dark brooding eye - oversized and smokey - using Babe Cake liner and Town Car Cream Eye Shadow, blending the edges until it disappeared into the skin. She then brushed a touch of Snow Bunny or Nugget Lust Dusters on top of the shadow to give it a touch of shimmer texture. Strong lips were also a big hit this season- Flirt Alert and Frenched lipsticks in flaming red were popular with various designers as was Sangria lip pencil which is this season’s hot pick colour of dark plum.

The make-up this fashion week was outstanding, and I'll definitely be attempting some of these looks for my next night out!

Persephone Walton – Clark

Modus Dowal Walker PR

Maid for fashion: the life of a Vauxhall Fashion Scout intern

Dressing the models, meeting the designers and getting a first look at the collections was what initially encouraged me to email Vauxhall Fashion Scout last August for work experience in September.

Returning this February for my second season I was already aware of what the job entailed, namely long hours (working from 5.30am until 10.30pm on the last day), a lot of hanging around in between the shows, cleaning, emptying bins as well as sweeping up cigarette butts and making sure the toilets are clean.

However, the not-so-glamorous jobs are definitely outweighed by the adrenaline pumping duty of making sure the models are changed into their second outfit in time for their return to the catwalk, as well as being able to touch and get a close-up look at the clothes before any of the audience.
Another bonus of working backstage is that it has enlightened me to exactly what preparation and hard-work goes into the shows, from watching the make-up artists and hair stylists work their magic and create fantastic creations every time, to seeing the final transformation of a tall, attractive girl, into a catwalk sensation.

If all the cleaning was done and there were enough dressers we were able to watch a show, this rarely happened, but I was lucky enough to watch Emma Bell and my favourite of the week, William Tempest (where I managed to see Emma Watson and Sophie Anderton).


My aim in life is to follow in the footsteps of Colin McDowell and Hilary Alexander and become a great fashion writer. This past week has given me a behind-the-scenes glimpse of fashion shows that I will hopefully soon be reviewing, as well as leaving with a few contacts.
All in all the hard work, lack of sleep and catching post Fashion Week flu has definitely been worth it, bring on September, when I get to do it all over again. Laura Chatterton

Image: Laura Chatterton

The rat in the hat: Q and A with Charlie le Mindu

One of the most controversial shows this fashion week was the hat and headress show by 22yo hairdresser and wigmaker Charlie le Mindu, showing (excuse the pun) on the fringe of LFW. His full face headress made from rat and mice carcasses has caused a storm in cyberspace, but we know the genteel Frenchman as the creative tour de force behind Vauxhall Fashion Scout designer Emma Bell's amazing catwalk hair. So who is Charlie le Mindu?

The Fashion Scout: Where are you from in France and how do you find yourself here in London?
Charlie le Mindu: I'm from a village near Bordeaux, where I lived with just my grandmother, called Castelnau De Medoc. Then at 18 I moved to Berlin for 3 years which was great, but since January 2008 I'm here in London - the city that I really love and finally understands my work... There is more for me to do here and also more interesting people to work with.

FS: When did you decide you wanted to be hair stylist?
CLM: I was saying to my mum at 6 years old I wanted to be hairstylist. I started at 13 in my uncle's salon of my uncle, which i left really quickly because I hated it, and went to work at 14 in a salon in Bordeaux where just punks were coming to get their hair done.

FS: Who or what inspires your creations?
CLM: I don't look to any magazines or any catwalk shows for that, more to do with crazy shapes that I invent myself then also lots of singers inspire me such as Grace Jones or Khima France from Kap Bambino.

FS: What's your signature cut?
CLM: I think lot of people knows me as doing massive double quiff like a Teddy Boy or the "Plonk-on" shaved side and a really short bowl haircut that looks like a wig. But I will say that my most famous wigs are the Cone wigs.

Do you have a permanent salon? Or are you doing the pop up salons at the moment?
Yes I'm working from home in my cute flat in Shoreditch. Also I'm going to people's houses and every Monday doing haircuts in Tatty Devine. I'm going to start again some club to do hairstyles at night, maybe Collapsing New People at the Macbeth.

FS: What's the idea behind the pop up salons?
CLM: I start doing that in Berlin because the first reason is that Berlin day life is boring and I wanted to have to people from the nightlife coming to me to have their hair done. Also I will never work in a salon again in my life because I think it's so not interesting. At least with the pop up salon I work with different people everyday in my life which is really fun.

FS: How did you get involved with Emma Bell?

CLM: I got to work with her because I do lots of shoots with her friend Alexis Knox who is a stylist for tonnes of magazine. And Emma Bell said to her that I was the only one she wanted to have as Hair Director for her show.

FS: So what hair did you do for Emma Bell this season?

CLM: It’s quite romantic, kind of Italian and Romanesque, it’s very sexy. It’s not as crazy as usual.

FS: Did you enjoy working at Vauxhall Fashion Scout?
CLM: I really like to work there as Hair Director- there's really good space to feel comfortable and all people from the venue are really nice.

FS: Whose hair would you love to have a go at?

CLM: I would love to do Cher a wig, I think she is so funny! And so trash!

FS: What does the future hold for Charlie Le Mindu?
CLM: I've just done my first wig and hat collection at fashion week but I prefer that everyone knows me more as an amazing hairstylist than a wigmaker. Yes, one day people will wait out front of my door to get their hair done.

Interview by Hannah Kane

http://www.charlielemindu.com/

Backstage vox pops at Emma Bell

Names: Samantha and Amanda
Occupation: Ex Big Brother contestants

"Oh my god we love Emma Bell. Her stuff is so exaggerated and so colourful. We are so excited to be modelling in her show."

Right:

Jodie Harsh

Left:

Name: Scottee Scottee
Occupation: Performance Artist
"I am actually Emma Bell, but it is fashion's best secret. I am giving this exclusive to you, so don't actually tell anyone!"

Name: Gui Carotti

Occupation: Model
Are you a big fan of Emma Bell?
"Definitely! This is the second show I have done for her. I love her stuff! Last time I did the show I wore these amazing shorts and I wanted to keep them but she wouldn't let me."

Name: Shabnam Naomi Spiers

Occupation: Designer & Medical Student
"Emma Bell is such a breeze of fresh air. The colours are so bright and cheerful. I like to wear something different and Emma Bell is perfect for that."

Name: Mika Doll
Occupation: Club Promoter
"I love Emma Bell. I was so blown away by the last collection I saw. Normally I wear a lot of black, and I'm all about a lot of shimmer but to see all that colour on stage is really quite exciting. She's inspired me to wear a bit more glitter than usual!"

Words: Louise Hemmings
Photos: David Coleman

Interview with Sacha Mascolo-Tarbuck, Global Creative Director of Toni&Guy

Sacha Mascolo-Tarbuck, Global Creative Director of Toni&Guy has impeccable hair credentials. As daughter of the Toni Mascolo, Sacha was destined to be a big name in the industry, proving herself in her own right as the youngest ever winner of the Newcomer of the Year category at the British Hairdressing Awards in 1999, and more recently when voted the coveted "Hairdresser of the Year" winner by Hair Magazine in 2008. Her celebrity clientele list is a veritable who's who of fabulous hair: including Erin O’Connor, Helena Christensen, Jamelia, Jerry Hall, Liz Jagger, Sadie Frost and Cat Deeley. As you'd expect, her work has featured in every glossy fashion mag you can think, and (not that we're jealous) she's done shows for Calvin Klein, Prada, Versace, and Helmut Lang.

It's not just the big names though that get the Toni&Guy treatment - we caught up with her backstage after the Avsh Alom Gur show, as she congratulated her Toni&Guy team who are working hard alongside Vauxhall Fashion Scout designers to create the stunning catwalk looks for the venue's emerging designers. "I absolutely love it here at Vauxhall Fashion Scout, they're so professional and every season it gets better and better. It's so inspirational working with new talent. It ticks every box for us as sponsors, we develop and grow with new talent. No question of a doubt we'll continue our partnership with Vauxhall Fashion Scout" said the vivacious, petite brunette. And yes, she does have fantastic hair. Hannah Kane

Catch Sasha Mascolo-Tarbuck on GMTV tomorrow morning as she mentors and will judge on LK's Top Model Competition. Six mother and daughter couples will be whittled down to the final three, the winning duo will win an introduction to ‘Independent’ model agency, a year’s supply of ‘Model Me’ haircare products and a year’s worth of free hair cuts with Toni and Guy.

Image: Katie Coxedge

Interview: Emma Bell

Emma Bell has been busy: whether it’s reading Lord Tennyson poems, learning hand woven embroidery techniques in Asia or - wait for it - saving dogs, she hasn’t had a moment free. “Whilst I was in Asia, I saw so much animal cruelty; they were literally bashing dogs’ heads on walls,” she says, explaining why her latest collection is called ‘I’m saving the dogs’. Bell worked with an artist to allow the canine influence to seep into her collection, with dogs appearing as prints on the fabric.

Bell is renowned for her unconventional choices of models, previously casting from both the street and from London’s club scene. “For me personally it would be too easy to look in a book and say oh I’ll have that one,” she explains, “so it’s more important for me to make sure I’ve got someone who really gets it”. And with drag-queen-du-jour Jodie Harsh, and Samantha and Amanda, the twins of Big Brother fame, rumoured to be taking part in today’s show, Emma Bell is sure to be top dog. Louise Hemmings

Image: Simon Armstrong

Backstage at Cooperative Designs

Images: Simon Armstrong

Credit crunch couture: interview with Dean Sidaway, Creative Director for Avsh Alom Gur

Avsh Alom Gur’s Creative Director Dean Sidaway's imagination knows no limits. “The collection is based on The King And I and Bulgarian folklore,” he explains, “We’ve used the very intense floral ethnic embroideries but as prints so we’ve increased and decreased the sizes of them.” The King and I influence is apparent in the voluminous dresses, but tulle and organza fabrics have kept the collection light, and there are no crinolines. So is this a sign of the times? “It’s just a fun thing in light of the credit crunch, wearing these really decadent gowns in this climate.”

This year’s collection is a lot smaller than usual, restricted to only 15 looks rather than the usual 30. “It’s not necessarily a statement but we did want a more couture salon feel so it became more intimate; a small show with statement looks,” Sidaway explains.

Look out for Avsh Alom Gur’s show at 12.45 today: A collection most definitely fit for a king. Louise Hemmings

Image: Alisa Afkhami

Model interview: Catriona Vowles

Just when you think you have fashion all figured out it goes ahead and surprises you - so here's a book review by Models's One model Catriona Vowles backstage at Avsh Alom Gur. "I'm reading David Ebershoff's 'The 19th Wife', I'm engrossed - it's about Mormon polygamy in 19th century America." We're impressed - clearly Vowles knows her vowels from her consonants. Hannah Kane

Image: Katie Coxedge

Interview with Blow PR Pop Up Show designer: Gemma Slack

Gemma Slack is one the trio of designers that The Fashion Scout caught up with to ask her first what was running through her head before her first show at London Fashion Week. As with the other Blow PR designers Craig Lawrence and Komakino, it was a combination of excitement and nerves - but Slack deemed the last minute rescheduling as a blessing in more ways than one "it means I’ll only be scared for like five days rather than six months."

There are a plethora of influences that have fed into the collection, the umbrella theme however is religion versus technology, and the notions of the protection and solace they offer. These are all embodied by the strong "Joan of Arc-esque" character that she has manifested, a creative process that she has perfected "I decide who it is, so it is not necessarily anyone who really existed, its just this person that I think all the ideas kind of encapsulates, it’s a bit geeky." Like Lawrence, Slack also formed part of the Gareth Pugh elite, the Fine Arts student transferred to London College of Fashion where she honed her skills during an internship she did alongside her degree. "I got a lot of confidence to do that from Gareth...you just get thrown in at the deep end." In ten years time Slack humbly exclaimed "Hopefully I’ll still be doing this...Hopefully I’ll still be making clothes and people will let me have another show." Kelly Davis

Image: from SS09 collection

Behind the scenes Polaroids: round 2

Polaroids by Yumi Yoshinaga

Interview with Blow PR Pop-Up show designer: Komakino

Komakino will be another of the designers to take the place of Spijkers en Spijkers today at 3pm. The Fashion Scout spoke with Federico Capalbo, one half of the husband-and-wife design team to see how they were feeling about the opportunity to show at London Fashion Week for the first time. "We are pretty excited actually. We are busy working on some of the outfits, trying to sort everything for tomorrow, so a bit nervous." Capalbo and his wife Jin formed the brand Komakino in September 2007, the menswear label draw inspiration from "Soviet and fascist architecture...it has basically inspired us since our first collection."

The political sensibility of the brand is translated into wearable garments, marrying unfinished details with sleek tailoring. The name Komakino may ring a bell, the title of a 1980's Joy Division track the German word means a Cinema of Shadows - "our collection and our colour palette is always black and white so yeah it matched perfectly our concept I guess." When asked where the design duo hoped to be in ten years Italian born Capalbo said they hoped to still be showing in London or Paris, "[London] is more open to new things and open to discoveries and risk. I don’t really want to go back to Italy to work." Kelly Davis


Image from SS09 collection by Kim Jacobsento

Interview with Blow PR Pop-Up show designer Craig Lawrence

Craig Lawrence is one of the three designers who will be showing today at Vauxhall Fashion Scout at 3pm. The slot was originally meant for Spijkers en Spijkers who had to pull out unexpectedly - while we will all be sad not to see the twins this season it will be quite a treat to see the fledgling talents taking their place. The Fashion Scout caught up with Lawrence to see how he was feeling with just over 24 hours before his first show at London Fashion Week. "Nervous, but it should be exciting I think" enthused the Central Saint Martins graduate.

Surely one of the youngest to be showing Lawrence finished his degree in Fashion Design with Knitwear last summer. The follow up to his amazing graduate show, which consisted of giant Christmas decoration-inspired ensembles, is based around cocktails and sweets. The young designer told of the giant cocktails that he used to have on holiday when he was younger and how he was always bedazzled by the colourful, swirly adornments that garnished them. It is this sense of nostalgia that Lawrence draws heavily on "[the collection is] looking at exciting things from my childhood, last time it was Christmas, this time it’s the summer holidays." When asked where he would like to be in ten years time Lawrence admitted that he hopes to be showing at London Fashion Week twice a year, in between times however, he hopes to explore his penchant for performance art, with his fingers in as many creative-project-pies as possible. Watch out for Lawrence's fashion film which will be showing at the BFC tent tomorrow and will also form the backdrop to his show. Kelly Davis


Image: Chris Moore, Catwalking

The man behind the camera: backstage with Ian Gillett

“Everyone is always jostling for the position,” says photographer Ian Gillett, “and yes, it does get tense but the joy is that you do get a position marked out when you’ve been working over the years.” Gillet’s daughter Katie has started photographing the collections this year, but hasn’t yet secured the same position in the photographer’s pit as her father. “She is at the side, but in a way you can almost be more creative by playing with the angles as you’re not working from a dead straight angle,” he admits. So how does Vauxhall Fashion Scout compare to the rest of fashion week? “I love the atmosphere and everyone is so friendly. The spirit which Martyn and John instil in everybody is amazing. I walked in and I can’t see the red carpet but I almost feel it’s there.” Gillet, we’ll roll the red carpet out for you any day. Louise Hemmings

Image: Alisa Afkhami

Backstage at Olanic and Victim

Images: Simon Armstrong

Backstage at Hemyca with Rachel Wood

In midst of fashion mayhem, make-up artist Rachel Wood holds court with her treasure trove of Benefit cosmetics. There may be models and pre-show paraphernalia strewn everywhere but she remains unfathomably calm, cheery and exudes a sense of complete control. In between other make-up artists scurrying over with questions and details to check, she talks about the big trends for A/W 09. "Gold and burgundy lips" she confides "are huge for the season." Her passion for Fashion Week is obvious and infectious, and her top tip is Benefit's brightening powder, brushed under the eyes for a perky complexion, and her personal mantra is "It's all about black eye-liner." Emma Hopkinson

Backstage at Horace

Images: Simon Armstrong

Backstage with Toni&Guy

No fashion show at Vauxhall Fashion Scout is complete without the genius of Tony&Guy. For the last decade, they have been the official sponsor of London Fashion Week, providing designers with surreal or sophisticated hairstyles that meet and exceed their expectations. They challenge the modus operandi of hairstyling, pushing limits of what can be done with a single strand of hair.

But what are the underlying fundamentals behind Toni&Guy and LFW’s long-lasting association? “It creates a healthy relationship, providing self-education and an ongoing challenge for our people,” states Bill Watson, International Artistic Director of Toni&Guy Academy. With 25 shows per season LFW provides Watson and his team with a sense of fulfillment and inspiration, as Watson further explains: “it’s a good challenge. When surrounded by creative and ambitious people we are taken on a journey.”

The preparation for each season requires hours of working on each brief and test trials to achieve the eclectic ideas of each designer, especially as the main hair trends this season involve structure and geometric hair. “Folds, bends and futuristic looks are common among most shows” Watson elaborates thoroughly. It is clear that Tony&Guy are here to stay, planning to preserve their strong edifying and inspiring relationship with LFW. And what inspirational advice does Watson have for us hair-obsessed fashionistas? “Relax and trust your hairdresser!" Nina Tukaj

Image: Yumi Yoshinaga

Behind the scenes Polaroids: round 1

Polaroids by Yumi Yoshinaga

Stylist interview: Rebekah Roy

Following the Romeo Pires show this afternoon Vauxhall Fashion Scout bumped into Rebekah Roy, the show's stylist. Roy was really enthusiastic that it had all gone off without a hitch, we had to agree it looked pretty impressive from where we were sitting, "the clothes are all very wearable" explained the petite redhead in her Lichtenstein print dress. Roy is certainly busy this fashion week, she was also responsible for the styling of the Ones to Watch show yesterday, and when we stopped her today she was on her way to fittings for the Merit Award winner William Tempest's show. The eclectic array of shows that Roy has brought her magic touch to is testament to her versatility. "They are all completely different" she said "but the one thing they do have in common is that they are all perfectionists and they all live and breathe fashion." William Tempest will be showing at Vauxhall Fashion Scout at 19.45 on Monday. Kelly Davis

Image: Simon Armstrong