Phew. That was a doozy of a week. Seven days, 40 or more shows….both front and back of house. Photographer John Perez and I are pooped. New York Fashion Week officially ended just two days ago. The Mercedes Benz tents are folded and those of us who were there from dawn till way beyond dusk go into a kind of coma for a couple of days.

At the end of fashion week, I am often asked: "What's the new look?" This is such a tough question because it really varies from designer to designer. In one tent the models sported sleek gowns with clean faces,soft nails and cascading curls. Next tent: layered tweeds, power eyes and lips, dagger nails and exploded frizzy hair. Most editors just pick and choose their favorites and make THAT the story. However, there ARE some common denominators resulting from the shows I visited.

HAIR: As always, the hair look is a mixed bag. There are as many long, sleek looks (consumer friendly…boring) as there are dramatic and powerful silhouettes (extreme but professionally created). The buzz these days…in just about every cramped hair and make up space… IS the hair! The hair lead is the star and we all wrangle and jockey to get the interview and perfect picture. The Danilos, Odiles, Eugenes, Guidos, Teds, Thomass, Seans, Rodneys, Recines, Orlandos, Didiers, Davids, Kevins, Franks, Laurents, Jimmys, Antoinettes and Whitneys are the REAL story at Fashion Week. What each creates is usually the result of an intense collaboration with the designer, coming up with something that complements the fashion and can withstand quick fashion changes off the runway.

Common denominator: All models need a good cut and deep conditioning treatments at the end of the show season.

NAILS:

Every manicurist on the planet should thank Jan Arnold, co-founder and Creative Director of nail product manufacturer CND. Jan, a true fashionista and a staple at the "fashion weeks" around the world, single-handedly changed the importance of nails on the runway. Nails were always an afterthought before Jan decided to make nail fashion important at fashion week. This season CND created looks for 25 shows, but has done up to 95 in seasons past. Jan consults with each designer months before the show and then offers a nail concept including pattern, shape and shade to best compliment the clothing.

Common denominator:Jan Arnold's devotion to fashion week has made interesting nail designs a real story.

MAKE UP: Makeup designs have become somewhat a step sister to everything at fashion week. Seriously…how much can you really do to change it up without making the girls look…well…stupid? There were mostly simple clean fresh faces on the runways (to let the hair and fashion shine), but there were a handful of "statement" make up designs that were almost disturbing. While big red lips and strong smoky eyes can be pretty on the runway, the covered eyebrow is just wrong. An important trend that I did see from all celebs attending: false eyelashes or eyelash extensions!

Common denominator: Most women look best WITH eyebrows.

FASHION:

Ok…fall/winter fashions are again varied, depending on the designer. There were more solids than prints, more layers than not and more asymmetry than conventional. Even the skin tight designs were somewhat forgiving with rushing and texturing. According to my fave Fashion Stylist David Widjaja, "There's more of a push towards a relaxed silhouette, less body fitting and longer including wide legged pants and longer skirts."

Common denominator: Everything looks great on any 18 year old model standing 5'10" and wearing a size two.

photo from Malan Breton  by Nicole Delmonico