Fashion Month Spring/Summer 2024 is finally over, but whilst most people are now recovering from the chaos, we’re still high on the hairspray fumes and setting sprays from the beauty backstage. Before we officially rub away the remnants of this season’s makeup, let’s recap the beauty looks we won’t be forgetting about any time soon. Here’s Culted’s roundup of the most dramatic, iconic, and extreme hair and makeup from SS24.
Ashley Williams got #emosh at SS24
Ashley Williams was one for the sad girls, breaking into SS24 by bursting into tears. The brand’s beauty looks were the epitome of the “crybaby” aesthetic, channelling the kind of fresh-faced look you get after a good, long crying session. Grungy eye-shadow tones added an element of moodiness which was well contrasted with the collection’s feminine cues, over which gloss was applied to model’s eyelids and under-eyes to create the effect of tears. Who knew an emotional breakdown could look so good?
Junya Watanabe entered its emo phase
The beauty at Junya Watanabe’s SS24 show was giving “emo phase but make it fashion,” featuring liquorice black lipstick, slicked-back brows, and obsidian contact lenses that peered into your soul. But honestly it’s the hair we can’t get out of our heads. Sleek, black bobs with clean-cut yet wonky fringes were channelling Edna Mode on the runway, whilst other models wore bald-caps in stark contrast with their bold, black lips. Beauty at Junya Watanabe was a sleek, modern ode to the cannon event that is the emo phase – so good we’re thinking of having one ourselves.
Mowalola’s festish-gore-core
The beauty at Mowalola’s “Crash” show was maybe the most controversial we saw this SS24, due to the fact that it utilised quite a bit of gore. Whilst this isn’t the first time a fashion brand’s used SFX on the runway, blood, cuts, and stitches are always a statement that can easily be met with backlash. However, Mowalola managed to pull it off. Citing that her inspiration for the collection was “the fetishization of pain through crashing,” the beauty at “Crash” followed suit, with bumps, bruises and cuts on models’ faces. Whilst it’s not a look we’re about to be replicating (outside of Halloween), the beauty at Mowalola was undeniably, purposefully divisive.
Comme des Garçons’ f*ck ass bobs
Rei Kawakubo’s SS24 show for Comme des Garçons was a wig fest if we’ve ever seen one. Models’ makeup was pretty clean aside from sharp, black lipstick (a common trend at SS24), but that’s partly because the main character of beauty at Comme des Garçons was the wigs. Whilst they were seen in a variety of colours and textures, all of the wigs appeared in the same style – a close-cut bob with a fringe, aka a “f*ck *ss bob,” if you will – plus, they were all giving candy. A bubblegum pink wig had the texture of thick frosting, whilst cherry-red and lime green renditions were seen in more conventional “hair” textures. Snatched, thrown, whatever you want to call it; Comme des Garçons’ wigs will be as hard to forget as those edges.
AVAVAV had a breakdown in Milan
AVAVAV let out all of its anger in a moody, aggressive show which featured half-finished fits and models stomping down the runway, and obviously its beauty followed the theme. Models had greasy hair stuck to their faces in sweaty tendrils and tear-streaked mascara stains on their cheeks, most of which utilised black mascara and heavy black eyeliner smeared around models’ eyes. Although, a couple of looks used red mascara instead, which had a dramatic effect. The disarray of the mascara was contrasted with clean, red lipstick that added an element of composure, showing that AVAVAV knows, even when you’re having a breakdown, a smart, red lip is always essential.
For Kiko Kostadinov, hair was the main character
At Kiko Kostadinov SS24, hair stole the show. Whilst makeup was pretty muted, with lipstick utilising only the subtlest smear of cool-toned grey, brown, or beige, the hair was captivating, using dye to create horizontal stripes. Considering that the collection itself utilised a lot of stripes, Kiko Kostadinov’s models’ hair was cohesive with the garments they were wearing, complimenting the clothing with matching examples of colour-blocking in their hair. One model with yellow-blond hair had cool, purple stripes running through it, whilst another with chocolate brown hair had stripes in a peachy orange tone that blended in with her skin, making the striped sections appear invisible. It’d be fair that Kiko Kostadinov won at hair this season – in fact, let’s get Laura and Deanna Fanning crowns.
Diesel said “there can never be too much glitter”
The most iconic beauty moment from Diesel’s SS24 show was undoubtedly Alex Consani sprayed head-to-toe in iridescent purple-silver paint, but there was also a whole lot more going on than just her look. Most models were dusted with glitter, with many having just a smear of green or pink sparkling on their faces. However, others were coated entirely in a fine layer of shiny bronze, pink, or gold. Something you might not have noticed is that the models’ hair actually had a wet look before they stepped out into the pouring rain, plus a few models even had contrasting extensions in their hair which were tied haphazardly in knots. Diesel’s thinking must’ve been: “if you wear enough glitter, it won’t come off in the rain,” and they were definitely right.
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