Hair and makeup of New York Fashion Week

Though it seems to be the couture shows that bring out the drama and flair in runway beauty, the Spring/Summer 2013 shows in New York gave us some lovely looks to feast our eyes on. Nothing was over-the-top; instead, makeup artists and hairstylists seemed to home in on highlighting natural beauty. If there was a dramatic element to be seen, usually it was focused on a single feature, and the rest flowed gracefully into a more natural domain.

1. Oscar de la Renta's dewy skin and candy-striped bouffants

To be honest, if someone had told me before the show that beautiful, decadent gowns would go hand-in-hand so well with streaked hair, I might have been reticent to think it would look good. But not only did it look good, I couldn't have imagined it any other way. The spark of pink in the hair provides a nice jolt and adds a cheeky touch to the opulent clothes.

(photo c/o Vogue)

(photo c/o Vogue)

2. Nina Skarra's"your-hair-but-better"

Usually, fashion week runway hairstyles fall into one of two groups: the first being the beautiful looks that are completely impractical and/or impossible to recreate on one's own and the second being looks that are...uninspiring, thus not prompting anyone to want to recreate them. Skarra's gentle, cascading waves don't look overdone, prompting me to try these styles out. (Alas, without a professional stylist with me...my waves will probably turn into krinky kinks.) I also like the fact that extensions weren't added to models' hair so as to create one uniform look. Instead, gentle waves were carried out regardless of length or hair type. So democratic.

(photo c/o Getty Images)

(photo c/o Getty Images)

3. Nomia's strong brows

To be honest, I almost always roll my eyes when the new beauty trend of the season turns out to be "strong, defined brows", because I feel that half of the population has strong, defined brows, in which case, the look will always be - regardless of "season" - part of the "in" crowd. But this show stood out to me because it seemed that the goal of creating intentionally uniform, dark brows was to enhance each model's eyes.

(photo c/o Getty Images)

4. Tory Burch's soft fishtail braids

I'll let you in on a secret. Nobody in my family knew how to braid hair, and as a kid I always longed for pretty braids like some of my friends had (looking at you, Jill). I think that I can find some Freudian theory as to why I am still attached to braids even in adulthood. Love 'em. Just recently learned how to braid my bangs and I almost made a cake for myself...I was that excited. And then these hairstylists at Tory Burch come along and make these braids that look sooo easy. Such teases, they are.

(photo c/o WWD)

5. The Row's elegant, yet slightly disheveled chignons

These chignons look like they've been loosened up after a day at the office or after a night of dancing. Either way, they are pretty and seem to indicate relaxed glamour.

(photo c/o Bella Sugar)

6. Marc Jacobs defined brows and Twiggy liner

There I go again with my "strong brow" infatuation. What has this season done to me? But really, the brows work so well with the mod, winged shadow and liner that these models are sporting. Francois Nars, the founder of the Nars cosmetics line, was in charge of the makeup, so it all makes sense as to why it was so perfect.

(photo c/o WWD)

7. Anna Sui's pastel manes

This (and Oscar de la Renta's) show is proof that the trend of My Little Pony-hued hair isn't  slowing down any time soon. Which, personally, I'm quite happy about because I'm obsessed over Kelly Osbourne's lilac 'do (Exhibit A). 

(photo c/o Fashion Rising)