Going backstage at Haider Ackermann is always a little otherworldly. It’s also quietly intense, much like the designer who moves through the space wearing a hoodie that conceals much of his face. He frequently stops to check in on the status of the hair and makeup because this season (as always) the look is a complicated, wildly creative take on his version of ethereal beauty.

Lynsey Alexander, with M.A.C Cosmetics, had to create a look that complemented the pastel pops of colour in the hair and the silk netting that was wrapped across the models’ faces. “You can’t compete with that hair,” she said. “Something had to give.” Her goal was to create skin that looked lit from within. She did this by removing all the redness and using M.A.C’s Groundwork Paint Pot to sculpt the eye, cheeks and lips.

“It’s actually a little bit ‘90s, but it’s a dark, otherworldly take on a ‘90s sculpted eye, cheek and lip,” she said. Because she didn’t use any colour, Alexander said she wanted to create a contrast between matte versus shine. “The eyebrows are spiked up and glossed and the eyelids at the end are completely glossed. We also glossed the cheeks but kept the rest of the skin very matte. It’s about opposites; it’s about light versus dark. Bringing the face to life without colour. There’s no shimmer… They look a little Sleepy Hollow; a little doe eyed.”

(Check out the backstage scene on the video I shot on my iphone6s and edited while hopping on and off subways using the iMovie app. #multitasking!)