I saw many things backstage at fashion week—hairstyling, makeup techniques—but I spent most of the time checking out the models. I LOVE models (not male models, though; please), so backstage is heaven for me. What were they like? It varies, but my favorites were glamorously stony and silent: scowling in their makeup chairs, declining to be photographed (um, you're a model?), staring vacantly in the mirror, complaining about needing Advil, ruining their lipstick by wandering over to make out with their hunky in-the-corner boyfriends, and so on.
Then there were the "nice", "normal" models, who were...A A
- Eating! A lot! Constantly!A Salami and baguettes and pasta and cookies and real, not Diet, Coke from catering.
- Finishing Sudoku puzzles in minutesA
- Reading books (Sex, Drugs, and Cocoa Puffs)A and The Herald Tribune!
- Smiling and thanking me when I told them how extra-beautiful they looked (sounds creepy, but I was interviewing the makeup artist!).
- Napping on a pile of coats in the corner for literally two hours (let's hope this was an innocent snooze—oh, you know what I mean).
The one thing I can't figure out is how they all have truly perfect skin. It's insane. You'd think that with all the traveling and gunky makeup and scruffy-boyfriend backstage-makeouts that a LITTLE acne might pop up, but no. Last weekA I saw one of my favorite movie stars--who always looks like her skin is perfectA (clues: romantic comedies, long-haired spawn, torrid affairs)--on the street, and SHE was horriblyA broken out--but never, ever the models! What's up with that?
—Cat Marnell, associate beauty editor
