The 8 Biggest Beauty Statements at NY Fashion Week

1. Tribal Tattoos We know, we know, tattoos are for life, but the temporary ones on the Rodarte (above) runway were another story entirely. Makeup artist Chantel Miller and her team of 40 used tattoo markers and MAC Pro airbrushes to mark the arms—and in some cases necks–of the models. The effect was New Zealand tribal by way of L.A., with a little Twenties Deco thrown in—all consistent with the cool toughness of the Rodarte girl.

2) Day-Glo Lips Technicolor mouths were comfortably at home among the busy prints and bright colors this season. Fuschia reigned at Vena Cava and Marc by Marc Jacobs (above right), where Dick Page layered his Shiseido lipstick underneath a shocking pink powder. Punchy coral took over at Isaac Mizrahi and Chris Benz (above left), where showgoers got a preview of Lancome’s new shade, Chris & Tell.

1. White Liner This wasn’t just an inner rim affair. Both Gucci Westman at Rag & Bone and Pat McGrath at Donna Karan (above) used white in a thick line above the eyes. Think of it as a spring version of the smoky eye.

4) No Mascara! Lash-lengthening wands were surprisingly MIA this week. Pat McGrath skipped mascara at Donna Karan to let the white eyeliner dominate; for Thakoon (above left), Diane Kendal also passed on the stuff, sweeping bronzes and browns all the way up to the browbones. Dick Page created what he called “dirty looking eyes” at Narciso Rodriguez (above right), where he smudged away all mascara and most of the eyeshadow with makeup remover. And at Isaac Mizrahi, Tom Pecheux skipped mascara—and every other makeup item—to let his stunning peony lips rule.

5) Weave-Tastic Hair Fake hair is never far from stylists’ hands backstage, but this season they also wove in a variety of unorthodox accents: A weft of metallic beads added sprarkle to messy chignons at Carolina Herrera, royal blue, orange, purple and white gazar got braided into halos at Oscar de la Renta (above left); and black ribbon was looped alongside lacquered pieces of hair at Jason Wu (above right).

6) Bold Brows Spotted at Oscar de la Renta, Alexander Wang & Vera Wang. The cross-hatched stripes at Alex’s show (above left) referenced the designer’s much-praised sportswear theme, while Vera’s take was more of a classic Brooke Shields statement (above right).

7) Schoolgirl Accessories This slightly Eighties theme was seen in the long leather barrettes at 3.1 Phillip Lim (above left), clear plastic headbands at Michael Kors, oversized fabric bows at Marc by Marc Jacobs (above right) and extra-high scrunchies at Marc Jacobs.

1. Slicked-back ‘Dos Whether it was polished (Ralph Rucci, Badgley Mischka (above left), Marchesa), bedhead-ish (Rag & Bone, Christian Siriano) or beachy (Yigal Azrouel (above right), Calvin Klein), hair was pulled, gelled and even scraped back into submission, flaunting conventional wisdom that says spring hair must be loose and wavy at all times.

Photos: backstage and runway, WWD Staff.