Don’t get us wrong, skin is always in. But in the fashion week narrative, makeup artistry typically comes to the fore with conceptual rigour and wild colour taking centre stage. At Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week Australia, however, there was a decidedly fresher feel backstage. For fashion’s vanguard, a subtle light was cast on the beauty direction of Matteau, Hansen & Gretel and Christopher Esber as makeup took a backseat and skin reigned supreme.

Dermalogica, those saintly skin Gods, created impossibly glowing skin with custom FaceFitSM treatments to appease Fashion Week-weary skin. For a model, Fashion Week usually reads something like this: makeup, show, cleanse, repeat. It’s a process which takes a toll, and with this in mind, Dermalogica designed a custom UltraCalmingTM FaceFitSM (their signature 10-minute express treatment) to soothe and refresh models’ skin before they hit the runway. The result? Beautifully glossy, radiant skin that shone on the runway – without the aid of foundation.

Dermalogica’s Education Manager and MBFW Skin Director, Emma Hobson, explained the process: “This week, we’re prepping the models’ skin for the runway. This year, the look is all about ‘clean’, healthy, glowing skin to complement the clothing and really let it shine. Understanding skin as well as the challenges models have, especially at fashion week. We know the skin can become sensitised very easily. So we designed a Dermalogica FaceFitSM treatment based around our UltraCalmingTM range of products, which will instantly reduce redness and sensitisation, boost hydration, and increase vitality and glow.”

At Matteau, beautifully ethereal models emerged like angels, skin dewy and luminous. The skin story was a similar one at Hansen & Gretel, with one envious frow-er even commenting, “Oh my God, that skin.” While at Esber, model skin was so good they went completely foundation free (and looked beautiful doing so).

To borrow a hackneyed phrase; if you’ve got it, flaunt it. And to get it, you need this treatment. Try this dreamy Dermalogica treatment at home and forgo the foundation.

The 10-minute foundation-free FaceFitSM:
01 precleanse balm Perfect for the rst cleanse. It removes the heaviest of make-up quickly and efficiently.
02 ultracalmingTM cleanser The second cleanse with a gentle, milky cleanser.
03 redness relief essence Applied to instantly reduce redness. (New on counter July 2019.)
04 daily resurfacer Exfoliates and polishes the skin for a smooth palette.
05 stress positive eye lift We then move on to reducing any stress around the eyes, boosting moisture to relieve any dehydration lines. With gentle pressure, we massage this product into the eye area, helping relax the model before the big show.
06 barrier defense booster Next, we seal and protect the skin with a ne layer of Barrier Defense Booster.
07 prisma protect Finally, we seal with our hydrating moisturiser with sunscreen protection.