Maria McManus was one of the heavily anticipated brands to kick off New York Fashion Week with the unveiling of its Fall 2024 presentation held at the Roll and Hill in Soho. Though sustainable fashion is an inescapable buzzword these days, Maria McManus has proven to be one of the few designers holding authentic and unfaltering motives to make a difference in the apparel industry. The brand is chic and clean, with the added bonus of an entirely traceable environmentally conscious supply chain.
Maria McManus’s Fall 2024 presentation drew inspiration from Irish architect Eilieen Gray. In a post-show speech, she explained how her reverence for Gray stemmed from the late architect’s meticulousness in each aspect of her designs, a practice that ensured longevity. McManus feels that this notion of durability is often lost in today’s fashion industry, which has been soiled by a culture of profit prioritization. McManus’ designs are innovative yet consistent, she steers clear of trends and focuses on garments that will exist in her customers’ closets for as long as possible. Naturally, the hair to accompany this show had to reflect a sleek and trend-abstinent consumer.
Given McManus’ unrelenting commitment to sustainability, it comes as no surprise that R+Co BLEU was accountable for every single hair look. R+Co BLEU is a line of high quality products packaged in both recycled and recyclable materials. According to McManus, she is “grateful to R+Co BLEU and their talented team for helping us produce our Fall 2024 runway show. It’s amazing to have other brands join us in the world of sustainability.”
Prior to the show, I spoke with lead hairstylist Ruben Colon about the vision for the looks, the products he used backstage and why he loves styling during fashion week. He even took a second to remedy my frizzy bangs with the R+Co Reflective Shine hairspray, a product that I intend on stocking up on immediately.
Can you tell us about the looks for the Maria McManus presentation?
Colon: Maria wanted something very simple and effortless with a low ponytail, but with a lot of shine and lacquer. The hair look is very clean, sleek and chic. It’s very polished and almost looks like shellac – very glassy. Typically, designers want the same hair, but Maria wanted cohesive variations of this look.
Some of them are going to be very sleek and tight and clean. Some are off center, middle part. You know, so there’s variations. Cohesiveness, but variations of it.
Can you walk us through the products you used?
Colon: There are two products that I totally love. This is the Rose Water Wave Spray. I use this because it has a little bit of moisture in it. And what it does, it gives it a little sleeker look. And it also makes the hair less frizzy. So it keeps it a little bit smoother.
And then I finish it off with the Reflective Shine. Just to tame anything that’s sticking out, any short pieces or broken hairs, it just kind of tucks them in and it also gives it shine and conditioning.
Do you mind telling me your favorite part about fashion week?
Colon: Just the energy. It’s just such great energy and inspiration to see what this line brings out, you know, and see how the hair is going to go with it. It just keeps you on the edge, which is great. Yeah, for sure. I kind of love it. Fashion Week is a rush, it keeps me young.
Get the Look:
Colon also offered a run through of how to get one of the signature looks using R+Co BLEU products.
- Apply Highest Volumizing Mousse ($42) on damp hair and then blow-dry for a smooth finish.
- Follow with Optical Illusion Smoothing Oil ($59) for high shine and to tame fly-aways.
- Wrap a small section of hair around an elastic ponytail holder and secure with pins.
- Spray Cult Classic Flexible Hairspray ($46) to set the twisted hair in place.
- Finish with Reflective Shine Hairspray ($38) for added hold and shine.
