Hair is subtle yet strong at Ellery Haute Couture

Ellery called upon Wella Professionals Global Creative Director and ghd Ambassador Eugene Souleiman to create hair which was elegantly tough yet refined for their Haute Couture AW18 show recently.

Hair complemented the luxurious textures and fabrics used in Ellery's designs, with elements of masculinity along with Victoriana. Speaking of his styling, Souleiman says:

“At the front there's this very masculine, Victorian feeling to the hair and then it just becomes more natural. At first glance, hair is contained on top of the head and then it becomes really loose. There's a really beautiful play on the blending of textures, it's really lovely. This look is about minimalism, it's about how you can say so much by taking things away and just keeping that purity. It's about the emotion that you put into the hairstyle, the attitude you have when you're styling it – it's very sharp, defined, it's opinionated but in a very quiet way and that's what I love about it. It's really very subtle but very strong to look at – it's pure and it's beautiful.”

Commenting on how he created the looks, he adds:

“In order to create a natural texture to the hair, we're using the ghd Air Hairdryer and a little EIMI Sugar Lift; this ensures lightness and removes any oil from the hair, which is key.

“For the second step we're using a lot of EIMI Dynamic Fix. We take a panel of hair from the centre of the head, allowing the edges of the panel to fall down and create a side parting. Working with the remainder of the hair (this should be the underneath section) we take sections and spray the roots with EIMI Dynamic Fix. There's a trick to this application though – we're not just spraying the roots, we're spraying them at an angle in a way that distributes the product but doesn't create a line.

“We're looking for a seamless flow of texture, a very clean, sharp and shiny texture that resembles something like a satin to compliment the fabrics used in the show. It's all about the weightlessness and softness of a fabric as it falls down. We're using that feeling and interpreting it in a hair style.”

Next, he uses a small amount of EIMI Sculpt Force, which is applied at the roots using a paint brush to reinforce the appearance of a satin finish. Hair is then diffused with the ghd Air Hairdryer to quash flyaways.

Eugene then brings various sections of hair over the top of the head and uses EIMI Dynamic Fix at the roots, as before. The majority of sectioned hair is then brushed across the head and tucked behind the ears so that the textures blend. The remaining strands are pulled back so that they look taut, referencing Victorian masculinity.