Beauty Diary

Behind the Runway With Fashion Week Hair Stylist Jeanie Syfu

By Nicola Fumo Sep 12, 2013, 3:30pm EDT

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Welcome to Beauty Diary: seven days of getting glam with an industry insider. From publicists to professional makeup artists, this a week in the life of someone who lives and breathes beauty

This week, Tresemme lead fashion week stylist Jeanie Syfu gave us a peak behind the curtains into the wild world of runway beauty prep. A week of NYFW life for Jeanie means collaborating with designers on hairstyles, running multiple hair tests, and finally getting a whole mafia of models ready to hit the catwalk.

After the jump, Jeanie shares how she created looks for the Rebecca Minkoff, Jenny Packham, Nanette Lepore, and Vivienne Tam shows, explains the importance of always having a little extra weave on hand, and demolishes her pre-fashion week juice cleanse with donuts and soy lattes.

Getting my workouts in is really important to me. My trainer, Tai Morales, has taught me how to stay strong during these demanding times. I was devastated a few years ago when I threw my back out during Fashion Week—never again!
After a summer full of bedazzled gel manis, I've decided to go more minimal. I find it refreshing! This color is Au Natural by Essie. It's an opaque natural shade that blends into my skin tone. Love it!
While most people were celebrating their last weekend of summer, I was prepping my kit for Fashion Week. I double (triple!) checked everything and made sure I had all curling irons, pins, brushes, etc. because I never know what I’ll need. My cat Moosey lo
I’m fully contoured and bronzed up for the camera today! I used Mally's Shimmer Shape and Glow to sculpt and highlight parts of my face. Today I'll be recording footage for Style Setters, a web series documenting the creative process with designers
Rebecca loves my first look at the test! It is inspired by an old photo of Bianca Jagger in Mexico, which made Rebecca think of strong Mexican women. Frida Kahlo came to mind, and this beautiful model captures her vision (look at those gorge
In between tests, I stop at a nearby wig shop to buy back-up hair for the week. You always have to be prepared for the unexpected: a look the designer decides on at the test might not look the same on all models.
At Vivienne Tam’s hair test, the designer requested I smooth the model’s hair out before cameras started rolling. I sprayed Keratin Smooth Heat Protect Spray through her dry hair and gave her a quick touch up with my blow dryer.
Last minute changes always come up at Fashion Week. I was supposed to have the day free, but there was a hair emergency so I’m back in the Rebecca Minkoff showroom for test number two. My model was Ingrid Nilsen, also know as MissGlamorazzi.
A perfect afternoon pick me up! Fresh Start Color Care Dry Shampoo has been the star product for every look so far, and the Starbucks soy latte isn't so bad either.
Rebecca decided to have two looks for this collection, both incorporating braids. This style was called “Heidi,” comprised of two Dutch braids worked into a messy bun.
Upon arrival, I hear Rebecca only wants to stick with one look instead of two. Many changes in the past three days, but I’m always ready for it! Eighteen beauties, 18 heads of hair, 3 hours… GO!
This is the look that I created and called “Frida” (after Kahlo, naturally). Playful braids with undone texture give this look a modern twist.
The Minkettes are dressed and lined up! A few last minute touch ups and we’ll be ready to go. The Theatre is filling up fast!
Rebecca always has the best live performances at her shows! This season, Janelle Monae performed. Lindsey Wixon closed the show in this beautiful floral dress.
My call time isn't until 3pm today so got to sleep in and see my cats (and my boyfriend!). Chilling with Biscuit this morning was just what I needed to put a smile on my face.
I got to Jenny Packham's showroom around 3pm for the hair test. I absolutely love the mood and inspiration so it was easy to get right to work! She always likes the juxtaposition of sophisticated and edgy. The hair is going to be big and beautiful
Setting the hair like this creates amazing texture and fullness that looks like you spent hours on it. Before wrapping hair around elastic, I like to blow dry it with 24 Hour Body Foaming Mousse for extra drama and movement.
It's fun to spot all the TRESemmé ads this week in NYC. I saw this one on my way to Nanette Lepore's showroom for my first hair test with her. Can't wait to see her collection!
I came up with this fun look using elastic to get an irregular crimp in the hair. I always try to keep things interesting when it comes to texture, and Nanette wanted the girls to look “disheveled.”
Models listen carefully to the show producer on how to walk the runway. There is always a specific spread, mood, and attitude to the show that tells the complete story of the designer. It's all in the details! I like to watch rehearsals so I can study the
I have to be honest, it's kind of difficult to be healthy during shows. I never really have time to eat. I usually start my day with a few cups of coffee, a few bottles of water and small bites of food while styling. It's very extreme from pre-Fashion Wee
I returned to Jenny Packham’s showroom for a second hair test to play around with different textures in the hair. This was one of the sets I did with elastic. Love how it looks before it’s brushed out!
Woohoo! We finally have a winning look for Jenny Packham: big and beautiful! Call time is tomorrow 10am, so need to gather more stylists for backstage to get this set done quickly! We will be busy beauty bees. Can't wait to see this hair move on the runwa
For breakfast I had a donut and latte, and this is what I had for lunch and dinner. On my way home for a quick costume change then off to a TRESemmé event at the London Hotel.
We filmed the last episode of Style Setters today. Even though this film crew can sometimes add some stress, I'm really going to miss them. Louise Roe made everything so easy (and I love her dress!).
For rehearsals, Jenny always requests I finish one model for a light check on the runway. This shows how detailed she is, and I love it. We discuss our notes before first looks are called, which gives me about 15 minutes to get 15 models teased and styled
This hair was major and it took some time to make it this big, but here we are and it looks gorgeous! Break a stiletto ladies, let’s start the show.
After the hard work that went into the big hair at Jenny Packham, I took a car home and went to the pub for a few Brooklyn Lemonades. A great way to end a busy, but wonderful, week!