Unilever brand Toni & Guy, one of the official sponsors of London Fashion Week S/S17, was also the backstage hair stylist at several of the shows. The Moodie Davitt Report joined the brand for a closer look.
This season, Toni & Guy worked with designers Ashish, Ashley Williams and Faustine Steinmetz to create catwalk looks using its latest products. Toni & Guy Global Hair Ambassador Indira Schauwecker led the backstage teams and afterwards was part of the Toni & Guy Style Hub panel who discussed the breakout theme of the season: gender-fluidity.
The idea is that an outfit, or a hairstyle, no longer has to be ‘men’s’ or ‘women’s’: whatever their gender, people should be free to look however they choose.
Last month the word gender-fluid was accepted into the Oxford English Dictionary as a term meaning someone who does not identify with a single fixed gender.
Indira Schauwecker explained: “I feel that the gender fluidity message is such a strong one – it’s something that I think we will see more and more designers embracing. There’s a real ‘I use yours, you use mine’ attitude to hair products and styling that is really supporting this movement.”
Toni & Guy has long supported up and coming designer Ashley Williams as it feels they share a ‘young and rebellious’ affinity. The designer’s latest collection was inspired by an 80s teenage look paired with hair crimped using bent coat hangers before being straightened. Toni & Guy Matt Texture Dry Shampoo and Toni & Guy Tousled Texture Creation Hairspray were the backstage staples on this look.
At the Faustine Steinmetz show, where models wore androgynous denim, hair was sleek and simple with volume added by Toni & Guy 3D Volumiser Spray. The look combined everyday glamour and youth with individuality and experimentation. Hair was spritzed with Toni & Guy Heat Protection Mist before drying and the finished look was smoothed with Toni & Guy Shine Gloss Serum to control fly-aways and add polish.
The Toni & Guy 3D Volumiser Spray was described by Indira Schauwecker as one of her top gender-fluid products: “It gives any flat, fine hair that added boost – whether you’re male or female.”
Unilever Global Travel Retail Manager Rosalyn Frayna noted that the gender-fluid trend is already being seen within travel retail for Toni & Guy as more men buy ‘women’s’ products.
