At Bodkin, Green Beauty Has A Tranquil Moment Amid The Madness

Last night, 50 blocks south of the high-powered action at the tents, a decidedly different vibe had taken over the Standard hotel. “This is the only backstage that’s totally synthetic-free,” skincare maven Tata Harper exclaimed at a presentation for Bodkin, Eviana Hartman’s organic clothing line. Also backstage with Harper, reps from the vegan haircare brand ABBA.
“You can do great fashion without trashing the environment,” Harper said in praise of Hartman’s mission to bring natural-dyed catsuits and natural-origin wool cable-knit sweaters to the masses. “The message is, green can be great, it can be glamorous. It’s the future.” Since launching her eponymous range of 100 percent natural, predominantly vegan skincare staples, the Colombian-born, Vermont-based Harper has busted the eco-chic beauty category wide open. “There’s no benefit to applying chemicals to your skin,” Harper said, giving us a rundown of the mini-facials she and a team of five aestheticians performed on-site before models took to the podium for two hours of provocative standing. Cleansing with her Regenerating Cleanser, Harper applied her beta-hydroxy Resurfacing Mask to “remove the top layer of skin.” Once the girls were properly exfoliated, she spritzed on her Hydrating Floral Essence slathering a thin layer of her Rejuvenating Serum and her Rebuilding Moisturizer afterwards to boost collagen production and smooth. It was the perfect canvas for makeup artist Nadine Luke to work on, using a selection of MAC products including its Mineral Skinfinish Natural Powder Foundation for a flawless base. An earth-toned wash of MAC Paint Pots patted onto lids, a touch of its Blush in Pink Swoon, and a plum-brown lip finished the “effortlessly beautiful” face. OK, so maybe it wasn’t totally synthetic-free, but it was pretty damn close.

ABBA haircare stylist Joseph Anthony was also on hand to add to the au naturel primping effort, creating uniform texture with four of the brand’s newest launches. “It’s supposed to look like the hair is tucked into their jackets,” Anthony said of models’ manes, which were treated to a cocktail of ABBA’s Volumizing Root Lift, its Texture Cream, and its Smoothing Cream before being tied back into a very loose, low-lying ponytail. A halo of ABBA’s Firm-Hold Hairspray kept everything roughly in place, despite the intentional wisps Joseph pulled out before models assumed their positions. “The beauty world is far ahead,” Hartman said when we asked her about the collaboration she’d orchestrated for the night. “Tata did this aromatherapy anti-stress treatment backstage with the models, and I did it, too—I needed it!”