By Larry Stansbury
Harlem’s Fashion Row hosted its 19th Annual Fashion Show & Style Awards on September 8 at The Glasshouse in New York City. The evening honored Erykah Badu, Wisdom Kaye, Brandon Blackwood, Audrey Smaltz, Jahleel Weaver, and Recho Omondi, with Tracee Ellis Ross and Yvonne Orji among the guests. The event concluded with a runway show featuring the Spring/Summer 2027 collections of Atelier Ndigo, Rey Jaiteh, and Chuks Collins. The three fellowship designers were competing for the PVH Foundation Runway Ahead Prize.
The Hair
Backstage, lead hairstylist Marie Simone created three effortless, chic hairstyles using Pattern Beauty products. Inspired by Diana Ross and the Supremes, Simone and her team returned to classic shapes with a simple flip, braids, and twisted-and-tucked buns. “Their hair was shaped, beautiful and effortless,” Simone said. “We wanted to return to something classic.”
Many of the models arrived with their natural hair, so the team relied on Pattern Beauty’s Shine Spray and Detangling Nectar during preparation, along with the brand’s Edge Control for finishing. “There are no baby hairs this year,” Simone explained. “Even with the braids and buns, we added a twist.” The understated approach allowed the hair, makeup, and clothing to form one cohesive runway presentation.
The Makeup
Dior International Makeup Artist Ricky Wilson led the makeup team, creating all three looks exclusively with Dior Beauty products. For Chuks Collins, Wilson drew inspiration from sculpture and painting, working with each model’s natural bone structure to create light and depth without traditional contouring. Natural brows and a softly blurred nude lip completed the look. “I want you to use lipstick, but I don’t want it to look like lipstick,” Wilson told his team.
For Atelier Ndigo, Wilson embraced the glass-skin trend using Dior Rosy Glow Sticks and Dior Forever Glow Luminizer. The artists layered three highlighter shades and two blush shades on each face to create illumination under the runway lights. Wilson also emphasized the importance of selecting Dior Beauty products that complemented the full range of models’ complexions. “Harlem’s Fashion Row is all about inclusivity, so it was important to use products that complement a wide range of skin tones,” he said.
The Rey Jaiteh presentation received the evening’s most unexpected makeup direction: An upside-down smoky eye inspired by Stranger Things. The lower lash line was made bolder than the upper eyelid, creating a sultry and intense effect balanced by clean, matte skin. The team used Dior Forever foundation and Dior’s translucent powder to produce a smooth, blurred finish across skin tones.
The Winner
Waïna Chancy of Atelier Ndigo was named the winner of the PVH Foundation Runway Ahead Prize. She tearfully accepting the $100,000 award for her vibrant collection of gowns featuring intricate pleats along the collars, cuffs, and hems.
This marked Wilson’s fifth year leading makeup backstage at Harlem’s Fashion Row, an event he looks forward to each New York Fashion Week. Together, Dior Beauty’s sculptural, luminous, and smoky makeup looks, and Pattern Beauty’s timeless hair direction complemented the designers’ collections while allowing each model’s natural beauty to remain central to the runway story.
