Arriving backstage at Marc by Marc Jacobs was a slightly jarring experience, for two reasons: first and foremost, it’s a rare occasion to see Jacobs and his glam squad of Shiseido artistic director of makeup, Dick Page, and Redken creative consultant Guido Palau at the tents. Also throwing us off was the deliberate, albeit uncharacteristic, tinge of glamour behind the hair-and-makeup look. “It’s a bit more prim,” Page said of the designer’s Fall collection, which prompted him to slick on an impossibly glossy, “spunky” red lip for the occasion.

“I’m using an OCD lip technique,” he joked of a nonstop layering effort by which he blended Shiseido’s forthcoming shades of its Lacquer Rouge in Sanguine, a deep red, and Drama, a rosy crimson, keeping the skin “quite real” with minimal coverage foundation. Eyes were given a neutral slick of Shiseido’s Shimmering Cream Eye Color in Sable, a warm brown, which Page defined with the same product in Caviar, a rich black, on the outer third of the upper lash line. As a finishing touch, he blended the colors together with Shiseido’s Benefiance Full Correction Lip Treatment for a greasy finish.

“It’s a take on the forties meets seventies,” Guido Palau offered of the beauty look, which included side-parted pin curls that had been prepped with Redken Guts 10 Volume Spray Foam, put through a barrel curling iron, brushed out, and teased before models hit the runway, so the style wasn’t “too lady” and a little more “disheveled.” Slipping a bobby pin into the front of the hairline to create “a kiss” over the eyes, Palau spritzed a halo of Redken Fashion Work 12 Versatile Working Spray over the entire head for hold.

While François Nars chose to counter the dilemma a hat-heavy collection presents to a makeup artist with a heavily rimmed lower lash line at Marc Jacobs, Dick Page made an equally strong statement by pairing a bold red lip with the tall, short-brimmed headgear at Marc by Marc. “It’s borderline cartoon-y,” the Shiseido artistic director said of the perfect scarlet pouts that were meant to look “stamped on.” To achieve this effect, Page had the Shiseido lab whip up a prototype product that resembled spreadable crayon wax. “It’s house paint, basically,” Page joked. ”It’s what lipstick is like before you put all the emollients in.” As a result, Page and his team had to hand-paint the stuff onto lips with an angled brush to ensure that it blended properly. Skin was kept otherwise bare, with the exception of a few swipes of Shiseido Luminizing Satin Face Color in Soft Beam Gold, which the face painter applied to eyes for “a halo effect.”

With only six girls wearing the black toppers, hairstylist Guido Palau got to play a little more than he did at Jacobs’ show on Monday night. Using Redken’s Satinwear 02 Blow-Dry Gel, he gave every model a severely straight texture that he coated with its Outshine 01 Anti Frizz Polishing Milk and fashioned into a deep side part. ”Keep it square! The part is on the hairline,” he instructed his team, fastening low-slung ponytails that boasted blunt-cut ends for uniformity.