Backstage beauty: Discover what went down moments before The Garment's AW24 show

At The Garment's autumn/winter '24 runway show, creative director Charlotte Eskildsen gave the early '80s her nod of approval, combing through cult-classified movies from the decade on the hunt for the perfect look. While the movie that caught her eye, American Giggolo, laced the looks with colourful knit v-necks and slacks, we couldn't help but notice traces of other iconic cinematic masterpieces of the era: A certain Breakfast-Club-meets-Pretty-in-Pink preppy youthfulness.

Perhaps it came courtesy of the fresh-faced flush or the glistening unbothered waves the models sported. The latter was created by head hairstylist Cim Mahony and his right-hand-man Tarik Bennafla – and it was all about boosting the hair's natural gloss and healthy shine. "As the show call time was early morning we started with a soothing scalp massage, using the vibrating Manta pulse brush," shares Mahony. A trick among hairstylists, it "always puts models in a good mood and calm frame of mind before hitting the catwalk."

For the models with Caucasian strands, the process was all about enhancing the models' natural texture, ensuring maximal gloss. As such, the blowdrying process was curated to "not upset the cuticle too much", and was finished with a round brush for shine, light volume and definition of movement. "To finish of the look we used the flyaway attachment to give that silky top coat with no flyaway's or stray hairs sticking out," says Mahony.

As for the models with Afro hair, Mahony and his team opted for braids. "We invited our amazing braid specialist Gabrielle Sade and Sainabo Chune who did incredible work," says Mahony. To start off with Sainabo and Ayo stretched out the coily texture, using the Dyson supersonic wide tooth comb attachment. "This prepares the hair to be braided, but is also the technique used to create bigger afro styles," shares Mahony. Next, hair was meticulously sectioned and braided in cornrows before being conditioned with mousse to help both shine and hold. Finally, the hair is covered with a net and blowdried with a diffuser to set the braids.

The result? High-shine '80s tresses we're keen to try ourselves – preferably sported with neckties and preppy suiting, naturally.