Backstage at Simone Rocha’s A/W 2025 show, which took place yesterday (23 February 2025) over London Fashion Week inside Goldsmiths’ Hall, key make-up artist Thomas de Kluyver talked Wallpaper* through his vision.
‘This season, Simone was inspired by the children’s story The Tortoise and the Hare, so we wanted to keep the make-up playful,’ he said. ‘You know when you were a teenager and you’d pluck your eyebrows to be really thin? We referenced this but also kept the Simone Rocha narrative in there with colourful bugle beads. Embellishment has always been a signature of the Simone Rocha beauty look.’
Simone Rocha A/W 2025: Beauty by Thomas de Kluyver, Holli Smith and Ama Quashie
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A/W 2025 began with creating a ‘raw’ yet luminous canvas for all models, with skin prepped using products from Dr Barbara Sturm. ‘We’ve kept the skin very fresh, with details then added on top such as the beaded eyebrows or a dark lip,’ De Kluyver said, who had blocked out natural brow hair before etching a thin line onto which pearlescent bugle beads in pale pink, red or black were glued.
In other looks, brows remained natural and fluffed up, exaggerated with Byredo’s Ultra Definer Brow pencils. Neutral tones inside the fragrance and beauty brand’s Desert Road eyeshadow palette, along with a lick of black Astronomical mascara, gently defined eyes. Viynl, satin and matte-textured lipsticks, in shades such as September, On The Edge, Lost Letter, Molasses, Auburn and Calmer, had been daubed onto the likes of Alexa Chung and Andrea Riseborough who, alongside Fiona Shaw, were cast in the show by Julia Lange. ‘I like to think of each part of the make-up look as fashion accessories on the face,’ said De Kluyver.
Beaded eyebrows by Thomas de Kluyver for Simone Rocha A/W 2025
(Image credit: Getty Images/Victor Virgile Gamma-Rapho)
This season, hair was taken care of by American stylist Holli Smith, who cut her teeth as an assistant to Guido Palau before attaining a legendary status in her own right. A/W 2025 marked the first time that Smith had worked on a standalone Simone Rocha show, having joined forces with De Kluyver and London-born nail artist Ama Quashie – also present backstage yesterday leading a team of manicurists – on the runway beauty for Simone Rocha x Jean Paul Gaultier haute couture S/S 2024.
‘We wanted to ensure that everyone had something a little different with their hair and the models kept a sense of individuality,’ Smith explained. ‘Although the one thing that tied everything together was making sure that everyone’s look is kept away from the face. But nothing is flat or severe. There’s some messiness, too,’ she continued, noting that Bumble and Bumble’s Thickening and Surf sprays were essential in keeping a nonchalant feel. ‘When these products are combined, it gives a lightweight wet look to the hair, but it’s also quite starchy and structured, so holds its shape and is malleable for playing around with.’
Andrea Riseborough walking for Simone Rocha A/W 2025
(Image credit: Getty Images/Victor Virgile Gamma-Rapho)
The collection also spoke of Simone Rocha’s teenage schooldays in Dublin, as Wallpaper* fashion features editor Jack Moss notes in his A/W 2025 London Fashion Week report. So Smith also gave some of the models hair bunches, before nonchalantly securing them at the nape of the neck using thick black rubber bands. ‘Everyone has the same rubber bands, it’s nothing too special,’ says Smith. ‘We made it look like they did it themselves, almost.’
From rubber bands to Tipp-Ex, in the form of playful yet minimal nails by Ama Quashie, who has been the key nail artist for Simone Rocha shows over the past several seasons. ‘For A/W 2025 we’ve used white polish with a mattifying top coat in full and half-moons and there are some red half-moons in the mix, too. And even though we wanted to keep it youthful, it still has to be perfect,’ she said. ‘It’s a simple, look but sometimes it takes even more work as there’s nowhere to hide,’ Quashie continued, adding that meticulous cuticle prep, hydration and a uniform shape are the foundations of her technical process.
‘The way I work is knowing when to exercise restraint and simplicity, or when to go bigger. But always, it’s important to master the foundation: a perfect, really clean nail,’ Quashie told Wallpaper* in 2023, echoing this sentiment. ‘It’s the groundwork for every manicure. And from there, everything else is added in line with the creative vision … When I work with Simone Rocha it’s often about going with your gut instinct.’
(Image credit: Photography by Ben Broomfield)
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