“Modern medieval” was the beauty theme of Rodarte’s spring-summer 2013 show, which took place Tuesday in Manhattan’s Chelsea neighborhood. The phrase was repeated constantly by everyone from lead makeup artist James Kaliardos for NARS Cosmetics and nail expert Michelle Huynh of CND to Odile Gilbert’s team of hairstylists for Kérastase Paris. The modern was seen in the makeup (dewy skin, no mascara—a departure from the heavily-bronzed cheeks of their fall 2012 show) and the hair (slick comb-overs showered in gel), while the nail designs flicked at the medieval theme seen in Rodarte’s clothes: leather bodices, full skirts that split at the front and intricate, crystal-adorned belts. The CND team first created a base coat using its Desert Suede and Frosted Cream colors, which was then topped with strips (created from painted wax paper) in a weaving pattern; overall, the artists spent nearly 200 hours handcrafting the 30 sets of nails.