Diary of a session stylist: london fashion week autumn/winter 2011 with andrea martinelli

Meeting with Panos Papadrianos 

Today I get to meet Panos for the first time and I don't know what to expect, but after the first five minutes of meeting him, I know it's going to be a great fashion week. 

We spend a couple of hours speaking about the shows ahead of us, the Wella Professionals products we're going to use, and what to use to create a specific texture. 

At midday I arrive at the Saloni studio which is in an amazing location. The model tries on a couple of outfits for us to get a feel for the collection, and we find out that the Saloni woman is a traveller who likes to wear amazing prints, with an eclectic style. 

We try three different looks before settling on the idea of creating a textured turban look to complement the outfits. 

Sick in bed! 

As luck would have it, I spend Wednesday in bed with a severe bout of food poisoning and at one point I'm slightly concerned - not to mention disappointed - at the prospect of not pulling through in time for LFW, which all kicks off tomorrow. 

Still feeling shaky but thank goodness I'm on the mend by the afternoon in time for the Emilio de la Morena hair test at 7.30pm in West London. 

Emilio is well prepared with a moodboard and a clear idea about the look and texture he wants - something romantic, but still really strong. Taking inspiration from his mood board, I work with Panos over two hours until we all come to an agreement but we also have a request - we need some tape to tie up the model's ponytails. 

The show is set in an incredible location - an eccentric English manor house where the model will reach the catwalk after walking down an amazing flight of steps. This is the perfect setting to show off our textured turban look which will reveal itself more to the audience as the models get closer to them. We start prepping the models one after the other without any hitches. 

The first show starts but as it's a four hour presentation, we realise our day is going to be a long one as the models have several changes and we have to constantly check the hair. Our superhero product for this show is definitely Stay Styled by Wella Professionals! 

10am and the perfect day to be in Notting Hill - a quick look around Portobello Market before arriving at Temperley for the hair test with Panos. 

We see the lookbook to get a real feel for what the Temperley woman is about. We produce a first look and then after an overview of the really talented designer, Alice, we have clear in our minds a couple of words that define the label - rock and roll eccentric! We work on the next look which is much nearer to our vision and we're satisfied. 

It's the first time they've staged a fashion show at the British Museum, so a historic time for all of us. We are all really excited because we know that we are going to work on a big show with no less than 32 models! 

The secret to the undone ballerina buns was to prep the hair in the right way using Resolute Lift from the SP Style range. The good news for this show is that the models won't be changing; yesss! 

Everything goes well until three models arrive from showing at Vivienne Westwood and we have to wash the hair to remove the spray colour from their hair, which slows down the prep brutally. Fifteen minutes to show time and our first model still hasn't turned up so we had to do the hair backstage using our mobile for light! 

Our last day for this London Fashion Week - everyone is really tired but this will be an exciting show so we're full of adrenalin. We start on time and everything seems to be calm - probably too calm! Then, ater 45 minutes, a model turns up from another show with lots of wax in her hair. 

Once again, it's shampoo time, but with cold water so we have to wash it four times to remove the product! At this point we're running late and it shows just how well a team can work . By working together we manage to pull all the models together just in time for the show. 

The product that made the difference was the Wella Professionals Sculpt Force gel that allowed us to create a really flat, wet parting that contrasted with the organic texture of the rest of the hair, pulled back loosely into a textured ponytail. 

Exhausted but exhilarated it's been a great couple of weeks working with Panos Papadrianos and the Wella Professionals Creative Team on a brilliant London Fashion Week...until next time!