Sarah “Maki” Mak has worked in the industry for about five years—and entering the Contessas for just about as long. Though she got her start as a hairstylist a little later, after earning her degree, she realized her true passion and made the career switch. When Mak set out to create her collection for the 2016 Contessa Awards, she got her inspiration from a very unlikely source.

Boy band

“When I first started entering the Contessa Awards, I would just wing my collections, but each year I focused a little more on a theme,” she explains, adding that her theme this year surprised even her. “My boyfriend showed me this music video called ‘Bang Bang Bang’ by this K-pop band called Big Bang and, at first, I thought it was way too over-the-top crazy,” she explains. “After watching it a few times, I was totally inspired by the clothes, the makeup and the hair—all the craziness of it.”

Translating style

Like every good stylist will tell you, the key is to be inspired without copying your inspiration—especially in this case. Mak incorporated a lot of elements from the video—including the must-have “guy-liner”—but in a much more approachable way, which is mirrored in the hair colour. “Every time I watched the video, I would see something else I wanted to include,” says Mak, adding that her love of shopping and accessorizing helps make fashion her starting point for photo shoots: “One of the best parts about putting a collection together, besides the hair, is the clothes.”

Joico Color Intensity orchid

“I lightened all of the models’ hair first and then used a combination of silver-blonde with some intensifiers to get the colour I wanted.”

Kevin.Murphy Anti.Gravity

“I used this to prep my models’ hair because it gives a lot of texture and grip and helps hold the hair in place, especially for slippery hair.”

Moroccanoil Luminous Hairspray

“I finished off the looks with this hairspray because it is so lightweight and flexible but still tames the frizz.”