I cover New York Fashion Week, but I don't actually sit and watch many fashion shows. I prefer to be backstage with "my" people -- the hair, makeup and nail artists and other beauty editors.

Every so often, it's nice to mix things up and put on a pair of heels. (Flats are a must for climbing over in-process pedicures backstage.) So when I was offered a seat at Badgley Mischka, I took it. I couldn't turn down the chance to ogle some of the most beautiful gowns at NYFW, could I?

After making my way through the mob of street style photographers outside the tents (who, thankfully, had no interest in me -- all lenses were turned on a model in a smiley-face sweatshirt), I got to the theater and located my sixth-row seat. As the show began a mere 25 minutes late, I found myself mesmerized -- not just by the stunning dresses, but by the way the hair and makeup helped tell the story of the collection.

The models' hair was messy and a little punk with random strands of pastel-colored extensions tucked underneath. It made the dresses seem cooler, younger and less formal than they would have with, say, an updo. The makeup was minimal save for a wash of color on the eyebrows -- yes, rainbow brows -- which ranged from pale pink to blue. It wasn't very noticeable from my not-so-close seat, but it was there -- and surprisingly pretty. And it reminded me that fashion week isn't just about the hair and makeup -- it's about the complete look.

For the past few years, I've been dabbing my eyebrows with Latisse and dousing them with castor oil in an effort to get them to grow. While they're not as '90s-skinny as they once were, they're nowhere near Cara Delevingne-thickness, either. So I continue to pencil, powder and gel them daily.

Based on what I've seen backstage, however, it might be time to give my brow pencil a rest. Brows are still big, but now, it's more about grooming what you've got than painstakingly filling them in with pencil. "The brows are clean and brushed-through," said Avon celebrity makeup artist Jamie Greenberg backstage at Dennis Basso. "The focus is on the eye." At Theory, makeup artists used Maybelline Great Lash Mascara in Clear to brush the brows up. And at Karen Walker, Anastasia Clear Brow Gel was the only product on models' arches. And that was just yesterday -- basic brows are a trend I've been seeing all week.

Eyebrows are being deemphasized, but I don't think it's a sign of scrawny brows to come -- and I'm still on Team Thick Brows. Instead, I think it's a reflection of the pared-down makeup looks that are going to be huge for spring. After all, if you spend only five minutes on your makeup, you don't want to dedicate three of those minutes to meticulously penciling in your eyebrows. Time to order more castor oil.

I was shocked to learn something new backstage yesterday. I'm not implying that I know everything there is to know about beauty, but fashion week is a sea of monochromatic makeup and undone hair, so the artists aren't digging too deep into their repertoires.

At Tracy Reese, I talked with lead makeup artist Daniel Martin, working for NYX Cosmetics. "The look is radiant and pretty with structure," said Martin. Pretty, indeed, but it didn't seem much different from the looks I was seeing everywhere else. Then I noticed the liner. "We're banana lining the crease," he explained. "It's theatrical but not harsh."

Banana lining? I'd never heard the term before, and I guess he could tell based on the blank expression on my face. "We're using black liquid liner and following the natural crease," he explained. "It looks different on everyone based on the shape of the eye. Sometimes it's invisible and sometimes it's more dramatic." On most of the models, I could barely see the liner when their eyes were open, but I got a glimpse of something graphic every time they blinked.

The subtly cool makeup was accompanied by "undone ballerina" hair accented with headbands by Scünci and watercolor-ish nails using the next Tracy Reese for Sally Hansen polish collection. Overall, the look was a winner, and I'm excited to add a new term to my beauty vocabulary.

If yesterday taught me anything, it's that nail art is alive and well at New York Fashion Week. Instead of 3-D talons or entire solar systems like seasons past, the nail art that's trendy now is simple and graphic. And -- since these are the spring collections, after all -- there's a ton of white.

I came across my favorite white striped manicure yesterday afternoon backstage at Misha Nonoo (center image). (Note: If you don't know anything about designer Misha Nonoo, give her a Google. I didn't, either, and now I'm smitten.) Sally Hansen Nail Ambassador and celebrity manicurist Tracylee created the look using Sally Hansen Complete Salon Manicure in Let's Snow, Sally Hansen Big Matte Top Coat and lots of French manicure tape for a result that's surprisingly easy to DIY. She applied strips of tape down the center of each nail lengthwise before painting with the opaque white polish. Then, she removed the tape, exposing stripes of bare nail underneath (manicurists call this "negative space"), before finishing it off with the matte top coat. Simple yet so chic.

I spotted another white striped manicure backstage at Kate Spade. The nails were shiny, bright white with a super-thin, horizontal black line -- it was cool and understated at the same time. The third version was backstage at Wes Gordon, where nail artists used a striping brush to create a white grid pattern.

As they say, three is a trend! Which look do you want to try?

I could go on and on about ombré lips, which are still blowing up on Pinterest. I get the obsession -- it's a different way to wear lipstick and it's pretty. (Who doesn't love monochromatic colors blended together? I sure do.) Still, when ombré lips are too done they look kind of crazy. And when they're subtle, no one knows they're happening at all -- except the person who painstakingly applied her lipstick for 20 minutes.

So when I saw this ombré cheek (!) backstage at the Costello Tagliapietra fashion show yesterday, I knew I'd stumbled upon the next big Pinterest beauty craze -- sort of. If you're looking at the picture and thinking I've completely lost it, hear me out: This makeup is anything but bold. It's wearable, flattering and seriously pretty. Makeup artist Tina Turnbow (for Beauty.com) created the look using Jane Iredale In Touch Cream Blushes in Charisma and Clarity. She used the lighter color along the cheekbones and gradually blended it into the darker color on the apples of the cheeks. Alright, so it may not start a Pinterest revolution, but it's definitely how I'll be wearing my blush in spring.