A Simple Approach to Colorful Cutouts with @giopastori

To see more of Gio’s cutouts, follow @giopastori on Instagram.

The illustrator Gio Pastori’s (@giopastori) approach to creating his playful cutout illustrations is simple. “I usually use no more than two to three colors,” he says. “I sketch my ideas before, then I draw the subjects with a blade on colored paper with no guidelines, to keep it fresh. Then I put it all together.” For Gio, who lives in Milan, Italy, the fashion world often influences his colorful work — from a Moschino sandal to a Valentino print. “The fashion world’s rapid change and depth is something I find exciting and inspiring.”

Gio, who only recently finished his university studies in illustration, wants to continue his work surrounded by inspiration. "My dream is a good-quality studio shared with good friends in a nice place doing beautiful things.”

Pausing for a Photo Before Hitting the Runway with the Hairstylist @sandyhullett

For more backstage photos and videos by Sandy from Milan Fashion Week, follow @sandyhullett on Instagram.

As she checks on each model moments before a fashion show begins, Sandy Hullett (@sandyhullett) pauses to take a picture. “I view my photos as a continuation of my work, a kind of record of the backstage atmosphere,” says Sandy, who is the hairstylist Guido Palau's first assistant. Sandy describes the scene as sometimes crazy and stressful. “There are time constraints and girls coming late from another show,” she says. “Sometimes a makeup artist, hairstylist and manicurist all have to work together to get the look done in time. But it’s fun, too. We are all a huge team working for the same goal and I feel very lucky to work on some incredible shows with amazingly inspirational designers.”

Sandy assists Guido Palau at menswear, couture and ready-to-wear shows for some of the biggest fashion houses in New York, London, Milan and Paris. For the Prada (@prada) show during Milan Fashion Week, the hairstyle was designed around the jewelry. “The colors of the clothes were beautiful and the fabrics and accessories, amazing,” Sandy says. “I loved the idea that a girl would use a beautiful brooch on her dress and then use the same ones in her hair.”

Sandy says that she’s always been a hairstylist. “I used to cut my brother’s hair and any friend who would let me from a very early age,” she says. “I would make him sit while I’d brush and comb his hair into these weird shapes! For me, hairstyling is an art form, a sculpture that can be molded and transformed.”