Do not underestimate the ponytail. Though it may seem like the follicular equivalent of a sensible pair of shoes, the ponytail – in trend terms – is the little known arbiter of the new season’s beauty mood.

They go high on the head, like a modern-day Madame Whiplash and we know we’re in for a power-hungry, slavishly sexy season, they go mid-height at the crown and we detect a sense of athleticism and playfulness on the horizon. Like the hemlines on skirts, you can tell everything about the new style mood from the placement of a ponytail.

And if Vivienne Tam’s autumn/winter14 show is to be believed, we’re in for a minimalist, tasteful and reassuringly practical season come September.

‘Vivienne travels a lot and was inspired by a trip to the Silk Roads,’ explained Matthew Curtis, lead stylist for TRESemmé. ‘The hair for women there is all about practicality,’ he explained.

'So, I’ve placed the ponytail below the bone but above the nape – the nape would interfere with the clothes and it’s all about the clothes. It’s practical, but also implies a sense of experience, of the well-travelled – the sort of woman who finds herself on trains and planes and therefore can’t abide fussy waves or complicated up-dos.'

‘I used the [TRESemmé] Climate Protection Mousse to clean up the hairline and used the Finishing Spray after straightening the hair.’ Why bother with straightening irons (which takes 20 minutes per model, a backstage nightmare)? ‘This is clean look so it needs a clean ponytail. We wanted something classic and timeless – it’s a youthful sort of beauty and the side-parting is a nod to the 70s that runs through the collection.’

‘I wanted the hair and make-up to reflect this sense of freedom, of the colours and romance of the clothes, but it’s also important to me for the woman to be able to do it herself,’ Vivienne Tam explained to me backstage. ‘It’s also slick and high fashion too, the side parting is very 70s but the hair as well as the clothes is not too costume-y, women can feel comfortable in it.’

Her beauty philosophy? ‘Beauty comes from the inside.’ There’s an honesty and a realism to that. Look closely, and it’s all right there in that subdued, chic low ponytail.