'Are you nervous?' Pause. 'Umm. Yeah. Soooo nervous'.

Such were the words of whispered angst exchanged by two models backstage at Rick Owens today. Because in fact, they were non-models. Civilians. Real women - just like you and I. And they, along with a few more familiar model faces, were about to head out into the international fashion spotlight.

Following in the wake of this week’s news that Charlotte Rampling and Jessica Lang are to become the ambassadors of Nars and Marc Jacobs Beauty respectively, Owens made the celebration of ‘real’ women of all ages his shtick this season. This from a designer who – having cast African American Step Dancers for his Spring/Summer 2014 show – is no stranger to creating the moment of Paris Fashion Week. Owens is not a man to shy away from the crux and controversy of the industry and this season again, he had a message that equalled the strength of his collection.

'Rick has cast all the models that first walked for him, plus his staff members and friends,' said stylist Luigi Murenu. 'I think he's making a point about the wearability of fashion. All these women wear his clothes in their everyday lives, so who better to showcase them at Fashion Week?'

It could all have become a cliché, had it not been executed with such integrity and polish. During the rehearsal, the line of frankly terrified, real women, were treated like high fashion models: marshalled into line, instructed how to walk, ('Pace yourself girls – if your predecessor is slow, do NOT catch up with her'). Yet at the hair and make up stations, all were treated as individuals. Unique women who all had their own insecurities but were braving the glare and scrutiny of the catwalk anyway.

So Murenu perfected a medley of Owens' greatest hits hairstyles from the past - yet adapted classics like the clean ponytail and halo of frizz to suit each women. For make-up artist, Lucia Pieroni, the show provided an antidote to the now ubiquitous step-by-step, 'how to' beauty guide that already feels tired.

‘Working with Rick on this show has been both liberating and challenging,’ said Pieroni. ‘This is not about creating a generic look on 18 year-old models with skin like satin. It’s about adding a hint of pencil to some women’s lash lines, swapping black mascara for brown on others – and choosing from at least seven potential shades of lipstick to find the one most natural to each individual’.

Essentially then, it’s what we real women do everyday at home – but under the watchful gaze and masterful handiwork of the professional make-up artist. This is beauty not for the sake of throwing on a ‘look’.  Nor is it about rejecting womens’ desire or need to wear make up. It’s about owning make-up, and adding it to our arsenal of weapons that make us look like ourselves – but just a little bit better. Amen to that