Telenovelas are life. For a lot of us, these daytime shows were a part of our lives since childhood, and let’s face it, every time we visit mom or abuela, even now, we’re bound to gather around the TV and watch the drama du jour unfold. But it’s not just about the drama though, it’s the sex appeal, the glam, the over-the-top costumes and mansions —and the galán.

These daytime soaps are the perfect blend of beautiful people, intensely physical scenes and the lyrical drama of the Spanish language in all its romantic splendor.

Telenovelas are more than just drama, for a lot of kids these shows were a source of fashion and style growing up.

credit Instagram @telenovelasfans

But Telenovelas aren’t necessarily just about love and lust, they’re a source of trends of both beauty and fashion. There’s a reason why the cliché about Latina women being glamorous at all costs, is alive and well —it’s a major unspoken theme in just about every piece of Latin-American pop culture. 

There are so many things these shows teach us about makeup. There’s always a protagonist —who might be a little passive and a goody-two-shoes. There’s the evil antagonist —probably a bat-shit crazy evil lady. And then there’s the love interest —a wildly good-looking human, who most of the time happens to be a millionaire; and they all have their own, unique makeup looks that set them apart. The greatest thing about all of them though is that these dramatic characters weren’t just people we watched on the show, for most of us Latinx growing up watching them, they served as our first source of fashion and beauty inspiration. They all had their signature looks and you’d be lying if you said you were never inspired by Mia Colucci’s pink-hued glittery glam or Belinda’s masterful Silvana Del Valle and her signature red hair and pigtails.

So, are you a good girl, with a protagonist-worthy glow and perfectly coiffed hair? Or a bold, red-lipped bad girl? No matter who you want to channel today, Telenovelas have looks for everyone. So we went ahead and rounded up our favorite Telenovela glam looks that you can recreate in 2019 and will look just as fire now as they did way back then:

1. Mia Colucci from Rebelde

credit Instagram @miacoluccistar

The rich and popular but very spoiled Mia Colucci aka. Mexican Regina George, was a style icon for every Telenovela-watching teen in the early 00s. We chose her makeup because it’s very simple, dewy and glowy, basically the original Glossier no-makeup makeup look. Recreate the shimmery pink eye shadow look with Lime Crime’s iridescent Diamond Dew shadow in Rose Goals.  Go crazy with your highlighter and blush, we recommend Fenty Beauty’s Killawatt highlighter in Wattabrat for a pink shimmer or in Lightning Dust/Fire for a more pearlescent finish.  Finish off the look with a pink lipgloss, we’d go for the most iconic pink gloss of 2019, Nars’ Orgasm.

2. The queen of evil herself; Rubí

credit Instagram @rubisincera

Of course, we had to include the baddest of them all, the original gold-digger Rubí. This bombshell’s glam is nothing short of iconique. The bouncy hair, the full lips, and perfectly delineated eyebrows…swoon. We were almost more obsessed with her than we were with heartthrob Sebastian Rulli who played galán de galanes, Héctor Ferrer. The beautiful anti-hero’s makeup look was just as trendy in 2004 as it is now in 2019 —fifteen years later! The red lip, wispy lashes, dark brows, and perfect complexion are every beauty vloggers’ dream. So to do it yourself we say, you can’t go wrong with the classic Ruby Woo lippy for that crimson-red Rubí pout (it does carry our heroine’s name after all). Sculpt your brows with cult favorite Anastasia Beverly Hills’ Dip Brow Pomade. And obviously go crazy with the falsies —blow-out strongly encouraged.

3. Marimar – Costeñita soy, con mis abuelos crecí yo.

credit Instagram @Diosathalia

Marimar was the story of a poor girl who lived by the ocean with her grandparents. She was sun-kissed, her hair had the perfect beachy waves, she was basically a beautiful Latina mermaid and we stan. Yes, granted, her makeup didn’t require much production —this character might’ve been the very precursor of the beachy-makeup trend way back in 1994. To get her mermaid-worthy hair, a Surf Styling Cream which adds texture and gives you that salt-water wavy finish would do wonders. Add a dark, copper-hued bronzer to ace the beach girl tan. And for the lips? Choose a matte, velvety lipstick to get the classic 90s nude lip, may we suggest Urban Decay’s Vice lipstick in the shade fuel? You won’t regret it.

4.  Jade from ‘El Clon’

Jade was every Latinx kid’s favorite middle-eastern beauty growing up, her and fellow gem-stone babe Jasmine, but we’re not focusing on Disney here. The Brazilian Telenovela ‘El Clon’ had all the best elements of the genre, love triangles, twins separated at birth, evil villains, lots of eyeliner, genetic experiments —nope, not kidding— and it all took place in the beautiful land of Morocco, needless to say, there was a lot of kohl involved. We loved the over-the-top styling, and even more over-the-top makeup looks on Jade. 

Trying to recreate her signature eyeliner might be complicated, to say the least. But with a lot of patience and a few Q-tips, we’re sure you’ll get there. Give it a go with a highly-pigmented and super precise pencil, Le Crayon Khôl eyeliner from Lancôme, might be your best ally to achieve a similar shape to the one Jade wore most of the time. For the rest of the look, she always wore natural tones, so add a dark brown eyeshadow on your lids and finish off with a matte nude lipstick of your choice. 

5. Soraya Montenegro from María la del Barrio

Credit Instagram @balmorepadilla06

“¿Qué haces besando a la lisiada?” has turned into the meme of an entire generation. Naturally, whenever there’s a conversation about Telenovelas, evil mistress Soraya Montenegro simply must be involved. There will never be a more iconic villain than the woman who bitch-slapped an innocent girl in a wheelchair and murdered the sweet old lady who took care of la lisiada. 

Soraya sported the most perfect 90s hair flippin’ blowout there’s ever been, so we can’t recommend anything other than an appointment at the nearest hairstyling salon to emulate the look. As far as makeup goes, you have to choose an earth-toned lipstick like a deep brown or a warm terracotta like NYX’s velvet lipstick in the shade Berlin to get the super-villain pout. Add some statement clip-on earrings and a lot of sass, and you’re ready to kick some ass.

As the weather cools down and Halloween pops up on our calendars, there’s another holiday quickly approaching that deserves it’s own attention. Every October and November, people from Northern Mexico and around the world celebrate Día de los Muertos by building ofrendas to honor those who they have lost. Ofrendas are shrines set up with the photos of deceased loved ones along with personal items that they appreciated in life. Originating from the Aztecs, these shrines are meant to commemorate their dead loved ones and guide them home on the one day when their souls can journey from the spirit world to the world of the living. 

While ofrendas often honor deceased family members and friends, it’s not unusual to see alters also set up for famous people who have passed away. Fans build these shrines to celebrities in order to pay tribute to their legacy. These celebrity alters are usually as elaborate and amazing as the famous people they are meant to honor. 

Here are some of the remarkable celebrity ofrendas that prove that fame and the love of their fans are everlasting. 

1. Anything for Selenas.

Selena is one of the most recognizable celebrities of the Latinidad so it makes sense that she’d have quite a few ofrendas built to remember her. San Antonio’s Mi Tierra Cafe & Bakery is a Mexican restaurant that keeps this shrine of Selena up all year long to celebrate the Queen of Tejano. 

2. Dedicated to the icons of Mexico.

This colorful ofrenda is a reminder that these shrines can be for more than one person at a time. On this alter, Mexican pop culture is represented by superstar actress Maria Felix, comedian and TV star Chespirito (Roberto Gomez Bolanos) and artist Frida Kahlo. Offerings of fruit, food and alcohol adorn this ofrenda to tempt and delight the spirits of these deceased stars. 

3. A shrine fit for a food god.

Two years ago, the food world lost a huge star with the untimely death of Anthony Bourdain. The celebrity chef was known for traveling the world and learning about local customs and cuisine in such a respectful way that it endeared him to the communities that he visited. This earned him the spot of honor on this ofrenda. 

4. Frida’s ofrenda.

Frida Kahlo is an artist who has only become more beloved in death. Her image is used in everything from jewelry and makeup to home goods and tee shirts. This shrine pays tribute to the legendary artista with pots of food, Mexican marigolds and skeletal attendants. 

5. An alter for Poet Paz.

Instagram / @lamovidapanama

Octavio Paz was a Nobel Prize-winning poet and one of the most influential voices in Mexican literature. His words have been a source of comfort and inspiration to millions of readers over the years. He was also a diplomat and fought against fascism in Mexico and abroad. All these accomplishments deserve to be remembered and Paz is honored in this papel picado-filled ofrenda. 

6. An offering to two legends.

This past decade, we’ve lost some remarkable souls but none more beloved than music artists Prince and David Bowie. The Prince of Funk and Ziggy Stardust have millions of fans across the world and they are still remembered for being innovators and entertainers. This ofrenda in honor of the two was fittingly built at the Santa Barbara Bowl — an amphitheater dedicated to great music.  

7. RIP Tony Stark.

Sometimes fictional characters touch us so much that they become real to us. So, when a character like this passes away, it’s only natural to honor them the way we would a real person. This Day of the Dead project was dedicated to Tony Stark aka Iron Man. Gone but never forgotten. 

8. Dedicated to las mujeres.

This ofrenda was built in tribute to powerful Latinas. Women like Celia Cruz, Jessica Torres, Margarita Neri, and Delores del Río are immortalized among other great women who will always have a special place in history and in the hearts of their fans.

9. An icon from the Golden Age of Mexican cinema.

Besides ofrendas, grave sites are also decorated as alters for Día de los Muertos. One of the biggest actors of Mexico’s Golden Age of cinema, Pedro Infante is buried in the Yucatan. For the Day of the Dead, his grave site was adorned with Mexican marigolds and candles to guide his spirit back to the world of the living. 

10. The King has entered the building.

One of the most legendary celebrities to have ever lived is Elvis Presley and the man has become a bigger icon in death. There are still claims of Elvis sightings all over the world. Maybe, those fans are just seeing Elvis’ spirit as he returns to visit the thousands of shrines that are dedicated to him for Día de Los Muertos and year-round.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O4TnFSXDWaM