Melanie Moreno’s everyday makeup is organized around a clear visual goal: dewy skin, heavily emphasized blush, and coordinated reddish-brown lips that create the deliberately “sunburned” finish she prefers. Rather than presenting an elaborate transformation, she treats foundation, concealer, brows, bronzer, powder, mascara, liner, and highlighting products as supporting steps around those two priorities. That consistency gives the routine a recognizable identity and makes her explanation of the finished look easier to follow.
The tutorial is particularly useful when Moreno explains how products work together rather than merely naming them. She mixes two foundation shades depending on how tan she is, lets concealer sit before blending because she feels it gives fuller coverage, layers cream and powder blush, and softens an initially intense application with a beauty blender. Her multi-product lip combination is similarly specific, moving from a reddish liner through pink and brown tones to reach what she considers a flattering everyday shade for her complexion. These are presented appropriately as personal techniques and preferences rather than universal beauty rules.
Moreno’s candor keeps the polished celebrity-beauty format from feeling overly controlled. She openly displays broken makeup, dirty brushes and a used beauty blender, admits that she does not follow cosmetic expiration guidance, and jokes that viewers should not copy everything she does. That last disclaimer is important: refusing to replace expired products or regularly clean applicators is described as her own behavior, not sensible hygiene advice. The messiness may undercut the routine as instructional guidance, but it also makes the presentation unusually believable as an actual collection of products she uses.
Personal stories provide much of the episode’s character. Moreno recalls experimenting with colorful makeup as a child, stealing products from her mother, and eventually moving toward a more minimal style. Her affectionate discussion of her mother becomes unexpectedly reflective, while memories of working three jobs help explain some of her less meticulous makeup habits. These digressions are warmer and more revealing than a straightforward product demonstration, although they also mean the supposedly compact routine frequently feels more like an informal interview conducted while getting ready.
Her Love Island experiences become the other major thread, and they add useful context for why this particular look matters to her. She describes rushed mornings in the villa, swapping products with other contestants, adjusting her foundation after seeing herself during movie night, and relying on certain eye products throughout filming. Later discussion of becoming recognizable after leaving the show, craving time alone, staying close with the other women, and reacting to memes gives viewers considerably more personality than the beauty premise strictly requires. Fans are likely to appreciate those details, while viewers primarily seeking an efficient tutorial may find them distracting.
The presentation succeeds because Moreno sounds spontaneous rather than rehearsed, even when that spontaneity creates repetition and loose pacing. Her enthusiasm for blush and lips is unmistakable, and she regularly explains placement, texture, portability, longevity, or the visual effect she wants instead of simply displaying a sequence of branded products. At the same time, the quantity of products—especially the layered lip combination, multiple sprays, and finishing steps—makes the “10-minute” concept feel less like a rigorously timed challenge than shorthand for her familiar quick routine. It is ultimately stronger as a personality-driven demonstration of a signature look than as a streamlined lesson in minimalist makeup.
Pros
- A clearly defined dewy, blush-heavy aesthetic gives the routine a coherent purpose rather than making it a random sequence of products.
- Specific explanations of foundation mixing, blush layering, concealer timing, lip-color balancing, and product placement provide practical insight into Moreno’s technique.
- Candidly showing worn, broken, and frequently used products makes the routine feel genuinely personal rather than artificially pristine.
- Stories about her mother, earlier jobs, Love Island preparation, sudden public recognition, and friendships add warmth and personality without pretending to be beauty expertise.
Cons
- Dirty applicators and openly ignoring cosmetic expiration guidance undermine the routine as a model for good makeup hygiene, even though Moreno acknowledges viewers should not necessarily imitate her habits.
- Frequent Love Island stories, meme discussions, and personal tangents loosen the pacing for viewers primarily interested in the makeup process.
- The large number of layered lip and finishing products makes the supposedly quick routine more complicated than its simplified premise suggests.
Moreno turns a familiar celebrity beauty format into an engaging portrait of how personal habits, complexion preferences, television experience, and years of experimenting shaped one recognizable makeup style. The routine is more compelling for its specificity and candid personality than for speed or disciplined instruction, but that informality is also what prevents the branded product parade from feeling completely mechanical.
