Everybody, meet Diva Pumpkin. THE ORIGINAL DIVA PUMPKIN.

Not who you were expecting, huh?

This is the original rhinestone pumpkin that inspired my first Halloween look of 2025.

This now hand-painted and stoned decoration began as a blank wood decoration from Michael’s craft store. She was purchased a few years ago and sat painted orange and brown for a couple of years. I had no idea what to do to her at first.

As a lover of glitter & rhinestones, of course, I’m a huge Euphoria fan. One day, it came to me, what if I merged the makeup style of Euphoria with a Halloween pumpkin? Thus, a Diva was born.

I wanted her eyes to look like flames. Glowing even. Red rhinestones rim the eyes as a base.

The inner and outer corners of the eyes are a nod to my Diamante makeup look.

Clusters of multisized rhinestones add a unique & personal flair to the design.

The orange rhinestones follow the red. Sporadic but strategically placed rhinestones pull away from the eye.

The yellow rhinestones are placed near the “temple” of the pumpkin. I used less yellow than initially planned. As the yellow was very bright, compared to the red & orange, I decided that less looked better.

When it came to the mouth, I was torn between a black or orange-rimmed mouth. Black was not in the original color palette I conceptualized. In mock-ups, it seemed to draw a lot of attention to the mouth while simultaneously opening it up. So I decided orange was the way to go. It preserved the aesthetic. The nose was not included in the original concept design; however, the pumpkin looked unfinished without its rhinestones.

Baby hairs, also called kiss curls, were the inspiration behind the pumpkin’s stem design. They added flair & a fantastical element that matched the ostentatious makeup. Plus, I believe they’re baby hairs Maddy Perez would approve of.

Face Paint & Nostalgia

I have always loved body paint. Growing up, we attended a bunch of school functions. One of the activities I always loved was getting face paint. One of our teachers, Sister Bernadette (Yes, she was a nun!), was the face painter. I vividly remember sitting patiently in the chair, feeling the cool paint and swirls of a brush on my face. Cleaning my face at the end of the night was always so sad and scratchy. Trying to remove dried paint with just water and a washcloth was not fun!

In my early makeup days, I used to watch Madeyewlook on YouTube. She was the main body painter I watched and admired. I thought for many years that it was something unattainable. I’ve been doing makeup for about 12 years now, and I felt it was time to add more skills to my arsenal.

The Anatomy of Diva Pumpkin

Aside from Tate from American Horror Story and a look inspired by the Queen of Hearts rose garden, this is the first time I have fully painted myself in a wild color.

The photos that were posted were actually my second attempt at Diva Pumpkin. The first attempt went downhill immediately. I had trouble blocking my brows, and they looked very cakey with their color showing through. I wasn’t getting enough coverage from my foundation, so I ended up washing off the makeup.

I’ve lost count of how many times I watched Celine Bernaerts’ brow blocking tutorial. I learned some important and useful tips that helped me in the next attempt. First, clean extra glue around the brows immediately after applying it to keep it neat. For the maximum color payoff, use a microfiber sponge. I went with my tried-and-true microfiber sponge from Juno & Co. Also, you will use a ton of setting powder to set the face. I blew through most of an old One Size powder. Oh, and it absolutely will get EVERYWHERE.

In all honesty, there are things I would change about Diva Pumpkin. In hindsight, I feel she needed a little more definition than what she had. I also completely forgot to add some old Swarovski rhinestones that flipped colors between red and orange. I realized that once I finished photographing the makeup look. *Tears* I’m still undecided whether rhinestoning the mouth would translate well on a human’s facial structure.

Coda

Considering this was the first makeup look I completed after a 5-month hiatus from makeup. I am pleased with the caliber of work I was able to deliver.

There were times during the 5-month hiatus, I thought it was the end of an era. It was time to move on, and makeup was just something I did once. But sometimes the universe gives you perspective. I had family and friends tell me that it would be a sin not to continue something I’m talented at.

I realized that creating and painting my face has been a constant in my life for about 12 years now. It’ll never be something I walk away from. I know I won’t be truly content without my art.

While I have some alterations in mind for next year’s version of Diva Pumpkin. She’s mine, and she challenged me and my skills.

There was just something about her that fed my soul.

Sometimes that’s all you need.

-Theprettyybitch

Jade J.

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