Jelly Eugenio on Confidence, Culture, and the Art of Going All Out

Jelly Eugenio is confidence personified—and it’s this unshakeable belief in his talent that has propelled him to remarkable heights. But make no mistake: His confidence is not arrogance. It inspires his work, visible in the beautiful faces of actor Nadine Lustre, Miss Universe 2018 Catriona Gray, host Vice Ganda, actors Sarah Lahbati and Andrea Brilliantes, and model and Sunnies Face co-founder Georgina Wilson. 

With a decade’s worth of experience, Eugenio pays it forward by sharing his craft with the next generation of beauty creatives and creating platforms to celebrate the community he helped shape.

Can you tell us about a moment in your career when you felt truly seen or recognized for your work?

I think there’s quite a lot because I think my posts and the makeup looks that I post trend from time to time. People try to emulate the look and they try to recreate it. But there was one time when the “drunk blush” trend started, and I really don’t want to claim it, but I posted about it and everybody started calling it the same way.

Another thing that’s remarkable for me is during the pandemic, when everybody was on lockdown, I was very active on social media because I felt that I just needed to do something. I’m really passionate about my work and my job, so I was able to shift from just being a makeup artist to making content, like real beauty content.

How has your identity shaped your artistry and the way you show up in your work?

I’m very confident in my work, in how I do it, how I arrive at work, and how I present myself, and everything just follows.

I’m able to pass that along to whoever I’m doing makeup on. I put that confidence in my makeup and I want the person to feel it, so that they can feel confident on their own.

What has been the most meaningful project in your career so far and why?

Right now, I’m working on quite a lot of things—a two-day workshop called “Full Spectrum Masterclass” with Anthea Bueno and Mark Qua. Later this year, we’re doing the first industry ball for makeup artists. I’m very proud of the workshop because I feel like, as a makeup artist with a passion for teaching, that is something I can share with the younger generation of artists, beauty enthusiasts, creatives, and anybody who loves makeup.

There was also one time I did a shoot for all of my muses called “Disco Heaven,” which came out in 2022. People recreated it and were shocked with the amount of blood (we did it for Halloween)! Back then, I just wanted to do something fun for my girls and us queer creatives—myself, BJ Pascual, Eldzs Mejia, Paul Nebres, and Renz Pangilinan. That is always evident in everything that I do, it always serves. So even if you’re not queer, you’ll enjoy it and as a girl, you’ll want to be a part of it.

What does Pride mean to you, not just in the context of June but every day? 

I would not be who I am today if I’m not queer or a gay person because part of the struggles helped shape me and made me really strong. I had to prove to people that I have real talent, that I’m a great person, and that I’m not a regular person because I was put into this world because I’m special. That’s how I feel about being queer. 

What I also love about being queer is that you get to choose to either be masculine or feminine anytime you want because that is you, that is your character, and that is also what I consider power.

What is your vision for the next generation of queer creatives hoping to break into beauty or entertainment? 

Honor the people before them. We are all special in our own terms and have our own experiences that have helped shape us and build our character. But there are people who have paved the way so that we can be seen. From entertainment, I love Vice Ganda. She’s a very good representation of the best gay person in the industry.

Not a lot of people know this, but I look up to queer makeup artists who are very good at their jobs. I always honor them when I’m inspired by their work, so I make sure to always mention their names.

We don’t always do everything by ourselves. There are a lot of things that contribute to our person, including the people around us, and that’s why we are who we are.