Today, I’m thrilled to be able to share an interview with Motives Maven Maryam Maquillage, someone I’m sure you’re all familiar with. Maryam is a beautiful soul with widespread talent. In this interview, she gives us all a little insight as to her glowing career trajectory, how she started her blog, what her favorite Motives products are, and what she hopes is next for her. Read ahead to get to know Maryam a little better.
Q&A with a Motives Maven: Maryam Maquillage
- How did you get started in beauty and makeup?
Beauty and makeup is not something I ever planned in my life. I come from an artist’s background. My parents were artists and I was raised in that environment, and I also went to a performing arts school so I was always surrounded by very creative, artistic people. I guess it was in high school that I drifted towards makeup because I was in that age. I also wanted to be different from my parents and choose a different medium to express myself; I didn’t want to use canvas or stage at that age. So makeup gradually and naturally became my medium of expression. In high school, I became the girl that my friends came to whenever it was picture day or if there was a special event – they’d line up and I would do their cateye, and it sort of just started there.
Years later, it developed into me starting a blog. I have a lot of interests from art to music to performing, so I always wanted to start a blog, but I never knew what the focus should be. Then one day I posted a photo of myself – I think it was a New Year’s photo – of me wearing makeup in a cute outfit (or at least I thought I looked cute!), and I posted it on Facebook, which resulted in me getting about a hundred comments from my friends asking me where I got the products that I used and what techniques I’d applied to get the look. So it just hit me that that should be the topic of my blog. That’s exactly how it started in January 2011.
When I first started my blog, it was just for my friends. I never meant for it to go further than that. I just wanted to create a community where people could interact and talk about beauty and makeup. But then it progressed and I started gaining readers from different parts of the world and it became much more than I anticipated. About a year later, when I started receiving products from makeup companies, my partner Lee joined me to help me manage it better. We started our company, began a Facebook page, then later an Instagram, and that’s essentially how it came about. My friends basically led me to it.
- Did you ever think you’d have this many fans/followers?
Not at all. I just thought it was going to be a small community for my friends. I never thought it would reach all over the world. Just recently, I had a comment from a friend/fan from a tiny island off of Madagascar and gave me a list of things she’d like to see. And it was exactly how my best friend would say it. This community, even though we’ve never met before, they’re definitely my friends. I interact with them and we’ve made a connection.
- What’s the first technique you remember mastering?
I’ve been putting on my makeup since I was about twelve so I guess that’s a hard question to answer. But I can say my favorite technique is a cateye because it’s so transcendent. There’s always a way to make it modern and there’s always a way to make it classic, so I feel like it’s universal and wearable for any occasion, from the supermarket to a night out.
My first mastered technique is nail art. It’s my favorite technique. That’s the one that makes me feel most like me. It’s the one closest to my heart. Whenever I do my nails, I’m totally zen. I can do it for hours. For me, it’s a form of meditation.
- What’s it like being a Motives Maven?
Oh, it’s incredible. It’s amazing. It’s a sisterhood and we meant it. Between us, we actually say that Loren is an incredible psychologist because she was able to put together a group of women where actually all get along. When Loren first put together our group of Mavens, we were surprised at how we actually all got along. We are all best friends, texting each other all the time. We talk all the time, even though we all live in different parts of the country. The most amazing thing is the bond we have with each other and with Loren.
The other side of it is going to the conventions where we all feel a little like celebrities. It’s incredible to have all these people come up to us and ask to take photos or tell us how we’ve changed their lives in some way. And that never gets old. That never really settles. It’s very endearing. And also very new to me. It’s something I’ve never experienced before and there’s really no words to describe it. It’s incredible.
- Can you share with our readers your 3 favorite Motives products(and why)?
Oh, of course. My first favorite is our Motives Mavens Element Palette. I literally used it every day in most of my looks. It’s such a great transitional palette that’s totally wearable everyday for casual looks. Or you can make it more dramatic by adding the black. It’s easy to travel with and has a huge mirror so it’s really the perfect product.
I also love Motives lip crayons. They’re super smooth and you can wear them as lipstick for a matte look.
The Motives for La La lip glazes are great. There’s a great range and beautiful pigmentation.
The 10 Years Younger spray is also a must. Their new shadows are gorgeous and velvety. I can go on and on. There are so many great products. That’s actually what made me fall in love with Motives. Loren sent me a big box of products and after testing it all I realized the line was comparable if not better than any of the leading makeup brands out there. So I really have nothing but great things to say about Motives. I use their products all the time.
- What’s one common makeup mistake you see women doing over and over?
Well, we all make mistakes. I make mistakes all the time, so I’m not saying I’m totally immune to that. But if there’s one common one I see, I feel that contouring is a big thing right now and so many people want to attain it. But because it takes a bit of time to fully grasp, I feel like a lot of women go into it really wanting to get the contoured look and being optimistic but then end up with a lot of product on.
It’s really important to use minimal product when you’re first starting out and build on that until you perfect it. The way to correct it is to take a damp sponge (Motives has a great one in the shape of an egg with a fine tip) and press it onto your skin to soak up the excess product. So the trick is to have the right tools for the job, blend everything in, and even out all the products to create the perfect canvas. Because if you have a perfect canvas, the rest of the makeup will look so much better.
- What beauty trend do you see being most prominent for spring/summer 2015?
Oh, I’m so excited for color. Since I’m in New York, it feels like we are having the longest winter ever and everyone is wearing black. Nobody is wearing any color. So I’m definitely looking forward to more pastels, bright pinks and yellows, and glosses. I’m looking forward to a peach or orange glossy lip. And more blush.
- What’s next for you?
Lee and I are excited about continuing to expand our brand and staying true to who we are and building our persona in a way that’s true to us; we’ll see where that leads us. We will also continue to build our YouTube channel and keep giving the fans what they want – that’s what really makes us happy. And eventually I’d like to have my own makeup line.
Thank you for taking the time to chat with Loren’s World, Maryam! I hope everyone enjoyed her interview as much as I did! I know she’s an incredibly talented artist who will continue to inspire us and will undoubtedly go far.
You can find Maryam on her blog, Facebook, YouTube and Instagram (among others!).
