Amazing Effects of Makeups and Makeovers!

MARIEL ESPINAL
BEFORE
Espinal has been challenging herself since she was 15, when her father went to jail and she stepped in to help her mother raise her younger brother. She tried college twice, including after her son was born a year and a half ago. "I didn't have the support I needed as a new mom," she says. Now, Espinal wouldn't trade her Year Up experience for anything. "I needed something different. I needed something positive. Even after the first day of Year Up, I was actually smiling at people on the subway," she says.

MARIEL ESPINAL
AFTER
Espinal welcomed the time-saving tips she learned from her makeover. "I used to always use a flatiron, but the stylist showed me how to blow-dry my hair so I don't need it." Swapping her usual uniform of black for a burgundy dress had major payoffs. "It's so different from what I usually wear, but it's my favorite part," says Espinal, 23, who is excited to reveal her new look at the Robert F. Kennedy Center for Justice and Human Rights, where she's a technical intern. "Now I feel like I fit in with my work environment," she says.

STEPHANIE XRIST
BEFORE
"You only get one chance to make a first impression, and you do get judged on how you look," says Xrist. The former nursing student entered Year Up because she'd had difficulty finding a job. "It seemed like Year Up would challenge and push me, and it definitely did," says the Citigroup intern. Her next goal: getting a degree in psychology. "Ever since I was little, I've been fascinated by how the human mind works."

STEPHANIE XRIST
AFTER
The 23-year-old seized this opportunity to look more put together at her internship. "I've been wanting to try red lips, but I could not find a color that looked good with my skin tone," she says. "I like that this one is blood red and not at all orange or pink." She also loves her new spiral curls, although she was apprehensive at first. "I was like, 'I'm going to look crazy,' but I like them." Lipstick and curling irons aside, the mother of two young girls is most impressed by how the makeover makes her feel. "It used to be that when I got frustrated, I would tend to give up, but today feels like the culmination of a lot of hard work," says Xrist. "Now I know that if I do keep going, I can reach my goals."

JADA THOMPKINS
BEFORE
Thompkins applied to Year Up during a particularly overwhelming period in her life: She was working part time at a boutique while taking classes at City College when she discovered she was pregnant. She dropped her classes but knew she didn't want to be in retail forever. Even though interning full time means she doesn't get to spend as much time with her daughter as she'd like, Thompkins believes the sacrifice will eventually pay off. "It's hard being away from her so much, but I hope it means that when she's older, I'll be there more."

JADA THOMPKINS
AFTER
Her favorite part of the makeover was her sleek, layered hairstyle, complete with subtly highlighted extensions. "I wanted more pizzazz because I'm always really conservative," says the JPMorgan Chase intern. "Now, even though I know I'm the same person, I think I'll be perceived differently: as a professional."

LAQUACHA BIENAIME
BEFORE
When Bienaime's mother was diagnosed with diabetes, the 21-year-old had to grow up fast. "I thought I would be able to go to college, but I wanted to be able to take care of my mom the way she's taken care of me all my life," she says. So Bienaime applied to Year Up to gain work experience while earning college credits. "It was a way to do two things at once," she says.

LAQUACHA BIENAIME
AFTER
For Bienaime, going from barefaced to made up was a shock. "I don't wear makeup, ever," she says. "But I love it. That and the hair and the dress. I love it all." She watched the makeup artist carefully so she could replicate the look at home. "I didn't really think I would like the makeover this much or see this big of a difference," she says. "I knew I was getting it, but now it feels completely different."