Makeup artist Melissa Murphy has been posting “before and after” shots of her porn actress clients on Instagram for months, but it was only this past weekend that they went viral, with galleries of the pictures popping up on hundreds of websites. By Monday Murphy’s work was featured on Gawker and she was giving interviews to the Huffington Post.

It’s easy to see why the pictures are such a hit. The images are simple but striking, dozens of side-by-side comparison shots, all neatly demonstrating how much work it takes to make even gorgeous women look like porn stars.

It’s refreshing to learn that even professional sex goddesses suffer from blemishes, dark circles, and bed head. More pics after the jump.

View the rest of Melissa Murphy’s photos on her Instagram gallery.