Eyebrows

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This article focuses on shaping and bleaching eyebrows. Plucked eyebrow hairs do not grow back thicker. If anything, constant plucking may cause the hairs to stop growing back altogether. [1]

Contents

Sensitivity to and Pain from Plucking

  • Try rubbing a small bit of toothache medicine over the area to numb the skin.[1]
  • If the pain and swelling are extreme, taking ibuprofen 90 minutes before plucking or waxing will relieve the pain and also reduce redness and swelling.[2]
  • Tweeze your brows right after you shower, when your skin is soft and the hairs pull out more easily.[3]
  • Use your finger to gently pull the skin taut before tweezing.[3]

Shapes

This section references “How to Shape Eyebrows”[4] unless otherwise noted:

  • Following the brow’s natural arch is the most natural approach. To do this, take a look at how the hairs (generally) curve along the top of the brow. Using that as a guide, mirror the shape along the bottom by eliminating the most obvious hairs.[1]
  1. Hold a straight edge, such as an eyebrow pencil or a ruler, vertically in front of your face. Line it up so that it touches the outermost of your nose and the inside of your eye. This line will determine where your eyebrow should start. Mark that spot with an eyebrow pencil. Repeat for the other eye.
  2. Angle the straight edge so that it lines up with the outermost edge of your nose and the outermost edge of your iris. It's very important that you look straight ahead- both your face and your eyes should be looking directly forward at the mirror. Wherever the line intersects your eyebrow is where the peak of your arch should begin at the top border of the eyebrow. Mark that spot with your eyebrow pencil. Repeat for the other eye.
    1. Alternatively, align the straight edge at the outer iris of the eye with the eyes looking directly forward. This should be where your arch peaks.[5]
  3. Angle the straight edge further so that it touches the outermost edge of your nose and also passes along the outermost edge of your eye (not your eyelashes, if you have long ones that extend beyond the edge of your eye, you lucky thing). This tells you where the eyebrow should end. Mark this point with your eyebrow pencil. Repeat with the other eye.
  4. Determine the thickness of your eyebrows based on the strength of your features. Those with thick hair and strong features should have thick eyebrows to match. If you have delicate features, go for thin, delicate eyebrows. Balance is key. Delicate eyebrows on a face with strong features will make those features seem too big, while thick eyebrows on a face with small features will overpower the face.
  5. Tailor the thickness and shape of your eyebrows to correspond with your face shape:
    1. Round face - emphasize the arch to draw attention away from the width of your face.
    2. Long face - make your eyebrows flatter and do not emphasize the arch; this gives your face a horizontal dimension to compensate for its length.
  • Explore your own personal and cultural shape. Some cultures favor the look of skinny, well-groomed eyebrows, while other cultures associate thick eyebrows with youth.

Preparation and Tweezing

  1. Slanted tweezers grab coarse brow hairs better than pointed ones do and they're gentler on the skin.[3]
  2. Try to tweeze brows in natural sunlight – it illuminates all the tiny strands a bathroom bulb will miss. And never tweeze with a magnifying mirror – it’s too easy to overdo it.[2]
  3. Don't contort your face when tweezing. Lifting your brows distorts the natural shape and throws off the balance you're trying to create.[3]
  4. Because gray hairs are thick and coarse, tweezing them can leave a gap in your brows. Instead, cover them with temporary hair color designed to mask gray roots.[3]
  5. Sometimes it is helpful to mark the hairs you want to remove with a white pencil or concealer.
  6. Pluck in the directions the hairs grow. The biggest mistake people make is to tweeze too much.[6]
  7. Taper both brows uniformly by moving from the left brow to the right one after tweezing every few hairs. Be sure to stand back a few feet from the mirror every once in a while to get perspective.[2]
  8. After tweezing, spritz brows with water to locate baby hairs that might have been overlooked.[2]
  9. Take your sharpened eyebrow pencil and draw in any open spaces with short, irregular-length strokes to simulate real hair.[1] You can also fill in the brows with cream shadow that’s the same shade as the hair.[2]
  10. Brush your brows up with a brow brush. Optionally keep them in place with a little sweep of clear mascara, mustache wax, or hairspray.[1] You can also use a clear brow gel.[7] Use these products sparingly. The oily texture can make your brows look dark and heavy. Dab product just along the thicker section, not on the sparse tail of the eyebrow.[3]

Trimming

If your brows need trimming, use a spooley brush to sweep each one straight, and keep the brush in place at the top of your brow. Hold brow scissors in your opposite hand, and snip hairs that extend above the brush. But be careful: Cutting too much can flatten your arch.[3]

Brow Powder and Pencil

  • Look for a brow pencil that feels hard and dry; you tend to use more pressure when applying a soft formula, which can lead to a thicker line.
  • Apply brow powder after pencil, which blends the two and creates a soft finish. Apply brow powder with a small, angled short-bristle brush; the design helps you follow the shape of your brow.

[3]

Color

Consider filling in brows with a brow pencil using two different shades. It can add depth and make brows look more natural.

  • If you're a blonde or a redhead, use a color that's one shade darker than your brows.[7] For example, blondes can try using a taupe brow pencil.[8]
  • Non-blondes should try one pencil that matches your brow hair and another a shade lighter.[8]

References

  1. ↑ 1.0 1.1 1.2 1.3 1.4 Aucoin, Kevyn. “Making Faces.” Page 27.
  2. ↑ 2.0 2.1 2.2 2.3 2.4 Allure. “Best Makeup Tips. Ever.” Pg 107. August 2008.
  3. ↑ 3.0 3.1 3.2 3.3 3.4 3.5 3.6 3.7 "Beauty 101: Defined Brows." Allure. January 2009: page 34.
  4. ↑ http://www.wikihow.com/Shape-Eyebrows
  5. ↑ http://www.5min.com/Video/How-to-Shape-Your-Eyebrows-10932
  6. ↑ http://beauty.about.com/od/allaboutyoureyes/ht/groombrows.htm
  7. ↑ 7.0 7.1 "Master Class." Allure. October 2009: page 77.
  8. ↑ 8.0 8.1 "Top 10 Things You Need for Spring." Allure. December 2008: page 176.
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