Awesome Arches 101

Brows are a hot topic these days. Luckily the current shapes are about naturally arched brows that suit the individual's face, and are nothing like the drastic pencil thin arches of the thirties (and again in the 70's) or the crazy thick brows of the 80's. 

There are many fantastic brow enhancing products on the market, but with many awesome products comes much confusion.  How does one not only choose, but use these powders, waxes, pencils and stencils?

First rule of thumb, er. . .brow:  When choosing a pencil or powder, color can make or break the look.  Brunettes, go for one shade lighter than your hair color. This keeps your brows from looking heavy and gruesome like a Disney villian.  Blondes, your color should be one shade darker than your hair color to ensure that your brows don't blend in to your skin tone, which can make you look a bit featureless.


Powder or Pencil?  This largely depends on skill and comfort level.  I used to be a pencil wielder, but have converted to a powder/wax combo.  Here's the skinny on that:

*Pencils have a harder edge and for some may be too harsh looking. However, with a sharp tip and skill, you can create "feathery" looking strokes that can fill sparse areas but look completely natural. Anastasia brand has a fine tip pencil that is brilliant.
*Powders have a soft look that is very fetching, but can be a bit messy and hard to control.  The key here is to use a slant edge brush and stipple the powder into the brow in sections. Ardele makes brow powder singles in a bevey of natural looking shades.
*Wax comes either tinted or clear.  Alone, and applied with a slant tip brush, this gives the brow structure but not much "fill". This is where my "blend" comes in.  Mix the powder and wax, stipple in with a slant tip brush and presto - best of both worlds. Brow Zing by Benefit is my favorite Powder & Wax kit.
*Brow Gel is typically clear and in a tube with a mascara wand type applicator. Gel is great for taming wiley brows that like to droop or stand straight out by slicking them down and keeping them in place. Gel can be used as a finishing touch either alone or in addition to any of the afore mentioned products.  Brow Fixation by Colorscience is perfect and keeps brows still without feeling stiff.


Shape up!

Brow shape is difficult to explain in writing, so I've included this nifty eyebrow diagram. This method of shaping the brow truly tailors your shape to your unique face, and the best looking brow is one that is balanced with your features!  

Before tweezing, consider using a white eyeliner to "erase" the hairs you are contemplating removing.  This will give you a chance to step back and take a look at the full picture before any tweezing starts, eliminating potential tweezers remorse.  On the other end of the spectrum, some gals need growth to acheive a balanced look. If this is you, just exercise patience, back away from the tweezers and stay away from magnifying mirrors!! A few months down the road you will be happy you did!


That's it for the brow how.


Have a Beautiful Day!!