Eyebrows are such an important part of the face. Can you imagine what you’d look like without them? A well-groomed brow can open up your eyes and balance your features. They add structure and create a focal point that brings all of your features together. Now that I’m a bit older, I worry less about plucking and more about filling in my sparse eyebrows. To get perfect eyebrows, you can follow these simple guidelines. The first section is about finding the right shape for your face. The second section is about filling in when necessary.

Step-by-Step Instructions for the Perfect Arch

Step 1 – Choose your tools. Invest in a good quality pair of tweezers. I prefer the brand Tweezerman. They make a great slanted tweezer that grips onto even the tiniest hairs. And you can have them sharpened for free.

Step 2 – Find your look. Your brow look depends of the shape of your face, cheekbones and nose. If you have a round face, go for more of an arch. If you have an angular face, you may find a rounded brow works better for you.

Step 3 – Guidelines. Hold a makeup brush or pencil vertically from the center of your nostril up to your brow. This is where your brow should start. Next, hold the pencil diagonally from the side of your nose past the outer corner of your eye. This is where your brow should end.

Your brows should mature with you as you get older. In your twenties, try a more natural look. Just clean up the eye area. Remove the strays and the hairs that grow between the brows above the nose. As you move into your thirties and forties, a more pronounced arch is a confident and professional look. As you get older, you may want to go back to a more rounded, softer look.

Step 4 – Proceed slowly. You can always remove more hairs, but you can’t put them back. Pluck one hair at a time. Remove a few strands, then step away from the tweezers and have a look. Brows that are too thin can be aging and hairs can take up to 8 weeks to grow back.

Step 5 – Maintenance. Once you get your basic shape, don’t let the fuzz take over again. Check your brows every couple of days and go after those strays with your Tweezermans.

Tips

• A good way to get started is to have your brows professionally neatened. Then all you have to do is maintain the shape.
• Once a year, revisit your professional and have them do your brows again. This way you can keep up with beauty trends and make sure you’re staying on the right track.
• Remove hairs in the direction of growth so they grow back that way. If you pull in the opposite direction, new growth may stick out.

Filling in Sparse Brows

Here are some products that can help:

Pencils – Fill in with a hard formula pencil designed specifically for eyebrows. Don’t try to use an eyeliner pencil. They are too soft and formulated to be smudgy.

Powders – You can fill in patches with a color similar to your natural hair color. If you can’t find a perfect match, go a shade lighter. With my brown hair I have trouble finding brown shades that work well on me. Most have a warm redness to the color that doesn’t match my cool skin tone. I use a gray tone from Anastasia Beverly Hills. It doesn’t look like it would work in the package but it goes on perfectly.

Gels (in a tube with a wand) – You can get gels in a range of colors or clear.  Clear gels are good for adding structure and holding your eyebrow hairs in place. Colors can add texture and fullness by picking up on the fine, almost invisible hairs.

Gels (in a pot) –  You can use a waxy gel with a fine angled brush to fill in patchy spots and add the appearance of thickness.

Pens – You can find brow pens that are similar to liquid liner but with a very fine tip or multiple-strand tip. You can draw in tiny hairs to provide a fuller look. This one takes some practice.

The trick to perfect eyebrows is to find the shape that works best on your face and a color that looks natural. Personally, I use a powder applied with an angled brush to fill in the gaps, and then I apply an overlay of brown gel with a tiny wand to add texture and make the brows appear fuller.

Do you fill in your brows? What products do you use?