My Eyebrow Routine

Eyebrows are a really important feature on anybody's face. Females, in particular, have to go through all sorts of crazy routines to get them looking perfect, from plucking and waxing to dyeing and even tattooing. I think eyebrows really frame the face, but I don't do anything too wild. Here is what I do from start to finish!

BEFORE MAKEUP:

 I use Tweezerman tweezers to pluck any hairs that I don't want. I always use a spooley to brush the hairs first so that I don't take any out that keep the shape of my brow.

 A good way to tell where your brows should be is to follow these next 3 steps. First, line a brush or pencil at the edge of your nostril and point upwards. This should guide where your brow should begin.

 Secondly, by lining your nostril with the edge of your iris you can determine a good place for the arch of your brow. Make sure you look straight ahead for this step, otherwise you could take too much away at the wrong area of your brow. Of course this step depends on whether you have a brow arch or not- always stick with your natural brow shape first. Less plucking is better, and a lot less painful! 

 Finally, use your nostril and outer corner of your eye to see where the tail of your eyebrow should end. This can also depend on your face shape and personal taste, my brows never go past this point, but some people prefer a long brow tail (just look at Audrey Hepburn!)

 I always use a spooley (brow comb/brush) to comb my brow hairs up. My eyebrows are very sparse and sometimes longer hairs and point downwards and create bald patches in my eyebrows. 

To fix this, every month or so I comb my brows up and trim anything that goes too far above the highest point of my brow. I never, ever do this to the tail of my brow because I don't have much hair there and longer hairs give the illusion of a fuller brow tail. 

TO FILL MY BROWS:

 Here is the mess of eyebrow products I own, not something I'm particularly proud of.

 My current favourite amongst brow products is Anastasia Beverly Hills "Brow Wiz". I have the shade Blonde Ash, a tone that isn't too red (an issue most brow pencils have). It has a medium texture, meaning it isn't too soft that it leaves chunks of products in your brows, and it isn't too hard that it hurts to apply or leaves really harsh lines. 

 The applicator is perfect, it has a very tiny nib which really mimics what hairs look like. It can fill in your brows in a very natural looking way. 

 Also- huge bonus- there is a spooley on the other side of the brush which is perfect for brushing out any harsh lines or for when you travel!

 Benefit's Brow Zings was the only brow product I used for a really long time. It has a tinted wax (left) and a brow powder (right). It also came with two mini brow brushes and miniature tweezers (which really aren't bad!) The wax is a bit too dark for me, but does hold your brows in place for a very long time. It says to use the wax and then the powder, I never did that because I found the powder really clung to the wax and created dark chunks in your eyebrows. Generally, I just use the powder on an angled eyeliner/brow brush to create a fuller brow look.

 Sometimes, on a long day, I set my brows with a clear gel mascara. You can use any brand, this is about $2.00 from Essence. You could also spray hairspray onto a spooley and use that if you're in a pinch, but clear mascara generally does the trick.

 To brighten and highlight the arch of my brow, I use Smashbox's "Eye Beam Double-Ended Brightner" which has one end for inner corners of your eye and your brow bone, and another end to brighten your lower lashline. 

 I use the thicker, creamy end of the pencil to draw directly under the outer half of my brow (right under the arch and tail). It makes the arch appear higher and gives the illusion that your eyebrow has more shape. It's a great way to make you appear more put together and awake. 

MY ROUTINE:

To begin I underline my brow with my brow pencil

 I then go around my entire brow to map out how I want them to look. It looks quite scary at first, but it works out when they're filled in.

 Here you can see the massive difference one eyebrow filled in makes. It's quite ridiculous actually.

 I took this next picture just to illustrate the difference in my eyebrow shapes. Remember that eyebrows are not identical, sometimes the shapes are different, the arches or length change, or even the colour of the brows themselves. 

I hope you enjoyed this extremely long post and found it helpful!

Have a great day, whatever you're doing!