Do Your Eyebrows Like A Pro: Eyebrow Grooming At Home

Beautiful woman's face with great looking eyebrows

Eyebrows can make or break your look. Like everything beauty-related, eyebrows have also evolved over the years.

Did you know that in ancient times, a unibrow was considered a symbol of intelligence? From straight brows to prominent arches, to the pencil thin eyebrows of the early 2000s, we are now in an era of natural but groomed brows, where bigger is definitely better. Think Cara Delevingne, Penelope Cruz, and Lily Collins.

Eyebrows have slowly but surely become an important part of everyone’s beauty routine. When done right, they can change the shape of your face and make your eyes pop. So, if you’re wondering how to get on the brow wagon and have the most “on-fleek” brows ever, let’s continue.

What Eyebrow Shape To Choose (Based On Face Shape)

One question that baffles us all is “What is the right eyebrow shape for me?”. The answer lies in the shape of your face itself. Therefore, the first thing you have to do is figure out your face shape.

If you have a long face, your aim would be to cut the length so to speak, and make it appear rounder. This means, your ideal eyebrow shape would be relatively flat and straight.

If your face is round, arched eyebrows will help elongate your face a little and make it appear slimmer.

Women with oval-shaped faces should opt for a slightly arched eyebrow, which will help to maintain the oval form of their face.

If you have a square face, you will want to soften the angles of your face with a rounder brow.

For heart-shaped faces, again, a rounder brow will soften the pointiness of your chin.

And last but not least, women with a diamond face should also choose a curved eyebrow shape.

Have a look at this infographic to understand the ideal eyebrow shape for your face better:

Face shapes and eyebrows solutions infographic

How To Shape Your Eyebrows Yourself

Now that you have understood which eyebrow shape is perfect for you, it’s time to speak about how you can actually achieve that shape.

Of course, the easiest way to shape your brows would be to let the professionals do it. With eyebrows gaining so much importance lately, specialized brow bars have popped up in every corner of the world.

These professionals understand face shapes and current trends, are well trained in the art of shaping eyebrows and take away all the pressure of having to do it yourself.

But this is nothing, which you couldn’t do it yourself, either.

Eyebrow grooming methods that you can try at home

There are different methods that you can choose from including waxing, threading, and tweezing.

Waxing is probably the most common method of the three. Threading is pretty common in many parts of Asia, and involves the use of an actual specialized thread to pluck out extra hair from its roots. It may look painful but it’s really not. If you’re looking for well-defined brows, this is the way to go. Tweezing is great if you have thinner brows, and isn’t the best option for those with thicker hair growth.

Shaping your brows isn’t easy, and you will need practice and patience, but it’s not impossible. Here are a few pointers to remember before you groom your own brows:

  1. Tweezing is the best method to choose when you’re doing your eyebrows.
  2. Let your eyebrows grow out completely before you embark on the task of shaping them.
  3. Invest in a good pair of tweezers and scissors to make your job easier.
  4. Less is more when it comes to tweezing. It’s easy to end up over-plucking your brows if you don’t pay attention. So, tweeze hair by hair, look into your hand-held mirror, then look into a bigger mirror from a distance and then continue. Avoid magnifying mirrors as it will end up giving you a distorted image of what your brows look like.
  5. Always tweeze after you have a shower. The warm water will open up your pores and make it easier and less painful to tweeze your brows.
  6. When you’re done, use some ice and aloe vera gel to soothe your skin.

This video is an excellent guide on how to shape your own brows:

Filling In Your Brows

Earlier in this article, we spoke about how big eyebrows are all the rage right now. But, what happens if you aren’t as blessed as Cara Delevingne herein this department?

Like they say, fake it till you make it.

Filling in your eyebrows can be a huge makeup transformation – it makes them look fuller and healthier than they actually are. The danger of filling them in is that if you don’t do it right, you could end up looking like an evil clown.

Don’t worry though, all it takes is practice, practice, and practice. Thankfully the cosmetic industry has blessed us with so many products that we can use to achieve the perfect brow look.

Remember to use an eyebrow pencil to lightly shade the areas above and below your brows to create a natural-looking shadow and brush your hair upwards and outwards to make it look fuller.

5 Steps To Beautiful Eyebrows

Here is your 5 Step Guide to the perfect brows:

1. Prep your brows

Grow out your brows for 2-3 weeks before grooming them. You can use a growth serum for better and faster growth.

2. Shape your brows

  • The eyebrow can be divided into three parts; the head, the arch, and the tail. Your eyebrows should start in line with the bridge of your nose. Hold your brow brush vertically to the side of your nose. This should help you determine where your brows should start.
  • The arch of your brows should be 2/3rd of the way out toward the temple.
  • The tail of your brows should ideally end from the corner of the nose to the corner of the eye. Once again, you can use your brow brush to determine this point.

3. Correct your brows

Use a brow pencil to accent your brows and to cover gaps and extend your tail. Do not overfill arches.

4. Add volume

Use powders to add volume to your brows and make them look more polished.

5. Set your brows

To complete your look, use a clear gel to hold your brows in place all day long. Stay away from wax based products which melt easily and give eyebrows a stuck-together look.

Here’s to a lifetime of on-fleek eyebrows!

The perfect eyebrows guide infographic: 5 steps to great eyebrows

Products You Will Need For Proper Eyebrow Care

Eyebrow products are everywhere right now. We spoke to a few professionals to get their opinion on what products you should have in your kit and this is what they had to say:

Eyebrow Pencils

Eyebrow pencils are the holy grail of eyebrow grooming products. You can use them to cover up sparse spots, correct your over-tweezed brows and even change the shape of your brows.

Choosing the right eyebrow pencil depends not only on your hair color but your skin tone as well.

Red haired ladies should go for an ashy blonde eyebrow pencil. If you have brown hair, try to stick to within two shade ranges of your hair color. But if your hair is light brown and you have light eyes, choose a darker shade and if you have dark eyes, go lighter. Black haired women should never choose black as it’s way too harsh. Choose a medium-dark brown for the best results. If you’re blonde, stick to matching the base tone of their hair. Simple enough, right?

Brow Gel

Brow gel is another genius product that can really take your eyebrows to the next level. They can add a subtle hue to your brows, help set them in place, and even make unruly brows look groomed.

Use a pencil to fill in bald spots and then use a brow gel to set the look. If you are naturally blessed and don’t need a pencil, just use brow gel. When it comes to choosing the right shade, it’s always best to go one shade darker.

Brow Mascara

Brow mascara is amazing for ladies with thinner brows. Choose one with fibers that will naturally fill in your sparse areas and give the appearance of fuller brows.

Brow Pomade

Like brow gel, brow pomade also helps keep your groomed eyebrows in place all day long. Remember not to use both brow gel and pomade. Try a few products and see what works best for you.

Home Remedies For Eyebrow Growth

While makeup is a great way to mask thinner eyebrows, there are also certain natural remedies that you can use to improve the growth of your brows.

These include castor oil, vaseline, coconut oil, almond oil, and aloe vera gel. Eating a healthy diet and drinking plenty of water always helps in overall skin and hair health.

Common Eyebrow Grooming Mistakes You Should Know About

Last but not least, we come to some common eyebrow mistakes that you should avoid at all costs.

1. Don’t pick the wrong color when it comes to eyebrow pencils and gels. Your brows could end up looking fake and plain weird if you do this. Take the help of a professional before choosing shades and always, try before you buy!

2. As mentioned earlier, do not use magnifying mirrors while tweezing your own brows. Use a combination of a hand-held mirror and a regular mirror to get it right.

3. Many women make the mistake of tweezing way too often. Before you realize it, you could end up with extremely thin brows. So, let your eyebrows grow completely between two tweezing sessions. Remember, it’s all about natural brows.

4. Do not go overboard with drawing in your eyebrows. It’s about enhancing your natural brows, not creating brand new brows.

5. When tweezing your own brows, always pluck one hair at a time. It may seem tedious but tweezing out multiple eyebrow hairs can drastically change their appearance. So, be careful and patient!

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