Ok Ladies, it’s time to break out your tweezers and put them to work! We’ve all heard the phrase “the eyes are the windows to the soul” right? Well if your eyes are the windows to your soul then that would make your eyebrows, what…the decorative curtains??? That sounds about right to me! Just like you can ruin beautiful windows with ugly curtains, you can ruin beautiful eyes with bad eyebrows. Walking down the streets in New York I see so many woman who are doing their faces injustice by ignoring their eyebrows. Well, I’m on a mission to make woman aware of the impact their eyebrows have on their overall appearance. Read on to learn how to create beautiful brows!
Different Eyebrow Shapes
There are many different eyebrow shapes out there. Each shape evokes a different emotion. The following are a sampling of the many wrong eyebrow shapes out there and how they portray you:
The “Sad” Eyebrow
This eyebrow is usually in the shape of an upside down wide V. The outside corner of the brow is usually too long and extends past the inside corner of the eyebrow.
The “Angry” Eyebrow
This eyebrow has a longer inner brow line that extends downward towards the nose. It is too close to the eye and the eyebrows are too close to each other as well.
The “Surprised” Eyebrow
This eyebrow looks like an upside down U. The arch of the brow is too arched and far away from the eye.
The “Worried” Eyebrow
This eyebrow is rather flat with little shape to it and has virtually no arch. It can leave the face looking worried or perplexed.
Now, compare those expressions to the one created by the “Perfect” Eyebrow.
The “Perfect” Brow
The perfect brow creates a neutral look on the face so that you don’t look surprised…unless you actually are, or angry…unless you are, or worried…well, you get the point!!
How to Achieve the Perfect Brow
These days a lot of ladies are heading to salons to get their eyebrows waxed, threaded or tweezed by professionals and I don’t blame them; it’s easy and a little down time. However, all women should still know how to shape, clean up and fill in their eyebrows. With this step-by-step guide you’ll be a pro in no time!
- First of all, you need to figure out where your brows should begin and end. General rule of thumb is, there should be one eye length between your eyebrows. Tweeze any stray hairs that extend beyond that point.
- Next grab a pencil or the handle of a makeup tool. Line up the pencil with the outside of your left nostril and the outside corner of your left eye up through your eyebrow. Where the pencil hits your eyebrow is where your eyebrow should end. It should not extend down any further than the top of your eye socket.
- With the pencil still resting against your nose slide it over so that it is in line with the outside of your pupil when looking straight ahead. This is where the highest point of your arch should be.
- Now that you know where your eyebrow should begin, end and where the arch belongs grab your tweezers and start tweezing! WAIT! Before you do that, keep in mind that you do not want to tweeze too much. Thick, bold eyebrows are in and skinny, barely there eyebrows are out. Try to keep the thickness around half an inch then, on the back half of the eyebrow, just after the arch, tweeze the bottom hairs so that the brow tapers into a point at the end.
- Most of the hairs you tweeze should come from the bottom of the brow line. However, occasionally it is necessary to tweeze stray hairs on the top of the eyebrow.
Shading/ Filling in the Eyebrow
This is the last step to eyebrow perfection!
There are two ways to fill-in/shade your eyebrows. The first is by using an eyebrow pencil and the second is using powder eye shadow.
Eyebrow Pencil
- Choose a shade that matches the natural color of the eyebrow or one that is slightly darker for very light eyebrows.
- Make sure that the pencil is sharpened
- Start at the bottom of the inner brow and make small, upward strokes in the same direction the eyebrow hairs are growing.
- Some areas of the eyebrow are naturally more dense with hair and darker then the rest of the eyebrow. Often times the denser, darker areas do not need to be shaded. Focus on the lighter and more sparse areas of the eyebrow for a more natural look.
Powder Eye Shadow
- Choose a powder eye shadow shade that matches the color of the eyebrow or one that is slightly darker for very light eyebrows.
- Equip yourself with an angle brush
- Very lightly tap the brush into the powder. You do not want to load the brush with color. It is always easier to go back and add more color to the brow than it is to remove it.
- Start at the bottom of the inner brow line. Angle the brush so that the tip is pointed down towards the bottom of the brow and make small, upward sweeping motions.
- Once you get to the arch, turn the brush so that the tip is pointed toward the top of the brow and make small, downward sweeping motions till you reach the end of your eyebrow.
Guess what, you’re done! You have just created the perfect brow for your face. You are now equipped with the technique, tools and knowledge to be your own eyebrow professional.
Now that you have the correct techniques…go get your beauty on!
