How To: Brows

Step 1: Shaping your natural brow Whether you choose to pluck or wax at home or see a professional is totally personal preference. Just keep in mind that one too many hairs removed can be difficult to fix. To groom your brows at home, I recommend getting them shaped by a brow professional first to get you headed in the right direction. After shaping, upkeep is easy. Pluck stray hairs above or below the brows, careful not to disturb the actual brow. Be mindful of where each hair’s root begins. If the root is in your brow, considering trimming with cosmetic scissors. Simply brush the hair upwards towards you hairline with a spoolie to reveal the longer hair that require trimming. Anchoring the edge of the scissors on your forehead will allow you to trim along the brow shape without trimming too far into the brow. This will help you to maintain the shape from your brow appointment.

Step 2: Filling in your brows If you happen to pluck one too many hairs or have hairless spots, filling in your brows is an easy fix. Starting by brushing through your brows with a spoolie will show you the brows natural shape as well as reveal any spots that need filling and get all the hairs going in the same direction (face sleepers will probably know all too well about waking up with bedhead-brows). Regardless of the products you choose, filling your brows will basically be the same. Start by applying product in a line at the bottom, front portion of the brow to where the brow starts to arch down. This will give you that crisp, Instagram-worthy line. Then I like to apply a line at the top, back portion starting where the arch start to where you want your tail to end. Doing your brows this way will give you a crisp shape and provide a guide for the rest of your brow. Once these steps have been completed, most people will find that they lack that clean tail at the end of the brow. I like to sweep product through then end in small, precise, line motions to build the tail. Building the tail this way will also give you an indication of whether or not you need more colour at the front of your brow. Most people find that the front of the brow is the densest and doesn’t need much filling. If it does, I take a small amount of product and sweep through in small, slightly upward motions, almost as if you are drawing tiny hairs. This will ensure you don’t add too much product, resulting in a front heavy brow.

Note: avoid angling your brush vertically to create the front of your brow. This will result in a sharp, vertical line at the front of your brow. You can either build that area with your hair-like strokes or brush left-over product upwards through that area to keep it soft. If it gets too heavy there, brush through with a spoolie.

Step 3: Products Choosing the right product can be tricky. These three product types are the most effective and easy ways to get on fleek brows.

Tinted Brow Gel If you only need a touch more colour and a groom, tinted brow gel will work perfectly. Brow gel comes in a mascara-like tube, with a smaller spoolie. Simply sweep over brows gently in an upward motion at the front and a downward motion over the tail.

My top picks: Benefit “Gimme Brow” Volumizing Fibre Gel Anastasia Beverly Hills Tinted Brow Gel

Brow Pencil If you need a small fill, using a brow pencil will allow you to draw with hairlike strokes to fill in only where necessary. A brow pencil will allow you to be more precise and ensure you don’t darken the brows too much by adding too much colour. Running a spoolie through the brow after will soften any harsh lines made by the pencil.

My top picks: Anastasia Brow Wiz MAC Cosmetics Eye Brows (Look for pencil that twist up as they have a smaller tip for that precise application)

Brow Powder If you need to basically make new brows (don’t be worried, it’s easy!), using and angled brush and an eye shadow will help you build colour while keeping the brow soft. I use the same technique as using a pencil, but with a shadow I add more product or add product above or below the brow to softly build the brow.

My top pick: Any matte eyeshadow!

MAC Cosmetics 208 angled brow brush (my absolute favourite because it works with powder or gel products)

Bonus: Anastasia Beverly Hills DIPBROW Pomade is AMAZING. It is a gel-like product which is helpful for creating your brows. I use ABH dipbrow everyday with my MAC 208 brush because the product is buildable and water proof. Seriously worth the hype. I use “Soft Brown” and the MAC Cosmetics 208 brush.

Step 4: Choosing the right brow colour First determine whether you are cool or warm toned. This can be tricky so test out the product on your hand; you will know when a tone is off. Testing the colour on your hand is super important because you can get an idea of how the colour shows on your skin, which you definitely won’t be able to tell by just looking at the colour in the package. It’s also very (emphasis on VERY) important that you match your brow product to your existing brow colour, and not your hair colour if the two are different (if the two are the same, easy!). But if you colour your hair or simply have darker brows, match your brow colour (unless you want to have coloured brows, then go for an eye pencil or shadow for pink, purple, blue, etc). The only exception is if you have very light brows. In that case, go for a colour close to, or a shade lighter, than your hair colour.

Step 5: Clear brow gel! Make sure those hairs stay in place by sweeping a clear brow gel through after filling. Easy and effective. Your brows won’t be falling off your face anymore!

My top picks: Anastasia Beverly Hills Colourless Brow Gel

Maybelline Great Lash in Clear

Pro Tip: Highlighting your brow bone will intensify the shape of your brow!