So sorry for the late post everyone! Here’s my last post for the year and it’s all about what I think is the most important part of anyone’s face — BROWS. I’m definitely no brow expert but as you can see in my description over there on the right side, I do believe that good eyebrows can sometimes be pretty life-changing. So in this post I’ve included everything I learned from books, Pinterest, YouTube videos, and the kind ladies of Browhaus who have been shaping my brows (and basically life) since I was 16.
Before we get to the fun part of filling them in, it's important to know what the proper eyebrow shape is. Of course all eyebrows vary in shape, but there are a few general rules to follow to achieve a universally flattering shape for all faces.
So below is an image of me after I've just moisturized my face. What you'll notice about my brows is that they're not the same color as my hair. The reason for that is cause I don't have my brows dyed when I get my hair done because I learned that it could possibly make your brows thinner over time. I don't take any risks when it comes to my brows haha! But that's okay cause they'll look less black later on.
To determine the right starting point for your brows, take any stick (or in my case I used the end of a thin makeup brush) and make a vertical line following the bridge of your nose. Your brows should begin to fade in right around here. To avoid making it look like a unibrow, make sure it starts out very light and gets more defined as you reach the tail. Others might argue that brows should start along the line following the edge of the bottom of your nose, but the way I was taught was to always follow the bridge. Plus, I think everyone's brows would look too far apart if we all followed the outer edges of our noses.
Next, to determine where the arch of your brow should be, create a vertical line from the outer edge of the bottom of your nose and create a diagonal line that goes through the outer part of your iris. Make sure you are looking straight into the mirror while you are doing this step. Your arch should also rest right along your brow bone. As much as possible, try to follow the natural shape of the top line of your brows.
And finally, to determine the end point of your brows, create a line from the outer edge of the bottom of your nose that also passes through the outer corner of your eye. That line is where your brows should end.
So now that you all have a general idea of how your brows should be shaped, it's time to get to filling. The thing is, I don't use just one product to fill my brows. I believe that you can't have the same filled-in brows for every look. Each makeup look/peg requires a different approach to filling in your brows. For example, you wouldn't use a brow pencil with a natural finish to recreate let's say, Katy Perry's strong brows.
So i'll be showing you three of the methods I use for three different looks: everyday, weekend, and evening.
To determine the right starting point for your brows, take any stick (or in my case I used the end of a thin makeup brush) and make a vertical line following the bridge of your nose. Your brows should begin to fade in right around here. To avoid making it look like a unibrow, make sure it starts out very light and gets more defined as you reach the tail. Others might argue that brows should start along the line following the edge of the bottom of your nose, but the way I was taught was to always follow the bridge. Plus, I think everyone's brows would look too far apart if we all followed the outer edges of our noses.
Next, to determine where the arch of your brow should be, create a vertical line from the outer edge of the bottom of your nose and create a diagonal line that goes through the outer part of your iris. Make sure you are looking straight into the mirror while you are doing this step. Your arch should also rest right along your brow bone. As much as possible, try to follow the natural shape of the top line of your brows.
And finally, to determine the end point of your brows, create a line from the outer edge of the bottom of your nose that also passes through the outer corner of your eye. That line is where your brows should end.
So now that you all have a general idea of how your brows should be shaped, it's time to get to filling. The thing is, I don't use just one product to fill my brows. I believe that you can't have the same filled-in brows for every look. Each makeup look/peg requires a different approach to filling in your brows. For example, you wouldn't use a brow pencil with a natural finish to recreate let's say, Katy Perry's strong brows.
So i'll be showing you three of the methods I use for three different looks: everyday, weekend, and evening.
First look: Everyday Makeup
For my everyday makeup to school, I usually just apply tinted sunblock and lip tint, curl my lashes, and do my brows.
Since I'm usually running late, my makeup needs to be done as quickly as possible. That's why I opt for brow gels/mascaras for my everyday look since I'm not really after a lot of definition, I just wanna turn the hairs of my brows brown to match my hair. It's my major pet peeve when brows don't match the person's hair color so I never skip this step! My favorite brow mascaras are from MAC, Bobbi Brown, and Majolica Majorca. I suggest using brow gels if you're lucky enough to be born with naturally thick brows that don't need a lot of filling in.
Second look: Weekend Makeup
. My weekend makeup is just a more polished version of my everyday makeup. Aside from filling my brows, I just add a few coats of mascara, tightline my upper lash line, lightly contour, and wear lipstick.
During the weekends when I have more time to spare, I opt for my Shu Uemura Hard Formula Eyebrow Pencil, which I call the greatest eyebrow pencil in the world. I'm not kidding, this thing is amazing. It's even sharpened like a samurai sword so that you can be really precise in filling in your brows. Also, what's amazing about this brow pencil is that it only releases pigment on hair, so it solves my problem of black eyebrow hairs showing through.
For best results, this brow pencil requires a light hand.
Third Look: Evening Makeup
Evening makeup requires the most defined brows. That's because lightly filled brows can easily get overshadowed by heavy eye makeup. So to get the job done, I always use my MAC Fluidline Brow Gelcreme with an angled brow brush. I love this product because it also allows the hairs on my brows not to look black and at the same time, it acts like a brow gel that holds everything in place. It also lasts long so it's perfect for a long night out.
For perfectly shaped brows, once I fill my brows in, I do make sure to use the brush you can usually find on the other end of a brow comb to get a really clean shape and then I trace my brows with concealer. I also add some concealer under my brows for an additional highlight on my brow bone. Then, I blend it all out with my Sephora Pro Airbrush Concealer brush for a well-blended finish. And finally, I seal it all in with loose powder so it stays in place.
And that's it! Happy New Year to all of you and I'm wishing you all super strong brow game for 2015 :)
Hi I liked the tips here on how to shape the eyebrows.
ReplyDeleteI might think why not align to the outside of your nostrils?
I think that as long as you stay between your bridge or nose ball and outer nostrils they won't be too far or too close apart, both have their place, eyebrows a bit closer each other can be more intense, sometimes “aggressive” and modern, it pairs well with thicker and more natural eyebrows. Yours look very natural yet refined :).
Aligning to parallel vertical lines from outer nostrils can instead make your gaze a bit more open and vulnerable suiting thin to medium-thick styles, it’s a little more classic and sweet, though, if you believe, you can make them more arched and aggressive. Both are beautiful, but the more spaced eyebrows are more traditionally feminine, which doesn’t mean actually more feminine or better, mind it, just a perception according to given cultural archetype. Like a man wearing makeup is not necessarily feminine, though it's not the right comparison at all but that is haha ^_^.
Lately on top of that, many tend to arch them later i.e quite beyond the outer edge of the iris, sometimes as far at the outer edge of the eye, for a further aggressive look :), which is all about fine and these are great guidelines and reference. As long as the eyebrow is tapered along its whole length the way from the beginning or at least not beyond between the inner and the outer edge of the iris, it keep its balance.