Everyday Eyebrow Tutorial

Not to brag or anything (I SWEAR!) but I will usually receive at least one compliment on my eyebrows/eyebrow shape per day.  It has taken me a long, long time to perfect this shape!  (You should really see my eyebrows circa 2004.. they were a real treat, lemme tell ya.)

Eyebrows really frame the face, and are particular and individual for every face shape.  Not everyone can wear the same type of brow, trust me.  I wish I could be an Asian Cara D., but it ain't gonna happen.  So this is just the way I do them every morning -- take it or leave it!  [I have a different dramatic eyebrow look for "going out" which I can make a tutorial for later if anyone wants it!]

Tutorial after the jump!

My apologizes for not photographing my products used this time!  

Stila Stay All Day Waterproof Brow Color in Dark

Anastasia Beverly Hills Brow Wiz in Caramel
Anastasia Beverly Hills Brow Gel in Clear

These are pretty basic eyebrow products, but I can photograph them for a later blog if necessary!

Tutorial:

STEP 1:

Start with a squeaky clean, groomed brow.  I use the spoolie brush on the opposite end of my Anastasia Beverly Hills Brow Wiz to brush all the eyebrow hairs in an upward and outward angle.  This is a very important step!  BRUSH before you start filling, so you know where your brow will lay once you're done! 

[Disclaimer: I pluck my eyebrows every. single. day.  I know this may seem daunting for a lot of you, but I'm serious about my brow upkeep!  I also trim them with small scissors about once a week to avoid overgrowth!]

STEP 2:

Starting at the outer TIP of your brow, fill in your brow using short, hair-like strokes with a liquid eyebrow pen.  I'm completely obsessed with Stila's Stay All Day Waterproof Brow Color.  When I'm feeling very dramatic, I actually use this in both the Dark and the Medium shades for more depth.  The waterproof part is super important, because you don't want your brow melting off if you sweat or run into some inclement weather!

Use your natural brow as a guide -- if you're missing some patches of hair (like I am) be sure to fill those in, but don't go crazy with extending your brow much above/below the natural hair line.

Also, make sure to follow the natural growth pattern of your brow hairs for the most natural look.  And don't be too heavy handed!  You still want to see a small bit of skin peeking through, as if these were still natural hairs.

STEP 3:

With the liquid eyebrow pen, continue filling in towards the inner corner of your brow.  For me, these strokes become much shorter, in keeping with the natural hairs of my brow.  My hairs also start to grow upwards instead of "sideways," if you will, so my pen strokes have to follow this pattern.

STEP 4:

This is the fun part!  Well.. "fun."  Using the Anastasia Brow Wiz, make the same type of short, hair-like strokes throughout your entire brow.  I also use two different shades for this step when I'm feeling dramatic -- the outer tip of your brow should stay darker and the inner part should be lighter.  Again, make sure not to be heavy handed here.  Using a waxy pencil like the Brow Wiz can end up looking very harsh and unnatural if done incorrectly.

And like above, don't go crazy with extending the shape/size of your brow much further than your natural hair line.

STEP 5:

Using a spoolie brush again, go over your brows and soften any harsh lines created by the pen or the pencil.  This seems like a step you can skip, but it really makes a difference.  The spoolie will pick up any excess product on your brow and create a much more natural looking appearance.

STEP 6:

Go over your entire brow, inner corner to outer tip, with a clear brow gel.  I have yet to find a better brow gel than Anastasia's Clear Brow Gel.  It's a miracle.  It keeps your brow hairs in place all day, and they DO NOT budge!  I've even woken up in the morning after a long night out, and my brows are still perfectly in place, even if the rest of my makeup is smeared all over my face.

This also may seem like a step you can easily skip, but the brow gel really finishes off the look and keeps your brows looking polished all day.

[Tip:  I have also used Target's Sonia Kashuk Twist Up Long Wear Brow Pencil ($8), and found it to be a pretty good drug store alternative to Anastasia's Brow Wiz ($21).  Unfortunately, it doesn't have the spoolie at the other end, but those are cheap to just pick up on their own!]

For a more dramatic look, you can take a small angled brush and, using a lighter shade of concealer, swipe a tiny bit of product right above and below the brow for a very clean line.  I do this when I draw a dramatic brow for "going out" looks, which, as I mentioned above, I can do a tutorial on in the future!

I hope this tutorial was helpful for anyone wondering how I do my brows every day!

xojaybee