Something I wish that I had learned earlier is that the eyebrows truly do frame the face. I have to admit that my eyebrows are the most time consuming part of my routine…because they truly make a difference!
Without my eyebrows, I just feel…”un-Chrissey.” Which makes me laugh, because the eyebrows used to be the laziest part of my routine.
I think that at different trajectories of my life, my brows definitely have been…different. And as you can see from the following pictures, different products have different looks and effects.
And also, my selfie game has definitely improved over time.
Chrissey, aged 18
The beginning of the makeup game…which meant that I used brow powder to very lightly fill in my eyebrows. Which are definitely over-plucked during this stage of my life! I think that everyone goes through a phase when they over-wax or over-pluck their eyebrows!
Brow powder–the most natural of brow looks, brow powders give a very light and natural look.
Chrissey, aged 19
I cannot stand this picture.
Because there are so many makeup sins in this one photograph, and no one told me that I was walking around looking like this dusty ass ghost! The too-white foundation, the cakey foundation, the overlined bottom lip…the uneven eyeliner. But the cherry on top is those brows.
Uneven, unnatural, angular, too-dark, and weird.
I used brow pomade during this time, which is absolutely wonderful if you want the Instagram brow look, and a bulletproof brow. However, the problem with this brow product is with a heavy hand, mistakes or uneven-ness is super noticable, and it is SO easy to go unnatural and over-do your eyebrows!!
I cannot believe my friends and (then) boyfriend let me walk around looking like that. Jerks.
Chrissey, aged 20
“Why is the lighting in this picture so terrible?”
“Why is this selfie so yellow?”
I don’t know, y’all. I wish I had answers for you.
My brows at this point were lazy again, and I used eyebrow gel.
I don’t think brow gel is bad, as I still use it to this day. But the thing with brow gel is that although it creates more volume, and helps fill in sparse brows…it doesn’t shape your eyebrows. So, if your brows are sparse they will definitely look more full. But if your brows are shaped terribly, they will still be shaped terribly…but at least they’ll be more full and less sparse?
Chrissey, aged just-turned-21
I was always intimidated by eyebrow pencils, because they seemed so intimidating and scary…but they are definitely my favorite products for brows!
…Just not this type of pencil.
An actual eyebrow pencil (non-retractable), does define your eyebrows and does help shape them and fill in sparse areas. However, the tip is so fat and the pencil is so creamy that it ends up over-filling brows, making them a completely solid and unnatural kind of color. Brows should really be a gradient–darker at the ends, and lighter in the front. And although conventional eyebrow pencils do a good job of filling in brows fast, the look is a lot more dramatic and full..and a less natural one.
Chrissey, a few days ago (aka 21)
Okay, I’m a little biased because these are my current eyebrows. But they are my absolute favorite! I’ve learned not to overpluck or overdraw my eyebrows, and to enjoy how they (somewhat) naturally look.
I pluck my own eyebrows, but only the underneath, middle, and upper parts. I follow the same plucking shape that I’ve done for a long time… I know how my true natural brows look, but I’d rather not tell all of you.
Just kidding, I tell you guys everything.
They look like an isoceles triangle. I have natural triangle brows….so I initially did a lot of brow shaping. But now I just follow the general shape I like!
I use a retractable brow pencil with a very fine tip (L’Oréal® Paris Brow Stylist Definer, review coming soon! I just switched over from the NYX one!). This is super important because the fine tip allows for you to make small, natural strokes and to very lightly fill in and define your brows! This allows you to achieve a much more natural and genuine kind of eyebrow look! I personally prefer how my brows look with a fine-tip brow pencil, but that’s just my preference!
And to groom and set my eyebrows, I use a brow gel! That’s it.
Also, yes, that is a bag of hot cheetos and a wine glass in the background…
ALSO.
Mucho importante.
In looking up brow quotes for this blog post, I found this little image on Pinterest…
PLEASE DO NOT DO THIS UNDER ANY CIRCUMSTANCES. It is so, so , bad. Please don’t.
DO NOT.
What is your go-to brow product? Or your biggest eyebrow faux-pas?
Chrissey
This is amazing! Well done
Mind checking my eyebrow review out?
Darrcie X
https://thatbeautyreviewer.wordpress.com/category/beauty/
LikeLiked by 1 person
Of course, thanks for commenting!
LikeLike
My worst brow moment was when I first began doing makeup and always filled my brows in completely with a black cream eyeliner (not my best look)! And I definitely agree about the importance of FINE tipped pencils. I’ve just started using them these past 4-5ish months (so I’m definitely looking out for that L’oreal review), and already have realized that I don’t like when the pencils are overly creamy and stay blunt and thick!
LikeLiked by 1 person
Fine tipped pencils are SO CRUCIAL! If the tip is fat and creamy then the brows just look solid and not very natural! They go on super thick! And I used a creamy black eyeliner ONE singular time to fill in my eyebrows…. never again! I’ll definitely post the review soon–thanks for commenting Liv! Always great to hear from you!
LikeLiked by 1 person
First of all, hot cheetos and wine sounds like a fab combo that I’m going to need to try!
Second, you look gorgeous in all your photos, but it is so cool seeing your brow progression and learning your tips! I honestly struggle with my brows because they are naturally blonde and very fine, so they are soooo hard to see. I got them professional dyed once and loved the results. Only issue is it’s expensive to do that every month. On the one hand I feel lucky that they are so pale and fine that they literally don’t need any plucking (same with my legs – I only have to shave maybe once every two months because hair just doesn’t grow). But on the other hand I want dramatic eyebrows to frame my face and look normal haha. Maybe I’ll see if L’Oreal has one of the pencils you recommend in a strawberry blonde color.
LikeLiked by 1 person
Hot Cheetos and white wine are a wonderful combo!! And thank you!! People always ask me about different brow products and since I went through so much trial and error, I thought showing the progression would be simple way to explain and help everyone visualize the differences! I know L’Oréal has a classic blonde color for the pencil I use, but I’ll definitely post the review this week and let you see for yourself!
LikeLiked by 1 person
I am so trying that combo after the race tomorrow!! And that’s awesome, I look forward to reading the review you write!
LikeLiked by 1 person
Thank you Charlotte! Lots of rest after the race!
LikeLiked by 1 person
Fantastic post! Eyebrows are so complicated. I’ve definitely committed a few sins, most notably filling them in wayyyyy too dark. Thanks again for the awesome post!
LikeLiked by 1 person
Thank you for commenting Rebecca!
LikeLiked by 1 person
My worst eyebrow moment was like 2 days ago because I let them grow freely before I did my post on eyebrow threading . Where was my BFF when I was walking around looking rather … caterpillar-ish ? Ok it wasn’t that bad but they definitely look better today !
LikeLiked by 1 person
My eyebrows look funky if I let them free grow too! I have to meticulously pluck and shape them! And I’m glad they look great now!!! Thanks for sharing, Tilly!
LikeLiked by 1 person
your eyebrows look flawles!!
LikeLiked by 1 person
Thank you so much!!!
LikeLiked by 1 person