Eyebrows 101

It's been a little while, but it's time for another edition of my 'Makeup 101' Series! As the series name suggests, in these posts I'm basically sharing all of my own tips, tricks and general advice for each particular makeup step and though it has admittedly been on a break for the past few months, today we're resuming things with all things Eyebrows (as you'll know, I'm going through this series as you would when 'conventionally' applying your makeup!)...

• Nail that shape... First of all, before you even think about applying anything - you need to get that shape down. Get yourself a pencil and line it up with the sides of your nose - that's where the front of your brow should ideally align with! Then, position it so it goes diagonally across the pupil of your eye - that's where your arch (highest point) of your brow should fall. Finally, position the pencil across the outer corner of your eye - you've found where the tail of your brow should end! It's ideally best to then keep to this shape both when/if you're shaping your brows and also when you're filling them in with product/s too.
• To pluck or not to pluck? That is of course the big question! Personally, I like to groom my brows myself and simply use some fine tweezers to pluck any strays that are growing far, far away from the mainland but I think I speak for everyone when I say - do not overpluck! If you're ever in any doubt, leave them alone and perhaps get someone else you trust or a trained professional to help you get those brows on fleek!
• Grow, grow, grow! If you maybe do go a bit overboard with the hair removal (or maybe someone else has) or perhaps you're just like me and don't really have much hair going on on your brows in the first place - there are a few things you can do to help get things growing again. You can get targeted brow growth serums/treatments/oils or even just general products such as castor oil or olive oil can work wonders - make sure you really massage and work it in to help stimulate hair growth too! Your brows do grow naturally too so just gives them a little times and you should start seeing some results...
• Pick your product(s) of choice... Ah - it's finally application time - time to pick your product/s of choice! And when it comes to that, I think it's mainly down to what type of brow your want. Want something more strong/bold/defined? A brow pomade or pencil will be your best friend. Fancy a more 'natural', bushy brow? I'd suggest a brow powder or brow gel. Or maybe - like me - you kinda want something in the middle of the two, in which case - do a mix of both! Generally, I love using a good ol' pencil to fill them in and add some much needed definition, before going over with a brow gel (typically one that's tinted and also has fibres in the formula) to set them down, add an extra layer of colour and also make my naturally-sparse brows look much fuller too!
• Choose your finish and fill 'em in! Once you've decided what type of brow your wanna go for that day, it's time to get that product on there! Obviously, depending on what format of product you're using, it's all gonna vary but generally, I guess there are a few tips 'n' tricks! Whatever you're using (powder, pomade, pencil etc.) you want to ideally apply it in feathery, upward strokes in order to give your brows that 'natural', hair-like appearance! Always remember to brush the product through both during and after application with a handy spoolie in order to ensure the products evenly distributed and there's no harsh lines! Also, whilst I'm not personally a massive fan of the full-on ombre brow, I do like to go by the classic brow 'rule' where the brow is slightly lighter and more feathery towards the front (to avoid the 'block brow' type look) and then more dense and defined towards the arch and tail. I also tend to use two different colours of my chosen product (a lighter colour for the front and a deeper one for the main body of the brow) to help achieve this too! You'll be getting your brows on fleek in no time at all...