Monday, April 30, 2012

How to Achieve Great Eyebrows

Earlier, I showed you some of the ways eyebrows can go wrong, so now I'll tell you both the easy and the not-quite-so-easy-way to achieve perfect eyebrows.

The easy way: have your brows waxed.  This will cost you anywhere between $10-20 per session.  My advice to you is to have your hairdresser or someone else at the salon that you'd trust your life with.  When I used to wax my brows on a regular basis, I once walked into a salon and had someone I didn't know wax them, and not only did the woman wax them too thin, I had a mass of ingrown hairs.  It took roughly six months to grow them back in correctly and get rid of the ingrowns.  Also make sure to have the same person do your brows time after time, it will cut back on mishaps.

The Sort-of-Easy-Way (Also known as the MF way): This is how I currently take care of my brows.  I used to have them waxed every two weeks, due to the fact my hair grows back in super fast.  After a while, I went through a major budgeting period where I cut back to having brows done every two months.  I would pluck the hairs, but since there were so many it'd take the better part of an evening just to get everything done.  This is when I discovered these little babies:


Noxema Eyebrow Shapers, $3, Dollar General Stores and some drugstores


These save me so much time.  I use them between my eyebrows and to shape the rest of my brows.  The only part I now pluck is that tricky little spot under the browbone in the corner of my eye next to my nose.  Accept no substitutes on these; I've tried other eyebrow shapers that didn't work anywhere as wonderfully as these do.


Personally, I find the effects from using the shapers to last almost as long as a wax.  I might get an additional 2-3 days out of a wax, but since using the shapers is so quick, cheap, and easy I just stick with them.  As a warning, the shapers can take too much off if you're not careful.


If you have to grow your brows back in:


It's not going to be pretty, but it'll be worth it.  Put the tweezers away, stay away from the strips at the salon.  If you already like the shape your brows are in, just let the hair grow back in, only plucking the hair between your brows and under the brow bone.


To fake eyebrows in the meantime use a brow pencil (I like ybf beauty's Automatic Pencil in Taupe.  Looks good on everyone, I swear) and make short little strokes, like you're drawing individual little hairs.  Next, take a little bit of face powder and apply to your pencil marks, and then go over the marks and your brows with a clear mascara or brow gel.  When you've grown in enough brow make sure to mark where you want the plucking to stop so you don't go overboard.


Not sure where exactly to start?  





This picture of the gorgeous Ms. Elizabeth Taylor is one of the best I've ever seen on the subject of eyebrows.  They're so perfect, it's slightly sickening.  This picture is also an easy way of giving a quick idea of how to shape your brows.



1 & 2: Your brows should start and end at the same place where your eyes start and end.  If you use a pencil,
put it against your nose (where I have the lines drawn) to learn where your brows should extend.
3. There should be NO hairs below the brow bone.


The height and arch should be dictated by your natural brow structure.  Some people will have a natural, classic arch while others will angle.  Go with what you naturally have and clean up as desired for the best look.


Trust me, when you realize how great your eyebrows make your face look, it will become a priority.

Blog Update

Greetings, readers and everyone else.  Exciting news, I actually updated this darn blog!  YAY ME!  But actually, here's the scoop:

About a month or so ago I had a concussion.  And thanks to some side effects of said concussion I'm currently on medical leave from my job.  This means I have roughly a month off and nothing to do.  At first, I was excited, figuring I'd finally have some time to get some craft projects and other stuff done around the house.  But I'm wrong...I'm only on day four and I'm bored outta my mind.  I tried to work in my garden, but bright sunlight makes my head hurt so there goes that idea.  I do have various craft projects I can do, but I've realized that I'm missing at least one thing for each project.  Since I'm not really going to have any income coming in, I don't want to spend what little coin I have in my Rainy Day Fund on supplies.  

What does this mean for the blog?  Updates, oh lots of updates.  Like I said, I'm bored so I've been hitting up every store website just window shopping.  I'll probably also get around to writing posts I've been meaning to for ages, such as my love/hate relationship with Vera Bradley.  

FAUX PAS: Eyebrows

It's often said that your eyebrows are the frame to your face.  This was one of the first beauty truths I learned.  Luckily for me, I inherited what I lovingly call my dad's "caveman" eyebrow.  Yes, it's a monobrow.  When I was maybe 8 or 9, I started noticing that I only had one eyebrow instead of two.  When my mom wasn't looking, I stole her razor and wacked off the patch in between in my eyes.  As you might imagine, she flipped out but then turned around and taught me how to pluck.  Ever since then, I have had two eyebrows.

However, many people don't take care of their eyebrows.  Here are some examples:


Make these a monobrow and this is eerily similar to how I looked as a child.



These are just too thin.  And the drawn on eyebrow pencil that's the wrong color?


Oh, and please never wear that much frosted pastel eyeshadow up to your brow.  Nothing screams "I still apply makeup like a thirteen year old" than too much frosted pastel shadow.




Again, too thin and penciled in wrong.  Also, eyebrows should not resemble grammatical marks.


And oy again with the pastel shadow.




The shape is good, and so is the color.  However, the pencil-in effect is too obvious.  I can't even tell if there's hair on her brows.


Thankfully, eyebrows are easy to fix and correct.  Check back at 1:00 to see how to achieve good eyebrows.

LOOKBOOK: April 30

Need a purse that is says "summer," but also says "professional?"



 Margate Satchel, J. Crew, $278


The tan leather and tailored shape makes this purse professional, while the pieced-together look give a casual, summer vibe.  It also comes in a dusty colbalt blue shade that would pair nicely with your summer wardrobe.