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Eyebrow Design
By Salome


Manicured eyebrows create a clean, definitive frame for the eyes and can make a dramatic difference in your look and overall expression. If you choose to shape them yourself follow these guidelines to get the look you�re after.

Decide what shape you want to achieve before you start tweezing. Look through magazines or on-line photo galleries and note brows you admire. Common looks are arched, flat and rounded brows, consider which shape is ideal for your features. While you can choose from a variety of designs, beauticians advise to go with the natural flow and refine the shape that already exits.

Tip: before you begin - brush your brows in place with a stiff eyebrow brush or retired tooth brush. Next use white or beige eyeliner to trace over the hairs you might tweeze. This will give the illusion that they are gone and you can practice with various looks until you like what you see.

Preperation

Once you decide on a design you are ready to begin shaping. Wash your face free of make up and do not apply lotion. Lotion can cause brow hairs to stick together and you can subsequently over pluck. Stand in front of a well lit mirror with your hair swept back. Tip: daylight is preferable.

Tools

Use a pair of tweezers that are sharp with a slanted head. When you squeeze, the head of the tweezers should close tightly together other wise it�s an ineffective tool. Use an eyebrow brush to smooth the hairs in place.

Where to Start

Always begin plucking from the nose out towards the ear. Brows are thickest closest to the nose and they will thin out accordingly that way. Typically the brow starts above the edge of your inner eye. If you need an indicator place a pencil vertically against the side of your nose up to the brow. Mark the spot with a dot of eyeliner.

Width, Length and Arch

The space between eyebrows should be the same or smaller than the width of your eye. To find your optimal brow length, hold a pencil from your nostril to the outside edge of your eye. The point that the pencil touches your brow is your perfect length. To find the highest part of the arch hold the pencil parallel to the outside edge of the iris. The first three quarters of the brow should head upward and the final quarter should head downward.

Action

Hold skin tautly above the area you will pluck. Select a hair and with a firm tug pull it out in the direction that it is growing. After plucking a few hairs stop and evaluate what you have done. Tip: avoid plucking above the brow unless you want to deal with a 5 o�clock shadow later on. If you notice redness and irritation after you�re done, rinse your face with cold water and apply a cold eye mask or wash cloth to soothe the skin. You can also apply a dab of hydrocortisone cream.

Finishing Touches

Use an eyebrow pencil or eye shadow, in a shade close to your skin tone, to define or fill in areas where the hair is sparse. To keep brows in place, sparingly comb on eyebrow gel (hair gel works as well) and smooth with an eyebrow brush. If you over pluck or are unsatisfied with your work just wait two weeks and try again. Good luck!