Look closely at the pictures of the woman below. Can you tell what’s different about her ‘after’ picture?
Cathryn has the same blow-dry and make-up in both photos. Yet she looks younger and more polished in the second.
The secret? Her eyebrows, which have been whipped into shape by brow expert and make-up artist Jenna Treat, ambassador for Blink Brow Bar. And what a difference it makes.
In the UK, we spend more than £2 billion a year honing our arches. Women of all ages are realising just how transformative well-shaped brows can be, softening the features and even making a face look younger and slimmer.
Make-up artist Jenna Treat removed Cathryn Smithson Whitehead’s (pictured before), 57, eyebrow patches using a brow sculpting pencil
‘From model Cara Delevingne’s “beetle” brows to the Duchess of Cambridge’s elegant look, eyebrows are now under as much scrutiny as a new haircut,’ says Jenna. Brow specialist Kamini Vaghela adds: ‘Bad brows affect how you look and feel. If a woman has a round face, I make the arch sharper; if it’s angular, I make the curve softer. The key is to keep it as thick as possible using their natural brow.’
Whether yours are over-plucked, too full or the wrong shade, you can fix them yourself. Here, Jenna transforms five women’s brows to show you how.
USE DYE TO HIDE THIN PATCHES
Cathryn Smithson Whitehead, 57, a manager, lives near Lincoln with her farmer husband Hugh, 57. They have two grown-up children.
CATHRYN SAYS: I’ve never had a complicated beauty routine and I don’t wear much make-up, other than a trusty lip balm.
But I’ve always plucked beneath my brows for tidiness — and, of all the things I miss about my youth, it’s my low maintenance, but nicely shaped, brows I long for the most.
As I’ve got older, my mousy blonde hair has gone salt and pepper and my eyebrows have become thinner.
Cathryn Smithson Whitehead (pictured after) says she was surprised by the thickness of her after brows
BROW EXPERT JENNA TREAT SAYS: This is a dramatic result and demonstrates perfectly how eyebrows can change the face. Cathryn’s brows were the same colour all the way across and almost completely invisible.
To complement her hair colour, we used a graphite-coloured tint, then tidied up the fine, unnecessary hairs — to do this, specialist Jaimineey Patel threaded around them (this method of hair removal involves using twisted cotton thread to glide across the skin, removing hairs in the process, and allows for greater control of the final brow shape).
Finally, I used a subtle, ash-toned brow-sculpting pencil to delicately create the illusion of thicker hair.
PRODUCTS: Hourglass Arch Brow Sculpting Pencil (£29, spacenk.com/uk); Benefit 3D BROWtones Eyebrow Enhancer mascara (£20, benefit cosmetics.com/uk).
CATHRYN’S VERDICT: I’m a bit thrown by my ‘after’ look — it seems very thick and bold — so it’s something I’m going to need to get used to!
MATCH BROW COLOUR TO YOUR HAIR
Julie Vollono, 56, is married to Fabio, 55. They live in London and both work as extras in film and TV.
JULIE SAYS: In the Eighties, I had full brows, as was the fashion. But then, in the Nineties, very high-shaped ones came in, so I waxed and plucked along with everyone else.
Julie Vollono, 56, (pictured before left and after right) had her eyebrows tinted for enhanced thickness
The hairs never really grew back — so now, not only are my brows sparse, but they’re fair, and I don’t know what shade they ought to be with my grey hair.
I’ve tried everything — even tattooing on hairs in my 40s, but I ended up with a horrible, drawn-on brown line.
JENNA SAYS: The obvious solution for Julie was a grey tint. People are wary about tints as, historically, a tinted brow was a generic dark brown. But times have changed: they can be subtle and only take a few minutes. I suggest having a professional tint, as it’s affordable (about £14, salons nationwide). If you are doing it at home, try to incorporate all the hair — even the outskirts of the actual brow — when you apply the dye. This will boost thickness, and you can always pluck stray hairs from the edges.
Brow colour needs to be sympathetic to your root colour, so if you have grey hair, ensure your brows are at least a taupe or a graphite tone. Nowadays, brands offer a far greater range of at-home shades.
Once Julie’s tint was done, I used a soft, grey pencil to thicken the brows, drawing fine, feathery strokes to mimic hairs.
PRODUCTS: Refectocil Graphite 1.1 Eyelash and Eyebrow Tint (£7.36, amazon.co.uk); Jasmine Mogra Brow Pencil (£13, blinkbrowbar.com).
JULIE’S VERDICT: Wow! I’m thrilled. My face looks younger and my eyes bigger.
GET YOUR ARCH SHAPE RIGHT
Chantelle Znideric, 39, is a personal stylist. Married to Hayden, 44, a marketing agency owner, they have two children aged six and four.
CHANTELLE SAYS: I think eyebrow fashion does us all a disservice. My eyebrows have always been angular, but I foolishly started plucking them aged just 11 — this has left me with high, pointed brows, which won’t grow any thicker.
I still pluck beneath my brows, so they look tidy, but don’t touch them on top.
Chantelle Znideric, 39, (pictured before left and after right) had her eyebrows filled using brow powder to correct her arch
When I cut my hair three years ago, I wanted a change, as it made my eyebrows look even more pointy.
But I’m scared of such techniques as microblading [a method of applying semi-permanent make-up].
JENNA SAYS: Chantelle’s face is stunning, but the false and overly pointed arch is ageing. The arch of your eyebrow should lie naturally over the brow bone, with the highest point about three-quarters of the way across from the top of your nose.
Many people tweeze only from the bottom, rather than the top, thus creating an exaggerated arch. In Chantelle’s case, her arch needed attention from above. Do not try this at home, however — you need an expert to do it first! Threading just above Chantelle’s arch softened the pointy effect.
I then used a soft, black brow powder to fill in underneath and create softer lines, rather than emphasise the triangular shape.
PRODUCTS: Blink Brow Bar Brow Powder (£15, blinkbrowbar.com); Benefit Precisely, My Brow Pencil (£20, feelunique.com).
CHANTELLE’S VERDICT: I am over the moon with the soft shape and, even better, I think it will be an easy look to recreate.
SYMMETRY IS EVERYTHING
Janet Quirke, 46, works in social housing. She is married to Jim, 48, who has a sign firm. They live in Luton with their children, aged 13, 11 and seven.
JANET SAYS: I used to get my brows done every month, having them plucked into whatever shape was trendy — but then, they stopped growing and never grew back. There are some dark patches, but they’re not in the right place. The rest is uneven.
Janet Quirke, 46 (pictured before left and after right) had her facial symmetry restored using a brow cream
I’ve tried lots of products, but they’re never right. I also have a droopy eye and wonder if better brows might detract from it.
JENNA SAYS: No one’s eyebrows are identical. In Janet’s case, we needed to work on the front of her brows, near her nose, where they looked heavy, making the rest appear thin and uneven.
I plucked below the thickest part, at the start of the brow, to create a tapered look, then removed minimal hair above her higher brow and just below her lower brow. The result: thicker-looking, symmetrical brows.
Filling in uneven brows in the same way creates balance. A light-toned pencil applied with fine strokes worked a treat.
PRODUCTS: Eylure Fleur de Force Brow Define Light (£12, Boots); Eylure Brow Paint Brow Cream (£5.96, superdrug.com).
JANET’S VERDICT: Two weeks on and they still look fantastic.
DON’T BE TOO BIG AND BOLD
Aida Ghazlan, 22, works in marketing and lives in London.
AIDA SAYS: As a teenager, I used to over-pluck my eyebrows. When I look back at photographs of myself, I’m horrified.
They did grow back, but are terribly patchy.
So when the trend for very thick eyebrows — like those of model Cara Delevingne — came in, I cursed myself for having plucked so much.
Aida Ghazlan, 22, (pictured before left and after right) had her eyebrows softened using a brow gel
Now, I wouldn’t leave the house without drawing them on and filling them in. I hate the sight of them ‘naked’.
JENNA SAYS: Aida is a stunning girl, and the trend for a heavily drawn-on brow is often ageing and can look too severe.
I started by removing all of her make-up and tweezed a few stray hairs here and there to add softness.
I then camouflaged the patchiness using a light, buildable brow sculpt. This is a cream shadow that can be layered or stippled on to create a backdrop for an already beautiful brow.
Aida needed far less product than she thought.
A brow gel is the perfect finishing touch, as it smooths down rogue hairs and adds a light touch of colour.
PRODUCTS: By Terry Crayon Sourcils Terrybly (£24, spacenk.com/uk); Eyeko Brow Gel (£18, eyeko.com).
AIDA’S VERDICT: I really like my new brows — they’re softer and natural. I’m going to try to maintain this look.