Strong eyebrows ala Brooke Shields have been making their way down the runway, as illustrated best at Yigal Azroul, where Bobbi Brown makeup artist Wendi Rowe actually used Long-Wear Gel Eyeliner to create the bold look. I wouldn’t recommend that at home, lest you want to look like Anne Bancroft in Great Expectations, so here are a few user-friendly suggestions for making the most of your brows.

GROW
I made the mistake of over-tweezing my brows in high school, back when thin arches were in and I was not savvy enough to get a proper waxing. I’ve been paying the price ever since. But here’s a little tip: lash rejuvenating serums work on brows, too! I’ve been using Revitalash for the past year, at the behest of my brow girl Leah Simon-Clarke, and slowly but surely my brows have returned. Bonus: Revitalash is currently 50 percent off at drugstore.com

SHAPE
Using a skinny blonde pencil, lightly trace brows in the shape you’re trying to achieve. I love Origins Fill in the Blanks because It’s a very neutral shade, thin enough to fake hairs where none exist, and it comes with a spoolie for handy combing. Starting with a waxy pencil also gives brow powder (below) something to grab on to.

SHADE
This tiny palette, the MAC Brow Shader, is one of the best purchases I’ve ever made. I know you’re looking at that taupey shade wondering how it could possibly be dark enough for your brown eyebrows, but it is! See, you don’t want to match the color of your brow, you want to match the shadow the hairs create on your skin within your brows. And that creamy color? That’s a fabulous highlighter for brow bones, the corner of your eyes, etc. So clever! But for some crazy reason MAC has discontinued this perfect product. Now the only place I can find it is this random website. The good news is that it lasts FOREVER.

SET
MAC Brow Set in Clear has been getting lots of play on this blog, and for good reason! It’s cheap, easy-to-use, and keeps brows in place. Which is essential when you are trying to manipulate them into something they naturally aren’t. Clear mascara also works in a pinch, but tends to flake once it dries.

FOR EMERGENCIES
For truly bare spots or if I’m going for a really defined brow (for evening, photos,etc.), I bring in the big guns. Anastasia’s Brow Pen is like a semi-permanent magic marker. The color is darker than the aforementioned prods, but it’s the only thing that can literally create brow hair out of thin air and last all day.

Filed Under: Anastasia brow pen, Extrados, eyebrows, Leah Simon-Clarke, MAC brow set, MAC Brow Shader, New York Fashion Week, Origins Fill in the Blanks, revitalash, trends