Power Brows
Gone are the days of pencil-thin, razor-sharp arches; for the past several seasons, the runways have been lush with full, beautifully groomed brows. During the spring 2012 collections, wow-brows were spotted at Joseph Altuzarra, Christian Dior, Naeem Khan and Derek Lam, just to name a few.
A well-defined top line isn’t just trendy – it’s also a time-saver. By paying close attention to the contour of your arches and creating a stouter silhouette, you can actually cut down on cosmetics like mascara and eyeliner. That’s because big, bold brows better frame your eyes and promote a put-together appearance. As my editor recently said, polished brows just make a girl feel pretty.
After seeing more than a few beauteous brows sashay down the catwalks in Paris, New York and Milan, I then read over on Design Mom that they can actually stop growing after a certain age. My brows are thin enough as it is, thank you very much, so I checked in with Debra Jaliman, MD, author of Skin Rules: Trade Secrets from a Top New York Dermatologist, to confirm or deny this dreadful rumor. Unfortunately, “Like everything else, hair growth slows down as we age, so that’s why you may notice that your eyebrows are thinner,” she says.
If your arches generally tend towards the anemic, consider stoking their growth with Latisse, a prescription-only treatment that Jaliman says encourages new sprouts in about four months. For a shorter-term fix, I’m a big fan of Talika’s Eyebrow Extender ($35), a tinted gel with itty-bitty micro-fibers that cling to brows to temporarily beef them up. A like-colored brow powder also works wonders for filling in sparse spots; rely on an angled shadow brush to apply the powder in small feathering strokes for the most natural effect.
For tips on sculpting your newly bushy arches, check out our how-to guide. It’s all about respecting the curves of your eye contour to create the most flattering shape.
Photo courtesy of CND