Tamara HinsonHigh brow beauty
Desperate to avoid the dreaded Scousebrow? Here’s how!
Sadly, the closing months of 2011 were dominated by a trend we’d much rather forget: the Scousebrow.
Pioneered by the perma-tanned creatures from Desperate Scousewives (and most recently, TOWIE’s Lauren Goodger), the Scousebrow is a timely reminder of how important our eyebrows are when it comes to defining the rest of our face.
When it comes to avoiding the Scousebrow, the key is to avoid over plucking, which can lead to overuse of waxy eyebrow pencils to fill in the gaps. “Leave the actual shaping of the brow to a pro,” suggests Benefit’s in house eyebrow expert Lisa Potter Dixon.
“Never tweeze near the actual shape of the brow: just take any excess hairs from below or above the brow and from the middle. Always remember your brows are sisters not twins - they'll never be completely equal, but you can get them pretty perfect by using the right products to fill, define and blend.”
[See also: How to determine your eyebrow shape]
While certain beauty blunders are excusable, the wrong eyebrow shape can have a disastrous effect on the rest of our face. “Over plucking or uneven, incorrect plucking will result in a bad shape that doesn’t suit you,” warns Shavata, renowned eyebrow expert and founder of Shavata Brow Studios.
“Your eyebrow shape can and will make or break your face. It’s the biggest single common mistake that I see.”
Brow beaters
If you can’t resist some at-home maintenance, facialist and brow buff Vaishaly recommends focusing on the underside of the brow.
“Try to tweeze every single downy or fluffy hair beneath the brows,” she advises. “This will bring the attention to the brows and eyes. When you’re near the brow line, tweeze hairs row by row, producing a sharp line from the front of the eyebrow, going up into the arch, towards the end. Then, trim eyebrows to make them look more groomed and less heavy.
Do this by brushing the eyebrows up, and trim only the tip of the hairs.
Remember the hairs have to drop back in shape, so it's vital not to trim the hairs too short as this will produce a gap in the brows.”
Easy on the eye(brow pencil)
Often those with a Scousebrow are simply guilty of trying to cover up past mistakes with thick slicks of waxy colour. Whilst the bad news is that undoing the damage by over plucking can be tricky, the correct use of eyebrow pencils and powders can certainly make a world of difference.
“Unfortunately for some, badly shaped eyebrows may never regain their natural look so it’s essential that you use a pencil or shadow that matches your natural colour,” says Shavata.
“Gently fill in your brows, following the shape of your arch. When using a pencil the colour can be harsh, so comb your brows through with a brow brush and comb to remove any harsh lines and keep your eyebrows looking as natural as possible. Natural is the key word this season: caterpillar-like eyebrows have never been en vogue and never will be!’’
