How To: Shape and Groom Your Eyebrows

Keeping unruly brows in check require constant grooming so today, I am going to cover the five different ways to do it.

#1 Tweezing
The easiest and most common way, tweezing involves using a pair of tweezers to pluck the whole hair, including the follicle. Always use a pair of tweezers that is sharp enough (I LOVE Tweezerman!), pull the skin taut and then pull in the direction the hair is growing.


#2 Waxing
Waxing involves spreading a thin layer of wax over the skin, pressing a cloth or paper strip over it and ripping it off in a quick movement against the direction of hair growth. This removes the wax along with the hair and dead skin cells leaving the skin smooth. Waxing also provides the most long-lasting results. In most cases, hair will not grow back from three to eight weeks. Constant waxing will also result in hair that grows back softer. However, pain is definitely the biggest drawback and waxing can cause redness on sensitive skin.


#3 Trimming
Another way to groom your eyebrows is by trimming. Brush the hair upwards with a spoolie and use a pair of trimming scissors like KAI Eyebrow Scissors to cut off the “excess”. This is a relatively easy and most painless method but may be difficult on areas that require more precision.


#4 Threading
Threading is an ancient method used in Asia and should be left to the pros. It involves using a 100% cotton thread and twisting the hair to pull out a whole row of hair from the follicle. It might hurt a little but is less irritable to your skin compared to tweezing and waxing. Read about my threading experience here.


#5 Shaving
Shaving is one of the most popular methods in Japan where girls would shave off the entire end and fill them in with pencils. While this method is quick and pain-free, I personally do not recommend doing this because looking eyebrow-less when you do not have makeup on is not so hot. Instead, I recommend shaving under the brow to get rid of strays.


How I Groom My Eyebrows
Since each method has its pros and cons, I like to alternate between trimming, tweezing and shaving. I have had my eyebrows threaded before and while I loved the results, my eyes are too sensitive and I can never stop crying whenever I get it done.

What about the shape? It all depends on the look you are going for. Thick, dark eyebrows tend to give off a stronger look. Thin brows with high archs will make you look older and bushy eyebrows tend to make people look younger. If you have a round face, you might want a more pronounced arch; on the other hand, if your face tends to be more angular, try to soften your look by keeping your eyebrows “rounder”. I would also recommend keeping your natural shape and plucking only stray hairs. Super thin, over-pluck eyebrows are sooooo out.