The Mascara Monologues: Tutorial Tuesday: How to Fill in Brows

One the most often neglected areas on your face can be your brows. Perhaps you don't have them regularly shaped, you have too much, or not enough hair, or you just don't like the shape of your brows. Despite the current status of your brows, it is important not to ignore them when applying a full face of makeup.
I am a firm believer in strong brows, but what ever your preference for your face-shape and style, embrace what you have (or have created) and showcase them as a part of your daily makeup routine. I'm not saying you should Chola it up like I jokingly did in the picture above, but you should fill in and shape what ya got! You wouldn't believe the difference a little shaping and filling in will make even on days that you are otherwise wearing little to no makeup. One of my biggest pet peeves is a woman who bangs out an amazing makeup look, but leaves her poor little puny brows looking less than stellar.
You have to figure out which style of brow works best for you. Whether they are thin and arched, straight and full, or anywhere in between, find what works best for your face shape and enhance it! I am no expert, for the best advice on brow shaping check out your best friend Google. Here are the must haves for beautiful brows no matter the shape you decide on:

1. A small angled brush: My absolute favorite is the MAC 266. This brush makes brows a breeze for me, but you could easily use a cheaper brand of your preference. As long as it is thin, angled, and stiff, you should have success.

2. Brow powder or a matte eyeshadow: Now you can get a perfect brow using a brow pencil. However, I feel that powder brow products are much more forgiving, natural, and easy to work with. I use an eyeshadow made by L'Oreal simply because it is the perfect color for me, but plenty of companies make brow products designed specifically for brows if you prefer. Make sure that your brow powder is one to two shades lighter than your actual brow color if you have dark brows. And two or so shades darker if you have pale or blonde brows. For example, my actual brow hairs are jet black. But to avoid looking like the gorgeous pictured I opened this post with, I use a dark brown powder instead of black.

3. A spoolie or small brush: This smooths out the color you applied and ensures that your application is blended and flawless making the powder virtually undetectable.

4. A great highlighter: Everyone could use a little lift to their brow, regardless of your age. It brightens your eyes, lifts your lid, and the contrast against your brow color really makes the work you just put in to your brow really pop. You choose if you want a shimmer or matte, just make sure it is light and well blended. My favorite matte highlight is Wet n Wild Brulee, and my current favorite shimmer is Urban Decay Booty call.

As far as application of your product, check out my YouTube tutorial on filling in brows