I was amused to find a Facebook fan page called "Jack Nicholson's Eyebrows Give me Nightmares". The page is dedicated to "… all you poor souls that saw The Shining and now have recurring dreams about that godforsaken brow!"

I wondered if it was his arched brow that made him more famous than his acting. Come to think of it, over the decades, eye and brow make-up has seen a lot of prominence. Remember Mona Lisa's shaved brows? And Queen Cleopatra's over-the-top make-up? She was one woman who has historically been known for her brow styles.

Down the years, while eyebrow styles kept varying, the more natural-looking brow with a slight arch in the middle did not lose its appeal.

"That's right," says Alessia Donato, make-up artist, beauty therapist and trainer at Academy Esthetic, Dubai Healthcare City. "If eyes light up a face, brows add balance and symmetry. It is, therefore, important to pay extra attention to their shape.

Groomed to perfection

"Fashion is a changing constant and while there may be a new trend every now and then," Donato says, "I always recommend my clients to stick to what suits their facial features and skin and hair tones. The trend that will never go out of style is to have thick and perfectly groomed eyebrows a la Brooke Shields. They keep you looking young and can take years off your face. Thin, tadpole eyebrows are a fashion faux pas, not to mention unflattering to any face.

"I have seen many women overlook their eyebrows and pay so much attention to eye make-up," she says. "The problem here is, eye make-up, no matter how well applied, is a waste if paired with unkempt eyebrows."

Donato asserts the importance of talking to your therapist to share your concerns. "Explain the desired shape and insist that you do not want them overplucked."

According to her, "There are certain rules when shaping eyebrows. If you walk into a salon and there is nobody to suggest what would look good on your face, keep this in mind: If you have a round, fuller face, you can get an instant slimming effect by having slightly more angular brows, with a more defined arch. This balances the entire face and gives it more shape.

"However, if one has very sharp angular features, such as a square face, a softer eyebrow with a gentle arch balances the face and gives it a more feminine look."

Some women like to keep their brows symmetrical. "I believe eyebrows are sisters not twins," she adds. "So one brow will never look just the same as the other, unless they have been tattooed or painted."

At all times, Donato insists on keeping in mind the shape of the eyes. So if you have close-set eyes, the eyebrows should start a little further away so as not to give that "cross-eyed look". "If one has wide-set eyes," she says, "brows should begin closer to the bridge of the nose to give that illusion that the eyes are not so far apart."

She adds, "Thin are an absolute no as they give the impression of puffy eyelids and also make you look older by ten years."

Another thing Donato insists on maintaining is a relationship between the width of the forehead and your brows. "Eyebrows should begin at the innermost corners of the nostrils or the bridge of the nose and end at the corner of your eye," she says. "The highest point of the arch should be aligned with the iris of your eye. This is the simplest guideline for beginners. If one has a wide forehead, a higher arch will minimise this and vice versa, if one has a smaller forehead, then keep the arch slightly softer and not so high."

Is tweezing a better alternative?

Tweezing or plucking is known to be by far the easiest and most traditional method of shaping brows. "It does, however, take a little longer time but is great for beginners," Donato says. "You get to control exactly how much hair you want to remove in one go.

"Other methods, including waxing, require a skilled technician. But the one popular method most women prefer to opt for is threading. It is a technique using thread to pluck the unwanted hair and used primarily in the Asian and Middle Eastern regions. While it may be an effective way of shaping the brows, it can lead to irritation, redness and dryness if you already have sensitive skin."

How to tweeze

When you have chosen the shape you want to achieve, use a white eyeliner pencil to mark where you want to remove the hair, so as not to overdo the shape. Using a pair of tweezers, start removing the unwanted hair pulling in the directions of the hair growth, so as not to cut or split the hair. It is also good to trim the top of your eyebrows (if you tend to have long hairs) with small scissors and use a mascara brush to groom them. Once you have the desired shape, apply some rosewater or toner, to soothe the skin and act as an antiseptic. Make sure to avoid using creams on the area, as it is still sensitive.

Donato says: "It is a myth that you should never remove hair above the eyebrows, don't be afraid to groom that area, just make sure the majority of hair is removed from below it."

Over the decades...

Here's how the brow shape has changed over the years.

  • 1920s: This era saw very thin and straight brows. Think Josephine Baker.
  • 1930s: Thin, long and often exaggerated arches. Greta Garbo was famous for them.
  • 1940s: More natural and medium-bushy.
  • 1950s: Think Elizabeth Taylor and you will know what we mean. Eyebrows were thick and had a prominent arch right in the middle of the brow.
  • 1960s: Thick in nature and usually "designed" by brow pencils.
  • 1970s: The start of the round-edged brows but mostly natural-looking.
  • 1980s: Mostly thick and bushy. Think Brooke Shields.
  • 1990s: Natural and in conjunction with the outer brow arch.

Get the look

Whether you are a beginner or a pro, it is always advisable to carry a portable brow kit. Usually this consists of a compact with a built-in mirror, a choice of eyeshadows, brow pencil and brush, brow-holding wax and a mini tweezer. Here are some wow products for your brows:

 

  • Clarins Eyebrow Kit (Dh195)
  • Benefit Browsings (Dh148)
  • Merle Norman (Powder Brow Pencil Dh69, Natural Brow Powder Dh59, Makeup Artistry Brows #1 Brush Dh55)
  • Diego Dalla Palma (shade 102) from Beauty Bay (Dh65)

 

Expert tips

1. If in doubt about shaping correctly, go to an expert eyebrow technician and avoid any mishaps.

2. Always make sure your tweezers are sharp and of good quality and always mark where you want the hair to be removed, to avoid overplucking.

3. If you have thin eyebrows, try olive oil or castor oil to speed up the growth. It might take a while, but patience will pay off in the long run and you will have perfectly shaped eyebrows.

4. Don't forget to trim if you have long unruly hairs.

5. It is always good to use a fixing gel or clear mascara to keep them in place and give them a shiny, healthy look.

6. To keep it simple, keep a pair of sharp, good-quality tweezers handy. Talc or baby powder is useful to apply to smooth the area besides white eyeliner pencil to mark where to remove the hair, and a toner for antiseptic purposes. It's also good to have small scissors and a mini brush to comb the hair and trim if necessary.

Colouring your brows

  • The one universal colour to fill in your brows is taupe. It is a light, universal shade that works with any hair colour for brow shape. It lends a natural look to the brows and also gives your brows a subtle definition. You can always add a darker tone later on.
  • Use a brow wax or brow sealer to set the brows.
  •  Blend, blend, blend with the brow brush to get the most natural finish.

Dos and don'ts for beginners

1. Do mark the area where you want to remove the hair with a white eyeliner pencil. This acts as a guideline and prevents overplucking.

2. Remember, thin eyebrows are ageing and give you that "puffy, tired look".

3. Do not blindly ape fashion trends. Keep your eyebrows as a personal style statement. At all times, one must keep facial features in mind.

4. Don't use cream after you have removed the hair, as your pores are still dilated and could cause irritation. Use a toner or rosewater to soothe the area.

5. If your mother asks you not to overpluck, listen to her. She may have done so back in the 1970s and realised that the plucked hair never grew back.

— Ritu Raizada is a UAE-based freelance writer