Many women overlook an important aspect of their beauty routine, either because they just
don’t realize the impact it can have, or because they don’t have a clue how to proceed. I’m talking, of course, about shaping the eyebrows.
I’ve been bombarded with questions from many different women about shaping their eyebrows and
I realize there could be a dozen different looks on a dozen different women. However, there are really only about four basic shapes for
eyebrow styling: arched, angled, curved, and flat. The rest of the variations are a matter of taste and individual need.
In order to get great looking brows, there are some simple steps to follow:
Step One: Separate and Shape
When it comes to eyebrows, a common problem is a sparse (or sometimes not so sparse) path of
hairs that connects the two eyebrows, and forms a uni-brow effect. Separating the eyebrows is a simple matter of tweezing or shaving the
hairs between the eyebrows in order to remove it.
Typically the eyebrows should extend from the inner corner of the eye to approximately
one-quarter inch beyond the outer corner of the eye. If you use a straight edge of some sort (a ruler, slip of paper, etc.) you can lay
the edge along the line of the lower lid to line up the outer corner of the lower lid and the side of the nose, the line will extend to
the point at which the eyebrows should end. This is also the point at which most brows naturally end, give or take a small amount.
As for shaping the brows, the simplest method is plucking the excess hairs. This can be done using
adhesive strips, hair removal wax, or tweezing. The easiest method is obviously the adhesive strips, since the shape desired can be cut
from the strips and used to remove only the hairs that you don’t want.
The basic shapes of brows are angled, arched, curved and flat and they each have a purpose
and are suited to certain facial types:
Arched: Arched brows are the ideal, generally, and are great for those women
who have exceptionally thick brows that ride low along the brow ridge. The arched brow helps to open up the appearance of the eyes and
give a more alert, bright-eyed look. The arch shape is actually a combination of the angled and curved styles and is characterized by
an upward angle from the inner corner of the eye to approximately two-thirds distance, and finishing with a curve downward along the outside.
Angled: The angled brow is noted for a sharp angle upward from the inner
corner of the eye, and a downward angle toward the outer edge. Angled brows are great for those women who have rounder or wider facial
features. This style helps to create a more vertical line in the appearance of the face, for a slimming look. It is also great for
closer-set eyes in order to draw the focus to the outside.
