New Year New Brows: It’s Time To Get Technical

It’s time to get technical with our brows. We sat down with brow artist Elizabeth Farrelly to talk about reinventing your arches this new year.

Okay, without going all geometric on us, how do you design a good brow??Designing a good brow is all about understanding faces. The ideal brow will be different for each individual. However, some factors are true across the board. Symmetry is so important. Everyone has symmetry issues – one eye may be higher than the other, or perhaps your smile lifts on one side more than the other. This is very normal, and the good news is that brows are one area where we can make adjustments to these problems, thus making the whole face appear more symmetrical. This is often done by lowering the arch on one brow or perhaps adding width using tint.

What’s “in” for brows right now??For the past number of years, full brows have been where it’s at. Recently, however, we’ve noticed a move away from the ?bigger-is-better??approach, embracing a more subtle and understated shape. Straight, androgynous brows are now starting to give way to a more delicate, feminine style. There’s also a move to keeping the length in brow hairs, to achieve a soft, fluffy finish.

What do good brows do for one’s face??All our clients talk about the ‘mini-face lift? effect. Good brows can truly take years off, and a clean, sharp finish can help wake up tired eyes and deflect attention away from fine lines around the eyes and forehead. A well-blended tint will also help to brighten up the complexion, often giving the appearance of improved skin tone and helping to get rid of that washed-out look. A good shape can also take attention away from frown lines at the bridge of the nose.

Backstage at Sacai at SS17

Waxing, threading, plucking, cutting…What’s best? Trimming is absolutely essential if you have length in your brows, or if you’ve got curly hair and find they kink a little. Threading is great for removing soft, downy hairs and getting sharp lines. Tweezing is also absolutely essential for detailed, precision work right along the brow line, where every hair is precious. I (and all of us at The Brow Artist) use a combination of all the above when it comes to controlling hairs, but I don’t believe waxing is suitable for the delicate skin around the eyes, nor does it allow sufficient control of which hairs are being removed.

Colour – what are the things to consider??Colour is such an important element for great brows. At The Brow Artist, we custom-blend every brow tint from a huge range of colours, meaning each tint is bespoke to each client. Important factors to consider with tint blending are your natural colouring, an individual’s lifestyle, and what sort of make-up they normally wear. I always recommend a less-is-more approach. Choose a shade that you can build up in order to give a natural finish. While a quick colour payoff may seem great initially, it can often leave you with a harsh finish.

Your good brow heroes??The Seoige sisters have absolutely beautiful brows – they’re so lush – and we get a lot of requests for Louise Johnston-style brows – hers are pretty legendary. I think Adele’s brows are always on point. Her shape is always immaculate, and as a fellow redhead, I love to see they always choose the perfect shade of colour for her too.

What are your favourite products??RevitaBrow is a real miracle product. In my opinion, it’s the absolute best growth serum on the market today. If you’re struggling to fill out your brows or repair damaged areas, it’s an absolute must-have. In terms of brow products, I think one of the best pencils on the market is the Tom Ford Brow Sculptor. The shades available are particularly well suited to Irish colourings. The Anastasia Beverly Hills range is also excellent.

This article originally appeared in the January issue of IMAGE which is now available nationwide.