We loved New York Fashion Week’s attention-grabbing beauty trends like burgundy lips and messy halo braids. But in the midst of all the big, bold looks for this fall, there was one beauty product that was conspicuously absent on many of the runways: mascara. DKNY, Lacoste, 3.1 Phillip Lim, and several other shows featured models with clean lashes that drew attention away from the eyes and instead focused it on features like flawless skin or pouty lips. We admittedly feel a bit naked without a quick swipe of mascara before heading out the door, but this new modern look has us considering leaving the makeup bag staple behind and trying something different.
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When done well, a perfectly shaped and filled in eyebrow can highlight your features and draw attention to your eyes. The trouble is, it’s no easy feat whipping a set of unruly or barely there brows into shape. Luckily, we asked brow guru Sania Vucetaj, the owner of Sania’s Brow Bar in New York, to tell us how to score sleek arches, no matter what you’re starting with.
Consider this your go-to guide on how to fix the most common brow conundrums.
–Ally
Draw attention to your now-perfect arches with Sumita’s Brow Base & Bright.
You could say Melanie Allen knows a thing or two about good hair. As the Marketing Manager and Content Editor of My Best Friend’s Hair—which helps readers find awesome stylists, salons and products—Melanie is particularly knowledgeable about all things ‘do. That’s why this week she’s giving us the scoop on salon etiquette, growing out your bangs, and more.
My eyebrows have always been my biggest beauty struggle. My brows are thick, unruly, and downright hard to manage, and I’ve tried it all when it comes to keeping them in check. Here are my favorite tips, tricks, and products to tame even the wildest of brows (and if it works for me, it will work for anyone!).
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We fell hard for Natalie Alcala last fall, when the LA-based writer and blogger spent a week guest blogging for us. In fact, we loved her posts so much that we asked her to be a contributing editor. In addition to blogging for us once a week, she’ll also be writing for the Birchbox Magazine and keeping us up to speed on all things fashion, beauty, and fun.
We’ve been lusting after Camilla Belle’s eye-catching brows for years. (Photo: Getty Images)
Besides brilliant braids, the hottest trend on the West Coast these days is a bold brow. From Camilla Belle’s flawless arches on the red carpet (pictured) to Demi Lovato’s ever-evolving shape on X-Factor, Hollywood has totally gone Brooke Shields—and I like it.
If you find yourself in L.A., here’s a roundup of the best brow bars for every budget.
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If you haven’t heard of the online comedy series SRSLY (pronounced “seriously”) yet, let us be the proud first folks to introduce you. If you have heard of it, then you’ll know why we love the two brilliant NYU and Upright Citizen Brigade alumnae behind it. Alexandra Fiber and Danielle Gibson’s short, snappy videos are loosely based on their 20-something lives in New York. The hilarious moments adeptly touch on experiences that many of us have every day. All this week, they’re sharing their beauty inspirations in their typical witty style.
We SRSLY girls take our eyebrows, uh, seriously. We’ve been through the traumatic teenage years of late-’90s over-pluckage, but no more! Nowadays, we can’t get enough of eye-framing brows. Here’s who we look to for brow-spiration on the regular:
(Photo: fanpop.com)
Lily Collins: Lily might’ve played Snow White in a film, but even in real life her brows are dark as night and super covetable. She makes us want to break out our darkest brow powder and never. stop. applying.
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Based in Washington D.C., Ayren Jackson-Cannady is so savvy that we wished she lived closer to NYC so that we could swap products with her. This beauty writer knows what’s up (she’s written for Fitness, Glamour, and Gloss Daily) and we’re excited to have her sharing her know-how and multi-culti beauty expertise as a contributing editor.
(Photo: thisismink.com)
I’ve never really been the type to pursue a brow trend. The brows I have are the brows I have—why mess with something that works, right? But, I’ve been intrigued by one specific look for fall: the lightened brow as seen at Gucci and Rag & Bone. Not only is it statement-making, but it softens the face and there’s no plucking involved!
“Permanently lightening one’s brows is best achieved with the aid of a professional,” says eyebrow specialist Joey Healy. “But, there is an alternative to going lighter for commitment-phobes.” Here are two ways to tone down your arches temporarily.
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Water cooler talk at Birchbox is a little out of the ordinary: we’re just as likely to have a ten minute cross-cubicle conversation about kohl liner as we are about the finer points of startup strategy. Case in point? A marketing meeting I was recently in suddenly morphed into a discussion about eyebrow grooming techniques. Here’s what I learned about a few of my fellow team members and how they keep their brows looking bold, groomed, and fabulous:
Staffer: Alta
Style: Medium, manicured brows
Maintenance technique of choice: Waxing
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Elizabeth Taylor’s gorgeous brows have always captivated us. (Photo: justbaustralia.com.au)
Bold brows, à la Elizabeth Taylor, have been a growing trend in the last year or so, culminating in extra-bold versions on the Fall runways last season. (Bedazzled brows at Chanel, anyone?) It seems that now the trend has made it into the everyday world, because the New York Times is reporting that a growing number of women are using permanent cosmetic procedures to amp up their arches.
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We’ve got plenty of personalities on the Birchbox staff, but Rachel L. may top them all. Today, the fab brand team manager rolled into the office with perfectly filled in, shaded brows and announced, “Bold brows for a bold day!” We agree. She used her trusty Anastasia Brow Wiz pencil to get the look.
Watch our brow pencil video tutorial to learn how to shape your brows like a pro.
Today’s Birchbox beauty role model: Ally, one of our Operations all-stars. The minute she walked in this morning, we knew something was different but we couldn’t figure it out until she clued us in: she’d penciled in her normally light brows with Anastasia’s Brow Wiz in Brunette. That simple step made her look gorgeously polished. It didn’t hurt that she’s also rocking Laura Geller’s Spackle Primer and Stila’s Custom Color Blush.
Learn how to get face-framing brows with our video.
