You’ve all been consistently helpful in so many ways and I’m hoping one of you beauty experts can help me once again.
Over the past 30+ years I’ve read every how to article and tried every product and technique I could find to “fix” my eyebrows. The main problem is that I’ve never seen anyone with my particular problem. The only thing I can think of that comes close is Mr. Spock. In fact, that is one of the cruel nicknames I was taunted with in school. Another one was “devil eyes”. Anyway my brows, before I over plucked them, were quite Spocklike. The portion above the inner corner to the middle
of my eye grows pretty much like his do, and the rest grow vertically. So, something like this ///iiiiii So, none of the hairs go in a direction where they can be smoothed with wax or gel, and it’s difficult to draw on or fill them in. Sorry, I know a picture would be helpful but I don’t have one or really know how to post one.
If you can figure out what I’m talking about, have you had any experience with such a thing? Does anyone have experience with permanent makeup / tattoos? You’d think at my age I’d be over it already but it’s sort of a goal, albeit a very small one.
I’ve reached a certain age when my eyebrows are of various colors and lengths, some vertical like you describe. I have some 4" pointy scissors I got at fabric shop for strategic trimming. They are fine enough to pick out and clip individual hairs. If I use a forefinger to wipe my eyebrows upward I can trim what hangs out with the opposite hand and they look orderly again.
From your description I’m not sure whether trimming your vertical areas could help you or not. Good luck!
I knew a woman who lost an eyebrow to a dog-bite. Once the injury healed, she had several cosmetic surgeries. The final surgery grafted skin from her pubic area to her eyebrow ridge so there would be hair.
My advice is to find a really good brow groomer and get advice/options from a professional. Most fancier hair salons have them, and there are even places especially for brows such as Perfect Brow Bar, S.H.A.P.E.S, or Benefit.
I use a small electric shaver with a 6 or 8 mm guard (I like the individual hairs longer). If any need to be trimmed back manually, I use embroidery scissors. Some of my white eyebrow hairs are taking on a life of their own lately and need to be snipped into submission more often than the regular hairs.
I don’t care for tattooed makeup, because the ink changes color over the years and can look harsh as women age. I use brow powder to fill in a couple of sparse areas. Choose one a little lighter than your eyebrow hair color.
I second the idea of going to a GOOD brow groomer. She can create a good shape, and then you can keep it up. She might have tips for handling your particular growth pattern, too.
Good idea, S Tea and G Bunny. I had toyed with the idea of seeing if someone at one of the dept. store makeup counters could help but I really need someone who specializes. I can’t imagine what they could come up with but I might be pleasantly surprised. Oh, and god, the white hairs! Like I haven’t suffered enough, now I have stiff, white mutant hairs to do deal with too :mad:
I groom brows as a side thing, and given the number of repeaters, I am good at it. You need to trim your hairs so they match with your brow line, then have the lines tidied up. It’s not a huge deal.
The basics are - take a pencil and line it up with the outer edge of your nostril, go straight up. In theory, your eyebrow should start there, using the same nostril, point it at the outside corner of your eye - your eybrow should end there. Now, the high point of your brow should be from that nostril edge through the centre of your pupil.
Before you shape, what kind of face do you have? If it’s angulr, you need a softer arch, if it’s rounder, you can go with a sharper arch. If you have wide-set eyes, you can have your eyebrows a little closer together - that’s where the art comes in. You need to keep your eyebrows as natural as possible, while shaping them to a flattering arch. If you send me a pic, I can offer more advice. Don’t pull the white hairs - get them tinted
Also - Sephora. My post-cancer friend and I were there recently and she’s having eyebrow sparsity issues. She got a free consultation (with makeup application) and recommendation on which brow product to use, so she walked out looking better to herself already, and she had the product to keep it up in her hands.
As far as tattooing, that’s come a long way in recent years. Do your research on the ones near you and go by the ones with overwhelmingly positive reviews plus no complaints to applicable agencies in your area. Some specialize in helping out post-chemo patients, and that’s where I would probably focus. I can see (I think) why you might want to go that route, as it sounds like your brows are missing their “tails” and it’s certainly easier to fill them in permanently rather than having to draw them on every day forever.
Thanks for the tutorial! I was aware of some of this but did not know, for instance, the part about what face shape goes with what brow arch (I have a fairly square jaw and high cheekbones but my face is also kind of full. Is that angular or round?) I just may take you up on your offer of sending a pic; then you’ll understand my dilemma.
If that’s the case, it’s incredibly common among women as they get older. The tails of mine are blonde to white to clear, and thin, but I’ve never had full brows anyway.
Thinning or loss of hair on the outer third of the eyebrows can also mean thyroid issues, BTW. Something to check (unless you already know you have them or have had a test lately).
Anytime. If you lived closer, I’d say come on over, but that hardly seems worth a flight (depending how important your brows are to you!). I am shocked at how many bad eyebrow shapers there are out there, so when you go, shop around. I have had to try and repair some lousy jobs. Tinting can give the illusion of fuller brows, just be careful when you wash your face (don’t scrub in the eyebrow area) and the tint will stay on the skin for longer. In over 100 eyebrows, I have seen one person I would say is a strong candidate for tattoos. Most people don’t have the patience - it can take a year - to grow in after over plucking for years.
There are also eyebrow-shaping tutorials on YouTube - lots of young women with experience who can give you an idea where to start, at least. See if you can find one with a similar-shaped face to yours, that will help.
Latisse works. I don’t know about the application of it for brows, but it definitely works on lashes. You have to be very careful when applying it, or hairs will grow willy-nilly. The medication is a derivative of glaucoma medication, so if it gets onto your eyeball with any regularity, it can lower the pressure in your eye, and it can even darken your iris. I know this because I used a glaucoma medication for a year (which ended up being unnecessary) and my I ended up with lashes growing in the inner corners of my eyes to the point I had to pluck them, and my formerly green/gold hazel eyes turned dark brown.
Also, if you stop using Latisse, lashes go back to the way they were.
As far as mascara, I think it comes down to personal preference and what you want out of it. But the drugstore mascaras that makeup artists stick in their cases are Cover Girl Lashblast, L’Oreal Voluminous, and good old Maybelline Great Lash. If you want to get fancy, I really like Make Up Forever’s mascara found at Sephora.
Rogaine also works and you can buy it without prescription. You’d just apply it with a q-tip.
I love plain old Maybelline Great Lash in the pink and green container. They have BROWN mascara (which looks great on fair-skinned, light-haired women)! If you have droopy eyelids, you probably won’t want the super-duper fiberlicious mascaras that make your eyelashes look like tarantula legs.
I put on the mascara, then go over the lashes with a CLEAN mascara wand to take off the extra and make the lashes even.
If you seem to get too much mascara on the wand, you can just wipe it off with some TP or tissue, then dip it back in the bottle and apply.
Glad to hear I’m not the only facial follicly flummoxed female here. Not that I want anyone else to suffer, I’m just glad this thread might possibly help others.
Ohmigosh, SeaDragonTattoo, it turned your green eyes dark brown?!:eek: Now *that *would piss me off.
As to Atomic Mama’s mascara query, I have the best luck with L’Oreal Voluminous (the one with the curved brush). It never seems to clump and for me, the curved brush is easier to work with and use on the outer corners and bottom lashes. Also, it probably goes without saying but if you have sparse lashes it’s best not to use waterproof.
I am shocked at how many bad eyebrow shapers there are out there, so when you go, shop around. I have had to try and repair some lousy jobs. Tinting can give the illusion of fuller brows, just be careful when you wash your face (don’t scrub in the eyebrow area) and the tint will stay on the skin for longer. In over 100 eyebrows, I have seen one person I would say is a strong candidate for tattoos. Most people don’t have the patience - it can take a year - to grow in after over plucking for years.
