How to fix thin eyebrows
While some of us sport a cruel reminder that at some time in our lives, we wildly over-plucked our eyebrows, others find that with age comes a lack of hair where you want it and an abundance where you don't. Either way, there's no need to put up with sparse eyebrows. After all, if eyes are the window to the soul, eyebrows are the window frames. Or maybe the curtain rails...we're not sure, but, anyway, they're important.
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What can I do if my eyebrows are too thin?
Suffice to say there are plenty of options available to you, ranging in cost, pain threshold and time and resources needed. We've rounded them all up for you here:
1) Brow makeup
If your eyebrows are more patchy than non-existent, a good brow product, be it pencil, pomade or gel, should help you out. Two that stand head and shoulders above the rest are Benefit's Ka-Brow!, and Anastasia Dip Brow from Anastasia Beverley Hills. The former is a sort of cream-gel brow mascara, that you brush through to feign a thicker, fuller appearance.
The second product is a little pot of pomade, famed the UK and US over for its eyebrow-enhancing effects. The great thing about this wonderful stuff is that it comes in a multitude of colours, so you'll be hard pressed not to find a shade to match your brows. Use a small angled brush and tiny strokes to apply this and it'll stay in place all day, as it's also a primer - good news if you have oily skin that sees your makeup slide off come lunchtime, bad news if you're a novice when it comes to filling in your eyebrows, as mistakes are harder to erase.
Lastly, it's impossible to talk about brow products without mentioning the faithful old pencil. Another Anastasia product, the Brow Wiz pencil helps you perfect your eyebrow shape and has a brush on the other end to soften the effect of your dainty pencil strokes.
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2) Eyebrow serums
If you'd really just like to give your thin brows a bit of a boost rather than a full on regeneration, a growth serum, used in conjunction with brow makeup during the day, might be just the thing - provided you use the right one. Traditionally, they don't make the hair grow longer, but condition it to create a denser appearance.
When looking for a serum, you need to make sure that these two ingredients are included: peptides and biotin. Without this dream team, your brows won't get very far. When applying the serum, really work it into the roots of your brows, to stimulate the follicles and promote new growth. Rapid Brow, which is widely available in the UK, contains those peptides and the necessary keratin to deliver real results - just be aware that it might take a couple of months.
It's worth noting that Benefit also have a brow conditioning pen (called Browvo - aren't Benefit product names the best?), which contains keratin and soy proteins for encouraging growth.
3) The best products for thin eyebrows
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| Guerlain Brow Kit | Glossier Brow Gel |
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"Though expensive, it lasts for ages. I fill mine in with the little brush and highlight for structure." |
Frame your face with the holy grail of brows - it thickens, fills and grooms all at once! |
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Buy: £34, John Lewis |
Buy: £14, Glossier |
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| Benefit Gimme Brow | Revlon Color Stay Brow Mousse |
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The tiny microfibres in this product create a natural-looking fullness and definition. A popular buy, indeed! |
This tinted moose - available in numerous shades - defines brows for up to 24 hours! |
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Buy: £20.50, Debenhams |
Buy: £7.99, Boots |
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| Anastasia Tinted Brow Gel | L'Oreal Brow Plumper |
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A must-have for sparse brows, this natural-looking, firm-hold gel will leave you looking sleek in seconds. |
Plump and intensify your brows with perfect precision. Cara Delevingne, eat your heart out! |
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Buy: £23, Cult Beauty |
Buy: £6.99, Boots |
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| Eylure Brow Dye Kit | Full Brow Serum |
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"Using a dye kit gives the illusion of fuller brows. Well, that's what I think!" |
This all-natural, vegan serum, containing coffee, lavender and more, is designed to condition brows and boost colour. |
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Buy: £7.49, Superdrug |
Buy: £15, Free People |
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| Grande Brow | Rapid Brow Enhancing Serum |
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No more faking brow hair with this clinically-proven brow-boosting serum. Results in 6-8 weeks. |
Promote brow hair growth with this serum packed with fortifying ingredients said to work their magic in 60 days. |
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Buy: £39.99, Amazon |
Buy: £37, Boots |
4) Eyebrow tinting
Cheap, quick and easy, this method is great for adding fullness to light or patchy brows, and you'll often walk out of a salon less than £10 lighter! Results last for up to six weeks, and you can choose how dark you want to go, though the beautician will often advise you on this subject. As a bonus, this is one treatment that can easily be fitted into a lunch break as well. Don't be alarmed by the Groucho Marx-like effect while the dye is working its magic - it will wash off and you'll be left with perfect brows.
Alternatively, it's easy enough to dye your own eyebrows using a kit. The Eylure Brow Tint kit is especially simple to use, and the results last up to six weeks.
5) Microblading
Provided you choose the right aesthetician, this process could just change your life. Not as terrifying as it sounds, microblading is probably the most advanced and up-to-date technique for filling in sparse eyebrows for an appreciable length of time. Using, as the name suggests, a very small blade, the technician draws fine hair-like strokes on the brows, embedding a pigment under the skin and mimicking the natural appearance of your eyebrows. As a semi-permanent solution, the results should stay put for up to three years, though you may need a touch up or two within that time.
The microblading technique is fast growing in popularity, now outstripping tattooing as the most natural, realistic way to achieve fuller eyebrows. While tattooing recreates the pencilled-in look, microblading is the most realistic recreation of eyebrow hair you can get. The cost of the treatment will vary, but expect to pay around £300-£400 for the first session, with a quick touch up a few weeks later. And if that sounds expensive...imagine waking up with perfect eyebrows for the next three years.
Join the lively brow-centric conversation over on our forums. You're sure to find some useful tips and have few laughs whilst you're at it!
Images: Shutterstock