Anyone who lived through the ’90s knows how hard it is to bring thin eyebrows back to life after over-tweezing and over-plucking. But even though bushy brows are all the rage, you could still be ruining your brows unknowingly. It’s time to put down the tweezers, consider seeking professional help, and maybe even cancel that microblading appointment. Read on to discover what experts say is secretly ruining your brows and how you can get them in shape.
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One of the biggest mistakes you can make is getting rid of too much brow hair, because at some point, it might not come back. Co-founder of NUELE hair treatment serum Christine Martey-Ochola, MD, explains that over-tweezing, waxing, or laser hair removal can cause permanent hair loss. “One thing people don’t often take into stock is that they may want their eyebrow hair back at a certain point,” Martey-Ochola says. “Continuously plucking off hair causes the hair follicles to experience micro-injury which results in micro-inflammation, pain, and with time, no hair will grow from the areas that have been ‘over plucked.'”
Maybe you can’t help but to tweeze in-between appointments, or every time you do your own brows you get a little of control. But when you’re over-tweezing, it’s easy to accidentally cause patchiness or thinning brows. Brittany Lo, makeup artist and founder of Beia Beauty explains that once eyebrow hairs are pulled out, “you can fill them in with a brow pencil, but ultimately you have to wait at least a few weeks for them to grow back and it’s harder to fill them in when they are very thin.” Even if it’s tempting, try not to tweeze too much.
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If you fill in your brows with products, it’s important to be gentle. “It’s less about the product and more about the application,” explains Lo. She compares putting products on brows to lashes, which could make them break or fall out if it’s too harsh. “When you’re applying pencil or product to the brows, it’s important that you’re gentle so you don’t tug on the hairs, which can cause them to break.”
Terri Bryant, celebrity makeup artist and founder of GUIDE BEAUTY agrees that using the wrong kind of makeup on brows can cause problems. “Pressing and tugging can damage the hair follicles and cause fall out,” Bryant tells us. “It’s important to choose quality brow products that are well pigmented and can be applied with a light hand.” It can be easy to pick up a brown gel or pencil at the drugstore, but make sure the product isn’t too harsh on the hairs.
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If you’ve always done your brows on your own, it might be time to seek professional help. “To keep your brows in shape it’s always best to go to a professional,” says Bryant. It’s easier for someone with a different vantage point to shape your brows. Bryant explains that the problem is a loss of perspective while looking in a magnifying mirror and attempting to tweeze your own eyebrows. “When you’re too close, it’s hard to assess which hairs should stay and which should go, so it’s easy to overdo it,” Bryant warns. “It only takes a few pulled hairs to throw off your shape.” Anyone who’s spent a bit too much time in front of their makeup mirror knows it only takes a moment to make brows unrecognizable.
But be sure to not make your appointment immediately after plucking, says Bryant. “Give your brows time to recover. As hard as it is, it’s best to leave brows alone for a couple months before going to a professional to get them back in shape.”
Microblading can be tempting if you feel like you’ve ruined your brows. By tattooing brows back on, they’ll appear perfect everyday. But Martey-Ochola, warns the process “causes micro-abrasions in the eyebrow region, and for months spaces that would have had hair follicles are now filled with dye.” Once you decide to grow back your brows, it might be hard if the hair follicles are damaged.
If you feel like you’ve ruined your brows with over tweezing, you can still get them back to normal. Lo advises using an eyelash serum to strengthen the hairs and make them look full again.
Martey-Ochola suggests letting brows come back naturally and using NUELE’s Brow Serum “to provide the follicles and eyebrow skin with antioxidants, vitamins, minerals, nutrients, and moisturizers that are beneficial to the eyebrow hair.” The brow serum helps thicken hair and makes them more manageable and soft.
