Eyebrows exist in all sorts of shapes and sizes. If you don’t have any eyebrows anymore, this is actually the perfect moment to try out all the different looks! I’ve personally done that, with mixed results ? But if you prefer to stick to the original ones as much as possible, then look for a good picture of yourself with the eyebrows you’re used to. If you already know you’re going to be bald (due to chemotherapy, for example), then take a close-up picture of yourself in advance! Having that picture can help enormously when drawing your eyebrows.
If you’re just starting to draw your eyebrows, it can be really nice to use an eyebrow template. You can buy them in all sorts of shapes, you just need to fill them in. That way, you can be sure that they’ll be the same shape and size on both sides. There are also handy tattoo stickers available and they look quite nice, but those only work if you really don’t have any hair left, otherwise they don’t stick properly. I’ve used them often myself.
If you want to draw them yourself, then you need to decide on the height, width and thickness of your eyebrows. With the first two options, there are strict beauty rules, with the last option, it’s about personal taste.
Where does your eyebrow start and where does it end? The answer to this is just a matter of measuring. Take a ruler or a pencil and place it from your nostril up via the corner of your eye. This is the line where your eyebrow starts. Now place the ruler from your nostril to the outside of your eye: the inside of this line is where your eyebrow ends - not before and definitely not after! Finally, place the ruler from your nostril along the outside of your pupil (while looking straight ahead): this is the line where your eyebrow reaches the highest point. Draw a dot on these three places, this will help you draw it on. You can decide for yourself how round or angular you want to make your eyebrow. That’s just a matter of taste.
This was by far the hardest part for me: deciding on the height. If you don’t have any hair left at all, you don’t have anything to go by, so how are you supposed to know where to place them? Draw your eyebrows too high and it’ll look like you’re constantly surprised or scared - or worse : arrogant. That’s how I walked around for nine months. That’s nog something you want! Fortunately, this can be measured too: the distance between your eye and your eyebrow should be about the same as the size of your eye.
Now that you’ve figured out the width and the height, you can get creative again. How thick you draw your eyebrows is completely up to you! I used to draw mine quite thick for a while, but nowadays I make them a bit thinner. Everything is possible, do what you like!
Because the colors of wigs tend to be cooler than those of real hair, the color of most eyebrow products doesn’t match hairpieces. That means that it can be quite a struggle to find a color that matches your hairpiece perfectly. I personally find most eyebrow makeup too matte if I’m wearing a wig. So if I come across a new product, I have to try it. Very expensive, but then I came up with the idea of using eyeliner with my darker wigs. That color is closer to what it should be. Plus, it allows me to draw really fine lines.
Brow pen by Anastasia
Brow definer by Anastasia
Matte signature by L'Oreal
Brow Microfilling Pen by benefit
Goof Proof Brow Pen by Benefit
Shape & Shade by MAC
Fill & Fluff Eyebrow Pomade Pencil by NYX
If you click on the name of the product, it will take you right to the website where you can buy it.
Pomade by Anastasia
Angled cut by Anastasia
If you click on the name of the product, it will take you right to the website where you can buy it.
Drawing your eyebrows well is quite an art. So don’t expect to get it right the first time or to be able to draw them on quickly just before leaving the house. Do yourself a favor and dedicate an afternoon to it. Allow yourself the time to try different kinds of things. That way, drawing your eyebrows will be something fun and creative rather than something that frustrates you in the morning.
The biggest advantage of having your eyebrows tattooed is that you always wake up with eyebrows on in the morning. A huge plus for me. But it is something you have to think about carefully before you do it; sadly, I didn’t do that the first time. That’s how someone convinced me that eyebrows ‘aren’t twins but sister’, as they said there (barf) and so you should never tattoo them exactly the same way. It didn’t feel right at the time, but I thought to myself ‘they probably know best’. This resulted in me never being truly happy with the result. I do like symmetry. Looking back, I should have at least asked them to show me what they would look like so I could think about it at ease when I was at home. I would also never go for really thick eyebrows again, because making them thicker is a lot easier than concealing them (which I ended up doing almost every day). In the end I was so done with those eyebrows that I’m having most of it removed with laser treatments. Expensive, excruciating and such a waste. Moral of the story: don’t be afraid to say what you like, go for a subtle, timeless shape and look for an experienced professional. And even then, tattooing and microblading (this is a semi-permanent solution) are a long shot for people with Alopecia. Alopecia skin reacts to ink differently than normal skin, which means you can never really anticipate what the color will look like. But if it goes well, that’s one less thing to worry about.
