Facial topiary is always a hot beauty topic – whether channeling the ‘Cara’ powerbrow or the less hirsute Audrey Hepburn crescent, brows can maketh the (wo)man. But when it comes to colour, the general rule has always been to go one shade darker than the hair on your head (unless you’re an 18 year old model strutting down the Marc Jacobs catwalk).
That was until celebs like Lara Stone, Kylie Jenner and Chloe Sevigny came along and showed that bleached eyebrows can in fact work off the catwalks too (to varying degrees of success we admit!). And now that Lady Gaga has spilled she bleaches her brows every day, is it time for us all to lighten up?
“Bleached brows are definitely a super-cool look but it’s not necessarily for everyone,” says make-up maestro Sonia Deveney. “If you're slightly reticent then just have them lightened a few shades in a salon but if you're game then go for it!” Here, she shares her top tips when going for gold…
Life’s a bleach…
“To avoid looking too 'alien' I would recommend that brunettes go to a salon to have their brows professionally lightened a couple of shades for a more subtle way of interpreting this trend,” says Sonia. “For blondes I would suggest using Jolen Creme Bleach (£7) as a cheap and quick alternative to do at home.”
Sonia’s easy steps to bleaching your brows:
1) Wash the area with soap and water, dry.
2) Mix together the correct amounts of the creme and accelerator/powder then cover the brow with the mixture protecting your eye with cotton wool.
3) Leave on for 2-5 minutes then remove with damp cotton wool. Wash.
“Note that your brows might turn slightly orange if you haven't left it on for long enough! If so, apply a fresh mixture and leave it on for a few more minutes. The timings also depend on your base colour, just as it would when dying your hair in a salon. Brunettes take longer to achieve a baby blonde look to someone who already has lighter hair. You can also check the colour after every 1-2 minutes to be precise.”
Go heavy
“The downside to bleaching your brows are that you'll probably need to wear a lot more eye make-up than usual and you'll also have to live through the re-growth stage after a few weeks unless you repeat the process.
My favourite bleached brow looks are on platinum blondes when teamed with super strong eye make-up for graphic eyes that really pop. Saying that, simple tonal make-up for eyes, lips and cheeks also works well with blondes who have experimented with their brows.”
WATCH: How to do sleek and straight brows…