eyebrow makeup

Eyebrow makeup is used to enhance the brows, whether yours are full, but slightly asymmetrical, sparse, or unruly. Depending on the product or combination of products you choose, such as a pencil, gel, powder, pomade, pen, or mousse, you’ll be able to shape, define, fill, and hold brow hairs in place. Choose from our Express Brow Shaping Pencil, Super Lock Brow Glue, Express Brow Duo Pencil & Powder, TattooStudio Brow Tint Pen, and Superfluff Volumizing Mousse. But, it’s not just your arches that will be looking good when you tend to them; eyebrow makeup actually affects the whole makeup look, enhancing facial symmetry, expression, and framing of the eyes.

You choose the right eyebrow product by deciding what your eyebrows need, for instance, are they unruly and need to be tamed? Or are they patchy and could benefit from being filled in? Once you decide what you need, you’ll be better able to choose the right eyebrow product. Here’s the rundown of the different types of products: eyebrow pencil, tinted and clear eyebrow gel, powder, pomade (which you apply with a stiff, angled brush), pen, and mousse. 

Eyebrow gels like our Super Lock Brow Glue are the best options for beginners and/or those looking to sculpt and tame eyebrows fast. Bonus: they’re pretty easy and intuitive to use and come in a range of shades that will match your brow color, or you can opt for a clear version should you not want to add any pigment to your brows and simply want to groom them and keep them in place. 

Eyebrow pencils require a bit more know-how, but can be mastered quickly with a little practice. Two important things to note: 1) always keep the pencil tip super-sharp and 2) never draw one continuous line along the brow—stroke the pencil onto brows to mimic tiny, individual hairs. This rule pretty much applies to all brow products—but especially pencils. They’re pretty forgiving and leave more of a natural, soft finish than a super sharp and defined one. If you require more filling, though, try a brow powder. Our Express Brow 2-In-1 Pencil and Powder has both a pencil and a powder, so you can define and fill with just one product!  

Brow pens are similar to pencils, but are usually more pigmented and long-wearing, giving you the ability to sculpt your brows into shape. Our Build a Brow 2-in-1 Brow Pen and Sealing Gel is great for someone who wants to fill in sparse spots by creating small, hair-like strokes, then set the actual brow hairs for all-day hold. 

Eyebrow pomades require a bit more practice and time to learn and perfect. But when used right, they have the ability to transform eyebrows from overplucked to full, giving a feathery fullness that feels natural. If you use a heavy hand, you can get more of a bold look, should that be what you’re going for. 

Brow Mousse, like our Superfluff, is light and airy and allows you to achieve a soft, fluffy appearance. If you already like the way your brows look and wish they just had a little more volume, this is the one for you.

The best eyebrow product for a beginner is a clear brow gel because you really can’t mess it up– all you’re doing is brushing brow hairs into place and setting them. When you add some color, that’s when things start to get a little more challenging, but a pencil or tinted gel is a nice foray into eyebrow makeup and grooming. A pencil is a good choice if you have gaps that you want to fill in and create a more defined shape, but a tinted gel is what you need if you just want to darken your existing brow hairs or tame hairs that may be a bit unruly.

You choose the best shade of eyebrow product based on your natural brow color. If you have light-colored eyebrow hair, fill them in a shade or two darker than your natural color to make them stand out more. If you have dark or black brows, you can choose your exact match for a bolder look, or go the opposite way, and fill in with a shade lighter than your natural color for a subtler approach.

Yes, eyebrow makeup can be used on graying brows; in fact, filling in your brows is a great way to get a more youthful look. Because brow hairs naturally become more sparse as we age, and gray hairs are more difficult to see, it’s super helpful to incorporate an eyebrow product that will help to darken and fill. Just make sure to stick to ashy or neutral tones for a more natural look on gray or silver brows.

The type of eyebrow product you should use for sparse brows should be able to add definition and buildable pigment. We recommend a fine-tip pencil like Express Brow Shaping Pencil for detailing, a brow pen like TattooStudio Brow Tint Pen– which actually has a three-pronged tip that allows you to create the most realistic hair-like strokes– and a brow gel such as Super Lock Brow Glue, or mousse like Superfluff for thickening after you fill in with your pencil or pen.

You should use brow makeup after foundation, ensuring precision and cleaner lines for the most symmetrical and sharpest brows. Applying foundation or concealer after could lead to accidentally smudging or dulling your brow work.

Many of Maybelline’s brow formulas are waterproof and sweatproof. If you are looking for formulas that will withstand sweat and humidity, try our Super Lock Brow Glue, Build a Brow 2-in-1 Brow Pen and Sealing Gel, and TattooStudio Brow Pomade, all of which offer 24 hours of wear, or for even longer wear, our TattooStudio Waterproof Brow Pencil lasts up to 36 hours.

Eyebrow gel is similar to hair gel in that it’s used to groom the hairs into place and hold them there, leaving a polished look behind. Eyebrow gel comes in a range of shades and will impart some pigment to darken brows, or can be dabbed on the skin to fill in sparse areas, should you not want to fill them in with another product first. Eyebrow gel also comes in clear if all you’re wanting is to shape and set your brows, maybe after already filling them in with a pen, pencil, or pomade. It comes with a handy mascara-like spoolie that you simply run through the hairs to keep them in place. They’re especially helpful if you’re a newbie or you’re in a rush, as they’re pretty forgiving. And you don’t have to break the bank– our Express Brow Fast Sculpt Brow Mascara and Super Lock Brow Glue are under $12.

Brow sculpting is a term for shaping and taming your eyebrows in a way that best suits your face. You can sculpt your brows with a brow mascara, gel, or pomade– really any brow product that holds brow hairs in place. There's no one right way to do it, but it can involve outlining, filling, lifting, or defining the arches. Brow mascaras, like Brow Fast Sculpt Gel Brow Mascara, are the most beginner-friendly and are easy to adjust if you make any mistakes, while pomades, like Brow Pomade Long Lasting Buildable Eyebrow Makeup, are more advanced and, depending on how you apply them, can allow you to achieve natural or bold, defined brows.

How you do your eyebrows will depend on what look you’re going for, but the first thing you’ll want to do, regardless of how natural or bold you want to go, is to brush the hairs with a clean spoolie– this will allow you to identify any patchy areas that may need some filling in. Refer to our brief step-by-step instructions below or check out our brow makeup tutorial for a more in-depth guide.

1. Groom: Brush the hairs up and out, maybe even trimming them should they be really long and out of hand. If you don’t feel comfortable snipping with a tiny brow scissor, though, you can always just brush the hairs over to disguise their length.
2. Outline: Using a pen or a pencil, you can start to define spots like the front of the brow and the tail, creating sharper lines that serve as an outline.
3. Fill: With your outline created and hair brushed up, you’ll be able to fill in areas of sparseness. Use a light hand if you want a natural look, and make short, feathery, hair-like strokes.
4. Blend: If you want a hazy, fluffier look, you can use a pigmented powder, pomade, or mousse that lays the color down without much definition.
5. Set: Eyebrow gel will lock everything into place, including all of the other brow products that you may have used in the previous steps. For a more low-maintenance, yet polished look, you can skip the steps above and just go straight to your brow gel.

To shade your eyebrows, the idea is to make them appear as natural as possible, which calls for using multiple shades of eyebrow products. Because eyebrow hairs are naturally made up of hairs with slightly different tones, we recommend incorporating a lighter and darker shade of your eyebrow product. For example, use a blonde eyebrow pencil and a dark blonde eyebrow pencil if you have blonde brows. Go in with one to make your hair-like strokes and follow with the other, so there are multiple, alternating strokes. For the best, most blended appearance, brush brows with a spoolie after you’ve created your faux hairs. This will subtly blur the lines and leave them looking more realistic. We also recommend starting at the center of your brow, where the arches are, and then working your way to the tail, finishing with the head of the brows last. Brows are naturally stronger and shapelier at the front, and tend to fade out past the arches. So, when you clean up and shade the outer halves, you might find that you don't even need to apply much makeup to the front.

You use brow pomade with an angled sculpting brush, creating an outline of your ideal eyebrow shape. Then, fill in the brow shape with pomade, going lightly with color. Remember, you can always go back and add more later, but it's hard to take pigment away without starting from scratch. Finally—blend using the spoolie end of an eyebrow brush.

How often you should replace your brow makeup products depends on the product type. Pencils and powders have a longer shelf life, lasting one to two years, since their formulas are on the drier side. While gels, creams, and mousses need to be swapped out sooner, in as little as three to six months. These are just general guidelines, though, and there are signs to look out for that would require you to replace your brow product sooner, such as smell, color, or texture changes, which signal a product that may be expired. It’s also important to keep your products clean, which means never sharing them with anyone else and doing what you can to keep them sanitary. For instance, storing them in a moderate, dry temperature and cleaning the tools you use with them. A pencil can be easily wiped down with an alcohol pad and a brush can be cleaned with soap, but other formulas aren’t as easy to sanitize, so it’s wise to do your best to keep them uncontaminated, meaning tightly sealed when you’re not using them.

Maybelline New York eyebrow makeup products can be purchased at mass market retailers, drugstores, and supermarkets nationwide. To locate a specific brow product, head to maybelline.com and click on the product you are interested in. Find the one you are looking to purchase and select it. You will have a choice to buy from our online retailers, or you can enter your zip code in the FIND IN STORE field to find stores in your area that have your product in stock.