Eyebrow Razors, Tweezers and the Brow Gel That Finishes the Job

Dal LaMagna started Tweezerman in 1980, and by 1982 the company was selling the slant tip tweezer that most of us now own some version of. For a long time tweezing was simply how brows got done at home. The eyebrow razor has changed that. It is faster, it does not pinch, and it handles the soft fuzz around the brows that tweezers struggle to grab. The two work best together, and a good gel finishes the job.

The razors first. Sephora Collection's 4 Piece Facial Razor Set gives you small, light blades, an easy way to try the technique without committing. Their Metal Facial Razor is the sturdier version, with a metal handle that feels steadier in the hand. DERMAFLASH's sonic dermaplaning device is a bigger tool, made for the whole face and peach fuzz, with a gently vibrating edge.

If an open blade makes you nervous, the electric trimmers are gentler. TOUCHBeauty's Portable Electric Eyebrow Trimmer is pen shaped and easy to steer around the arch, and their Mini Compact Facial Hair Remover is a small shaver for the upper lip and chin. Pursonic's Perfect Precision trimmer handles brows and facial hair in one.

Whatever you use, work on clean, dry skin, hold the skin taut with your other hand, and make short, light strokes in the direction the hair grows. Map the shape with a pencil first, so you only remove what sits clearly outside the line.

A razor clears the fuzz around the brow. Tweezers are still the tool for individual stray hairs, especially the ones between the brows and in the arch, where a blade can easily take off too much.

Tweezerman's Pink Perfection is the slant tip tweezer in pink, and the slanted edge is what makes it so easy to use: it grips a single short hair right at the root. Anastasia Beverly Hills's slant tip tweezers are stainless steel and precise, and Pursonic's Salon Grade slant tip tweezer is a simple one to keep in a travel bag.

Brushes do the quiet work. Brush the hairs up with a spoolie before you remove anything, and you will see which ones are actually too long rather than simply out of place. Anastasia Beverly Hills's Scissors are small and made for brows, so snip only the tips that extend above the line after brushing up. Benefit's dual-ended angled brush and spoolie, Patrick Ta's Dual-Ended Brow Brush and Makeup by Mario's E7 Dual-Ended Eyebrow Brush all pair an angled brush for powder or pomade with a spoolie for blending.

Tweeze after a warm shower, when hair slides out more easily, and pull in the direction of growth. Step back from the mirror every few hairs. A magnifying mirror is useful, but it makes it very easy to take too much, so look at both brows together at a normal distance before each pluck.

Once the shape is clean, the finishing products are what make brows look full and groomed rather than just tidied.

Gels hold hairs in place. ILIA's In Frame gel is clear, for brows that already have good color. Kosas's Air Brow is tinted and volumizing, and Milk Makeup's KUSH Fiber gel has fibers that cling to the hairs and make sparse brows look thicker. Rare Beauty's Brow Harmony is a lifting and laminating gel, the one for the brushed-up look that stays up all day.

Pencils fill gaps. Benefit's Precisely, My Brow pencil has a micro fine tip for drawing hair-like strokes, and it is waterproof. Hourglass's Arch pencil is a sculpting pencil, and Patrick Ta's Major Brow pencil is for defining the shape. Urban Decay's Brow Blade has a pen at one end and a waterproof pencil at the other, so you can draw strokes and then fill.

Pick a pencil a shade lighter than your brow hair if your hair is dark, and a shade darker if you are very blonde. Draw light strokes in the direction of growth, then brush through with the spoolie so nothing looks drawn on.

What I would skip: shaving above the brow. The top line is what frames the eye, and taking it down makes brows look lower and heavier. Clean up underneath and between, and leave the top alone except for obvious strays. I would also skip any blade on skin that is sunburned, broken out or freshly treated with a retinoid, where it can nick or irritate. Wait a few days.

Brows grow back slowly, and it takes a few weeks to see the real shape after a big change. Go slower than you want to, take a little from both sides, and stop to check. If you overdo one side, fill it in with pencil and let the hair grow for a few weeks before you try again.

Clean razors and tweezers with alcohol after each use, and replace small blades often, since a dull edge drags and irritates. Store tweezers with a cap on the tip. Keeping it covered is the easiest way to keep a slant tip sharp for years, and a sharp tip is what makes tweezing quick. A tidy brow routine, done this way, takes about five minutes on a Sunday.