I have always had dark, unruly eyebrows. When I was younger, I was embarrassed of the “caterpillars” above my eyes. But as I’ve gotten older, I’ve learned to appreciate my brows and what they do for my face.
That doesn’t mean I let them go natural. It’s a look that may work for some people, but I’m definitely not one of them: I let mine grow wild and I start looking like a cross between Mr. Bean and Frida Kahlo. Luckily, there are several eyebrow-shaping options (like tweezing, waxing, or threading) available to us bushy browed ladies (and gents).
Personally, I prefer threading. I’ve been threading my eyebrows for years now (Or rather, someone else has been threading my eyebrows) and it’s opened up my entire face. For those of you not familiar with this process, it’s a time worn method of hair removal that involves twisting a piece of thread into a double strand and skimming it over stray hairs. In doing this, the thread plucks the hair out directly from the follicle (much like tweezing). And you can thread almost anywhere you have hair (I’ve even had stray hairs in my bikini area threaded—Ouch!). Unlike waxing, the top layer of skin is not disturbed, making threading a great option for anyone with sensitive skin. Unfortunately, there’s still a chance you might experience minor skin irritation and/or ingrown hairs. But the biggest downside for me is that it’s painful. Not more so than waxing, but I have to ask myself: is it worth it?
Threading is perfect for getting those little stray hairs and a clean brow line. But I always end up in tears. We all know that age old expression: Beauty is pain, but I think Renoir (a master of beauty himself) said it best: “The pain passes, but the beauty remains.”
The truth is that eyebrows can dramatically change your facial appearance. So while it may hurt a bit, “the beauty remains” (for three to four weeks--dang).
Have you tried threading? Did you like the results?
Comments (53)
I should try threading! I might actually get it doen next week when I go ge ta haircut.
I've always tweezed my eyebrows since they're not bushy at all, and there are a few stray hairs here and there, but threading sounds like a better idea since itll last longer...
ive threaded my brows before, i prefer the tweezer though. the string was sorta cutting into my skin :| but i guess if you have a pro do it for you then it should be great!
@silskezz@xanga - were you able to do your own threading?
i still need to try threading.
@biancaelder - yes i was. it takes practice though. yay for youtube!
i always thread my eyebrows =]
Threading's really a great option for sensitive skin, as you said. I've had it done a few times, and my eyes water like crazy while I'm getting it done. Not from pain or anything, I'm not sure why. It's a bit embarassing though, but the end result gives me beautiful eyebrows for a month!
My friend got her eyebrows threaded and she got all cut up right before prom. It was pretty awful. Everyone I know who got it dont does not like it and has gotten cut up or they did a really bad job. Im not willing to try it. I like getting mine waxed.
@kyan - eesshh...I didn't know that could happen! I've always had really good experiences with threading (besides the tears)...
@silskezz@xanga - i've watched those videos too, but I wouldn't trust myself to do a good job---i'm definitely not coordinated enough
@biancaelder - lol i suppose. but for just cleaning around it's good, it gets every hair!
i just tweeze and trim once in a while. my eyebrows are so coarse i'm at a loss of what to do with them... i shape them to the best of my ability and then leave them alone. i guess it's better than overplucking/trimming/etc
I went to youtube after reading this and watched a video by eily311 on threading. It looked so simple I couldn't believe that was the process I'd been reading about in magazines the past few years.
I was able to do it on the second try and I think I'm going to switch to threading my brows from now on. It's so much faster than plucking! (Personally I think it hurts a bit more than plucking because rather than the pain of one hair at a time you're plucking several in rapid succession. )
I'm going to watch videos about threading on YouTube now.
i thread my upper lips. and it's not very pain, it's quite bearable.
I've gotten my eyebrows threaded professionally and I've threaded them myself. I find it more painful than tweezing and I don't have much eyebrow area to work with, so I prefer to tweeze. I think if I had thicker eyebrows I'd like threading better though.
threading is pointless. i rather use tweezers. more precise and less painful.
i tweeze and trim my brows at home. i've never had wild eyebrows so it's not neccessary to spend money on them.
I just pluck
ok. how many posts have there been on how people do their eyebrows?
I like threading. I thread & pluck.
I don't even touch my eyebrows and no one says I should. I guess I'm lucky.
:]
Tho I'm sure they could use a little touch up
I pluck away the longer hairs and I thread the rest.
I always do threading, at college it's killing me cause I don't know who to go too
I've had threading done twice. The first time I promised I would never get it done again. I did, about 4 or 5 years later, and I loved the way my eyebrows were shaped! It is painful, yes, but not as much as waxing. Plus, you have so much more control over the way you want your brows done. It's great for making a sharp arch.
Other then that, to maintain the look, I usually pluck. I haven't got them waxing in a while now.