When most of us hear the phrase “skinny eyebrows”, our minds immediately jump back to the trauma of the ’90s and early noughties when overplucking and redrawing our brows so they were toothpick-thin was the thing to do — and boy, do we regret it.
And now #SkinnyBrows has become TikTok’s most dividing beauty trend of the year so far, with Gen Z’s bringing back the ’90s staple, much to the dismay of millennials and Gen X-ers everywhere. There’s even a thin eyebrow filter doing the rounds for those who want to test out the trend (or give themselves a rude shock) before opting in for good.
But the skinny brows of today aren’t as bad as they sound. In fact, the trend is more about embracing your natural brow shape, colour, and texture rather than plucking half your hair out.
“We’re welcoming it back, and we have been for a while!” Fay Rezaei, senior brow artist at Royals Clinic Australia, says. “It’s minimal, playful and fun. We aren’t restricted to just one style of brows… It’s all about having your “thick” or “skinny” brows shaped correctly and having them nice and full.”
Unlike the skinny brows of decades past, the modern skinny brow doesn’t involve any thinning out. Beauty lovers, brow technicians and makeup artists alike are simply using better shaping techniques and brow products to offer a more streamlined brow line.
As Samantha Tonkin, Benefit’s National Brow Artist and Beauty Expert notes, our understanding of brow technology and shaping for the face has come a long way since the 1990s.
And for this, we can thank the art of brow mapping, a facial mapping technique that helps create the right brow shape for your face.
“Brow mapping is the most important step in any brow treatment, it creates harmony to the face,” Rezaei says. “Having them measured correctly to your facial features can make a big difference in a positive way. Having them measured incorrectly can also make a huge impact but in a negative way.”
As Tonkin notes, this technique has become an essential step for every brow treatment, showing technicians exactly where the brow should start, where the arches should sit and how long they should be. The end result is a beautifully-lifted brow that sculpts the face and frames the eyes.
To channel the skinny brow trend without thinning your brows, Rezaei recommends brow lightening or Royals Clinic Australia’s brow layout treatment.
But you can also achieve the look at home with a few essential products. Start with a strong hold brow gel, fluffing the front part of your brow (closest to your nose) upwards and sleeking the ends of the brow down and out.
For an extra-slim look, draw a thin line on the inside of the brow and then go in with the gel to create an illusion of skinny brows.
Here, our go-to products to create the perfect #SkinnyBrow.
Benefit 24 Hour Brow Setter, $45 at Adore Beauty
Anastasia Beverly Hills Brow Freeze Styling Wax, $39 at Sephora
NYX Professional Micro Brow Pencil, $17.99 at NYX Cosmetics
Kosas Air Brow Clear Lifting Treatment Gel, $33 at MECCA
Benefit Precisely, My Brow Eyebrow Pencil, $45 at Sephora
Main image credit: Getty, @kendalljenner, @parishilton
What are your thoughts on the trend? Will you be putting skinny brows to the test?
Everyone is different but I won’t be embracing this new trend, or putting it to the test.
Neither will I
Unfortunately for me I have to draw my brows in due to chemotherapy, however I’m not a fan of super thin brows and like mine a little fuller.
Same here Divine Diva. I’m finding that now I’m getting a bit of growth Benefit’s Gimme Brow works well. It’s like a mascara for eyebrows and picks up all the little fine hairs you can’t normally see.
Tbh I was never into caterpillars —- I know what suits me and I just do that
I totally agree, the right shaped brows to frame the face. The really pronounced angry bird look doesn’t look balanced to me, but I guess each to their own ❤️
Agree!
I prefer my eyebrows a little bit thicker not thin at all!!
Not for my taste, it’s a no from me.
Not a skinny eyebrow fan but understand that the current trend is not as skinny as it was back in the 90’s. I think just go with your natural look and just tidy it up. Some interesting products for eyebrows. Thanks for the article.
Haha, no. Never been into trends and love leaving my hair above eyes normal. Not bothered to removing or painting it.
As I have aged my eyebrows have got really light and if I dont add some sort of colour you can hardly see them. So have to do something
I’m so glad I have never followed any of these eyebrow trends. I just pluck mine a bit and then ignore them.
Im still trying to grow my brows thicker.
I’m happy with my brows!
Not my cup of tea.
Yay!!!! I now fit in again.
Just make the best of the type of eyebrow you have. Tidy them up – but don’t try to change them into something else.
Hear hear!
Absolutely 100% agree!!
I’ve never had thin eyebrows as i’ve never overplucked them. I think thin brows can make you look older.
They can certainly make you look permanently startled lol.
I’ve spent the last 14 years trying to grow mine back out, haha.
That sounds a lot more sensible than where I assumed this article was going.
I’ve always wished I had nice thick brows but my natural look is thin and sparse. I just deal with what I have and fill them in as best I can.
Mine are tattooed on so they aren’t changing any time soon
The cyclic nature of fashion is just so funny! I love that everything comes back around again. My brows are naturally fairly thin so definitely pleased about this one!
Haha, don’t try it at home, kids! lol. Keep them natural and you’ll be fine. I can honestly say that I don’t like the trend that has just died either, as I always felt it too contrived and ‘perfect’. Yuk for me. Keep them just as they are, and if they’re patchy, just fill them in a little. PS, I’m a Gen X. I’ve seen it all.
Not interested in trying out thinner brows
So…sensible brows following the natural shape but not overplucking – not the 90’s trend. Finally and thank goodness! It’s what I’ve always done after following my Grandmother’s advice and I’ve never had to even consider drawing my brows in.
I didn’t buy into brow trends in the 90’s and I certainly won’t be now either. Brows should be shaped to suit your face, not conform to a trend.
I’ll leave this trend to others, just plucking stray hairs is the go for me. I can appreciate the look on others though.
Not for me.
I’m never going back to that trend again… all those celebrities shown do have naturally thin brows. Not for everyone.
At least this trend is not encouraging over plucking but rather embracing your natural shape. I, however love a fuller brow as I think it frames & lifts my face.
So many wonderful products for Skinny Eyebrows, my eyebrows are very sparse towards the end of my eyebrows, one product that I have started using is L’Oreal Paris Unbelievable Brow! It really is a game changer comes with a eyebrow brush and mascara brush.
No. I don’t like the look of it
Oh no! I’m having high school flashbacks. I used to pluck the life out of my eyebrows and they were super thin.
I can’t say I like this look.
Mine are naturally thin and very pale so I have to add colour to them for them to be seen.
Ah Gen Z, constantly bringing back trends nobody wants!
My thin eyebrows are hidden under my fringe for good reason,I think mine make me look harsh as they never grew back after the damn good plucking I gave them back in the day.
Thanks to my Eastern European genes, my brows managed to recover from the ’90s/’00s relatively well – glad I won’t have to risk it again!
A silly social media trend. I have thyroid issues and every single brow hair is precious
My eyebrows are skinny already, so yay for this!!!
Please don’t follow every stupid fad, you’ll get whiplash.
I have two rogue brow hairs on my left side no matter what I try I can’t get them to lay in the right direction so that stick up! I don’t want to pluck them in case I end up with a bald spot lol.
Any beauties got a tip for me?
don’t think it would work well on me personally, but I am open to the trend working on other people.
I’d definitely go to a professional to try to achieve this.
Not for me tbh
I really don’t think skinny eyebrows are for me but I will look into these tips to see if it works.
Eyebrow shape trends don’t last very long do they? Definitely prefer the thicker/regular trend as plucking your eyebrows thins them forever (as we all know from growing up in previous decades)
I wasn’t into the thick brows trend as I have naturally skinnier brows, but I’m also not into the 90’s/00’s pencil thin brow either. I think just stick to your natural brow thickness instead of trying to chase some fad trend that might be in for a while before going out of fashion again.
I resisted this in the 90s and am not tempted!
I have never shaped my eyebrows and here’s hoping I never will.
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I like my brows when they are fuller – I use tinted brow gel to brush them into shape.
Yes skinny or drawn in isn’t so good