When it comes to successfully framing your eyes, there is truly no substitute for well-shaped eyebrows. Today, we’re going to walk you through how you can shape your eyebrows like the total boss you are.

Eyebrows are important because they can entirely alter the look of the face.

Brows work to refine your overall look, give balance to your face, and can even alter the way your face shape is perceived.

You get the point: a set of beautiful brows is well worth the time and energy it takes to curate them. But remember, we’re not trying to achieve perfectly symmetrical brows -- your brows should be sisters rather than twins.

We’ll break down what tools you’ll need, how to figure out where your arch is (and beyond), and finally, give you a play-by-play of how to tweeze.

What Tools Will I Need?

Before you get started, we suggest that you lay out all of your brow tools on a flat, easy-to-reach surface like a table or countertop. Trust us, when you get into a groove of working on your eyebrows, you’re not going to want to waste time looking for anything!

Tweezers

The first tool that you should pull from your beauty bag for well-groomed eyebrows is a pair of tweezers. This will be the main tool you use when you’re in the process of shaping your brows.

Tweezing sometimes gets a bad reputation because it seems complicated or even painful. And let’s face it: some of us are afraid to tweeze after unfortunately over-tweezing our brows during the thin brow trend. We’re here to debunk those myths and tell you that the more you do it, the easier it gets. We even have some tips for you that we’ll share later, so stay tuned!

Pro tip: Take some alcohol to clean your tweezers every so often when you’re working away — tweezers can get bogged down with oil from the skin and lose their firm grip. If you wipe the tips of the tweezers in alcohol, voila! Problem solved.

A Thin Eyebrow Pencil

Believe us when we say this: a thin eyebrow pencil is an absolute essential to shape your eyebrows.

A thin eyebrow pencil offers a precise, easy-to-use way to add definition to your brows. Our Frame Your Face™ Micro Brow Pencil is designed to enhance your natural brows by filling in sparse spots and mimicking real hairs.<product>1</product>

Eyebrow pencils are one of the least intimidating ways to shape your eyebrows, and they’re also one of the most effective. Trust us: once you try this, your eyebrow pencil will become a mainstay in your beauty bag.

A Spoolie

A spoolie brush is equipped with short, wiry, fine bristles. It’s especially helpful for combing your brows and helping to gently direct the hairs. If you get a good eyebrow pencil, sometimes you’ll score a spoolie brush attached on the other end (like our very own micro brow pencil mentioned above!).

Pressure Scissors

Last but certainly not least, we have our pressure scissors. These can help you gently trim your eyebrows if need be.

Important Note: These are different from the traditional mini scissors you might already have in your beauty bag for other tasks, and since you’re working so close to your face and eyes, it’s worth investing in a good pair. You can also look for a pair of scissors that describe themselves as being specifically for brows -- either work.

How Do I Determine My Starting Point?

Now that we’ve dissected our list of must-have tools, let’s get started with the actual shaping. The first thing you have to do is determine your starting point.

Here’s a great rule of thumb when you’re figuring out where to start your fresh, refined brows: they should be directly in line with the inner corner of your eye. From there, it should feather in just ⅛ of an inch towards the center.

This is really as far in as you should go when it comes to starting your brows. When in doubt, it’s always better to leave more hair initially and go back and pluck the extra away than it is to take too much off and regret it later.

Where is My Arch?

Trust us: defining your arch is going to make you feel totally glam. In order to find yours, you’re going to need a little help from your trusty eyebrow pencil. Take the pencil and place it next to your nostril at a 45-degree angle. Yes, go past your pupil and across the brow.

See where the pencil hits your eyebrow? Your arch should be right outside of that. Ta-da! It’s that simple.

From there, you can tweeze appropriately.

Remember: Follow your eyes’ natural shape -- there’s no need to make sharp arches if you naturally have softer ones.

Where Should My Eyebrow End?

Follow a diagonal line all the way from the outside of your nose and extend it to the outer corner of your eye. This is a foolproof way to find where your brows should taper off.

Choosing the correct place for your brows to end is essential because it makes your face appear proportionate. You paid attention to where your brow should start, don’t forget about where it ends!

How Should I Draw the Shape?

We recommend working with what you already have to frame your face. That’s why we believe in such a thin pencil!

It allows you to have oh-so-much control over your brows and will also allow you to have a hands-on approach. Instead of focusing on drawing a shape to your brows, focus on filling in your natural shape.

How Do I Tweeze?

Now we’ve reached the fun part: let’s walk through the process of tweezing those beautiful brows of yours!

Brush Up Your Hairs

The first thing you should do -- and be sure to not skip this step! -- is to brush up your eyebrow hairs. Missing this step is a common mistake, but including it can make all the difference.

To do this, take your spoolie brush and gently brush up your eyebrow hairs. You’ll notice that there are a few sticking up and standing out. Those are the hairs you want to target.

Trim The Front

You should always, always start by trimming the front. Work in sections so you don’t get overwhelmed. Start small towards the front of your brows and cut on a downward angle; a straight cut is too harsh. Be sure to trim one hair at a time to avoid cutting anything you didn’t intend to.

Double Check Your Alignment

When you start to get towards the middle of your eyebrow, where you’re going to want to form the arch, make sure you’re aligned. This is important because you can avoid a mess by simply taking a second to look in the mirror and reflect on your work.

Once you’re sure you’re aligned, you can continue with your trimming -- including where you’re going to put your arch.

Hold the Skin Tight

Now, it’s officially time to start plucking your stray eyebrow hair. We suggest holding the skin taut so that you can get an accurate, defined look. Still, you should never pull or tug at your skin -- that will ruin the shape. Be gentle, and be sure to hold your skin the same way on both eyes.

Pluck in the Direction Your Hair is Growing

Finally, an important tip! Pluck your eyebrows in the direction they’re growing and you’ll find it’s much, much easier -- not to mention less painful. This is a good rule of thumb whenever you’re removing hair from your face, whether it be eyebrow hair or even the occasional chin hair.

Conclusion

Curating your eyebrows is an exciting part of your eye routine. While it can seem intimidating at first to tackle this yourself, we promise you that it’s easier than it may look.

And of course, if you trim away too many hairs at first, simply fill in the blanks with your pencil until the hairs grow in. We know you’ll do an amazing job!