Most beauty trends are easy to try: You can swipe on some hot pink lipstick and wipe it off if you hate it; you can manipulate your hair into a pin-straight style or beachy waves with the flick of a flatiron. But, when it comes to one of the hottest trends right now -- thick eyebrows -- you either have them or you don't.
Back in the 90s, bushy brows were the enemy, and we tweezed 'em nearly naked. I was in high school at the time, and I remember splurging on a pair of Tweezerman tweezers so I could more accurately shape my brows into thin, Linda Evangelista-like lines. Sure, it looked great back then (or so I thought), but now many of us are left with residual puny brows that simply refuse to grow back.
In the years that followed, strategic powder and gel were enough to fake fuller brows. Then, in 2011, model Arizona Muse arrived on the scene, and suddenly every makeup artist in the world declared that big, bold brows were the ultimate must-have. And, sorry sister, there's no pencil in the world that can give you Muse's Groucho Marx-like look.
Since so many of us from the over-tweezed era needed help, an entirely new category of beauty products was born: eyebrow growth treatments. The options range from topical serums to supplements, but reviews have been mixed -- and results largely depend on how much damage you've inflicted on your hair follicles over the years. We tried many of them ourselves, and we turned to other beauty editors, experts, and Total Beauty readers for more recommendations.
With most of these treatments, the biggest problem is time -- and patience -- since it takes weeks of regular use to see a difference. So if you're willing to commit, read on to find out which eyebrow growth product is worth investing both your time -- and money -- on.
When I interviewed brow guru Malynda Vigliotti for The Great Celebrity Eyebrow Swap, I complained to her that my own brows seemed stunted. Even if I avoided tweezers and wax for months, the regrowth was minimal -- just a few random strays nowhere near my brows. "Have you tried Latisse?" she asked casually. I hadn't, mainly because it's prescription and for growing eyelashes, not brows, but I made a mental note to get my hands on some.
A few weeks later I serendipitously received a Latisse sample from a dermatologist. I began applying it -- just one drop per brow -- every night. Within a month, I noticed some significant growth: Baby hairs were sprouting up around my eyebrows. They're finer than my regular brow hairs, but they're definitely there and my brows look fuller overall.
Unfortunately, the results you get from Latisse don't last -- you only get the growth while you're using the product. So if I want to keep my new, thicker brows, I have to keep using the products. (I'm happy enough with the results that I definitely will.) Also, the website specifies that the product is not FDA approved for eyebrow use -- although the manufacturer knows that patients have had success using it for brows. My guess is that we'll be seeing Latisse for brows sometime soon.
Countless brow experts recommend Rogaine -- the five percent Minoxidil version, applied with a Q-tip -- to help regrow brows. Unlike Latisse, you have to use it twice a day, and it might be six months before you see results. While I personally never had the patience to try it for that long, I know more than one editor who swears by this treatment. Since it's designed to prevent hair loss, it's probably better suited for someone who already has a good amount of hair but wants to hold onto it longer, rather than someone with barely-there brows.
One of my editor friends has been taking Viviscal for a few months, and she's thrilled with the results. Her original goal was longer, thicker hair, but she's found that the growth isn't only on her head -- she now needs to shave her legs and tweeze her brows twice as often as before. It's a bummer for her legs, but great for her skimpy brows.
This supplement contains a combination of marine proteins, acerola cherry (an antioxidant), and horsetail extract, a form of silica -- all of which are good for promoting healthy hair growth and hydrated follicles.
Brow guru Anastasia Soare developed her own product to condition brows and prevent breakage. The serum contains peptides, vitamins, and botanical extracts -- and it feels cool and soothing when you put it on. "I purchased this product and in a couple weeks noticed regrowth of the area," one TotalBeauty.com reviewer writes. "I now use it to maintain brow fullness and shape."
Most beauty trends are easy to try: You can swipe on some hot pink lipstick and wipe it off if you hate it; you can manipulate your hair into a pin-straight style or beachy waves with the flick of a flatiron. But, when it comes to one of the hottest trends right now -- thick eyebrows -- you either have them or you don't.
Back in the 90s, bushy brows were the enemy, and we tweezed 'em nearly naked. I was in high school at the time, and I remember splurging on a pair of Tweezerman tweezers so I could more accurately shape my brows into thin, Linda Evangelista-like lines. Sure, it looked great back then (or so I thought), but now many of us are left with residual puny brows that simply refuse to grow back.
In the years that followed, strategic powder and gel were enough to fake fuller brows. Then, in 2011, model Arizona Muse arrived on the scene, and suddenly every makeup artist in the world declared that big, bold brows were the ultimate must-have. And, sorry sister, there's no pencil in the world that can give you Muse's Groucho Marx-like look.
Since so many of us from the over-tweezed era needed help, an entirely new category of beauty products was born: eyebrow growth treatments. The options range from topical serums to supplements, but reviews have been mixed -- and results largely depend on how much damage you've inflicted on your hair follicles over the years. We tried many of them ourselves, and we turned to other beauty editors, experts, and Total Beauty readers for more recommendations.
With most of these treatments, the biggest problem is time -- and patience -- since it takes weeks of regular use to see a difference. So if you're willing to commit, read on to find out which eyebrow growth product is worth investing both your time -- and money -- on.
