Here’s How I Get My Signature Bold, Fluffy Brows

The bigger the better.

Hannah Baxter eyebrows
(Image credit: Future)

I’ve always had big brows (thank you, Dad). Well, correction—there was a moment when I was 12 wherein I shaved off the majority of the hairs because I felt so self-conscious about their Groucho Marx status. My fellow tweens and I just didn’t appreciate the beauty of luscious eyebrows. Thankfully, after a year of rocking a pair of too-short, sperm-esque brows (‘90s babies will know what I’m talking about), the hair grew back, and I have hardly touched them since. Minimal shaping with tweezers and the occasional tinting session, either with a professional—Joey Healy and Kristie Streicher are my go-to brow gurus—or via box beard dye, are the extent of my brow maintenance routine. Trust me on this! Let them grow unencumbered, consult a professional to find a shape that fits your face and aesthetic goals, and don’t stare at your face too long in a magnifying mirror—you get pluck-happy very quickly.

That’s not to say that my brows don’t receive plenty of attention on a daily basis. Along with a tinted lip balm and plenty of mineral sunscreen, I refuse to leave the house unless they’re groomed (see above: Groucho Marx status). For my typical routine, there are a few steps I take to fill in patchy spots, extend the ends slightly, and keep the hairs upright throughout the day. So, if you’re looking for a new eyebrow routine for full, fluffy, natural-looking brows, here’s everything I swear by to add to your makeup collection.

A Perfect Pencil

This is the original, the champion, the most essential brow product to fill in and shape your arches.

A Slick Pen

If you really want to fake the look of fuller brows, nothing can compete with a longwear brow pen for a hair-like stroke.

An Easy Breezy Tinted Gel

Sometimes you just want to swipe on some volumizing color and go—that’s where a tinted gel comes to the rescue.

A Colorless Gel for a Minimalist Look

This is for the rushed, the minimal, the can’t be bothered but I still want my brows to serve. A clear brow gloss is classic and a definite must in your collection.

Don’t Forget the Highlighter

My brow routine is never complete without a swipe of highlighter along my brow bone. It adds such a pretty reflective finish and really helps your brows take center stage.

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Hannah Baxter
Beauty Director

Hannah Baxter is the Beauty Director at Marie Claire. She has previously held roles at The Zoe Report, Coveteur, and Bust Magazine, covering beauty, wellness, fashion, and lifestyle. Her writing has appeared in Harper's Bazaar, Allure, The Cut, Elle, InStyle, Glamour, Air Mail, Vogue, Architectural Digest, Byrdie, Nylon and more. She is also the founder of Anxiety Beer, a bi-monthly newsletter about the intersection of culture and mental health. In her spare time you can catch her reading too many overdue library books, thrifting, or hanging with her hairless cat, Norman. You can find her on Instagram and TikTok @hannahbaxward.