My tadpole definition: when a women goes Tweezerman-crazy & over-plucks her brows to the point of almost no return. It’s when the brow is shaped exactly like a little, tiny tadpole— & it sucks ass.
This weirdo description came to me circa 2009, while watching The Bachelor. Half the girls who were desperately vying/drooling/bawling for the final rose ( naturally it was the most shocking season yet- GASP! ) had tadpole shaped brows.
I mean, hello?!!! I searched the show, frantically, for more of a groomed caterpillar brow. And to my dismay, it was slimmmmm pickings!
I literally can’t stand tadpoles. They take away from the beauty of every girl’s face; usually they’re over-done, over-plucked, & just sick!
Brows are my thing. I get them done at least once a month by one of the above two ladies ( Claire and Lindsay ) & lemme tell ya- these babes know their craft.
So real quick; here’s my best brow secrets:
+ I get them tinted at least once a month ( sometimes two if I’m lucky ).
+ I’m seriously obsessed ( like, in a I-can’t-live-without-it type of way ) with this brow kit. It comes everywhere with me.
+ Caution…you may think I’m a total freak, but I brush my brows every day ( ESP after I apply brow powder on them ). My favorite clear mascara AKA brow brush can be found here. It’s a real life changer.
+ For traveling, I pack this kit.
Why am I such a bat shit, brow-psycho? BECAUSE.
Eyebrows frame the face. They’re a total focal point. Keep um classy, clean, & full…because honestly?! No one wants tadpole brows!!!
…oh, & don’t even get me started on Sharpie brows ( SIGH )…
Ok now, check these brow master babes out:
+ Brow background? Give us the deets.
Claire Long: I’ve been an esthetician for thirteen years now & brow shaping has always been one of my favorites! I had a bad brow experience in high school followed by a few years of over-tweezing. I finally figured it out & just let them grow in!
Lindsay Gowen Merrell: My brow background begins with the great Anastasia Soare ( brow guru to the stars ). I was an esthetician before I met her, but as most of us know, that doesn’t mean jack in the world of brow art. She literally turned my world upside down with her knowledge of brow beauty. Now, I follow her theory & mix my esthetic. It works beautifully for me…and my clients : ).
+ WTF does the perfect brow look like…?!
Claire: We can only work with what we’ve got, so I try to make the brows as perfect as they can be for that person’s face. I work in all straight lines when creating the shape of the brow. I think a strong high arch & keeping as much length on the ends is super important. I also give them a good trim ( not too short ) it gives a much more polished look. I have clients of all ages so I keep younger girl’s brows age appropriate.
Lindsay: A perfect brow? There’s no such thing. There are so many. It’s kind of “a what’s perfect for you” type thing. We’re all genetically blessed with different strengths… BUT…. full and sexy are my ideals.
+ Any DIY tips?
Claire: DIY…I’m not a huge fan of the DIY method, but if necessary tweeze only the obvious strays. It’s really hard to have a good perspective on your own brows & to keep them even when that set of tweezers is in hand..
Lindsay: DIY= less is more. If you’re growing out, fill the brows in before tweeting. That way you aren’t tempted to tweeze team players.
Claire: I’m obsessed too!! Thank god for brow tint! I searched high and low for the best brow tint around. I use a brand called refectocil. I find that it lasts a lot longer than its competitors. The more often that you get your brows tinted, the longer it lasts.. If you let it all fade out it’s harder for your brows to hold the color than if you retint them sooner. If some like super dark brows I usually double tint them. Tint them once, remove, then immediately tint again. This helps to saturate that brow with color. In order to preserve your new tint it is essential that you are aware of what you are putting on your brow area. Check your cleansers, serums and moisturizers- a lot of ingredients can lighten your brows quicker, so can chlorine!
Lindsay: Tinting is a must if your hair is a different shade than your brows. For example: warm hair + ashy brows= ewww. Other an that, it’s up to personal taste. I love a hot blonde that can go bold with her brows. Just think, “Scar Jo.”
+ Biggest brow mistake ( ewww! Tadpoles! ):
Claire: OVER-TWEEZING.
Lindsay: When they’re too thin.
+ How should brows look for 2013?
Claire: Thick but clean.
Lindsay: A brow powder that’s softer than your actual brow hair. Fills them in, without being too harsh.
+ Quick, easy brow tip?
Claire: Use a mascara wand ( with no mascara ) to brush brows up, thin angled brush, matte eye shadow, &/or brow powder ( my fave is charcoal brown from MAC ), & a clear brow gel.
Lindsay: When in doubt leave it!! It is so much more difficult to wait what feels like forever to fill in a gap you created when you got carried away with the tweezers!
++ Check out Claire at bristle. Salon and Boutique here ( she’ll give any first-time clients a 20% discount if they mention the blog! ) & Lindsay at Browtique Spa here!
Soooo…put.down.the.tweezers. & leave it to the pros!
xx.L
Hahah tadpole brows, That’s hilarious and I so know what you mean! I know plenty of people guilty, and I know I can go nuts with my tweezers! I lost them last week though and was forced to not touch them (like the lady always tells me when she waxes me) so we shall see if I can get them how I want them with patience
My brows are so thin and I have such issues growing them! I use a pencil but am always so afraid they will look like crap. I want Lindsay’s brows SOOO bad but it just ain’t
happening for me! The best mine ever looked was about 10 years ago but the chick who did them moved to NYC and they have never looked as good since 🙁
HALP ME!
Hey Laury!
First off you’re GORGEOUS!
For thicker brows, just use this eyebrow enhancer serum and you’ll notice a QUICK difference. Also, a reader below recommended using Castor Oil to grow them : ). I would just never touch my eyebrows with tweezers- try to go to a professional waxer once a month.
Hope that helps! X.
Eyebrows are everything!!! I’m obsesssssssssed.
Me too : )! <3
I have noticed so many girls in Sydney have amazing brows these days and it makes me a tad jealous as I don’t know how to fix mine! I went crazy in my late teens and went from having thick brows (which I hated) to too thin. I went into the no return zone and can’t for the life of me grow them back. I just powder them in to make them slightly better. Is it possible to grow them back? Eick I don’t know what to do! (first world problem huh!)
For thicker brows, just use this eyebrow enhancer serum and you’ll notice a HUGE difference. Also, a reader below recommended using Castor Oil to grow them : ). I would just never touch my eyebrows with tweezers- try to go to a professional waxer once a month.
Thanks for reading babe : ). xoxo.
Castor Oil works wonders if you are trying to grow your brows out! I swear by it!
What an amazing tip— I’ll have to do a post on this! Thanks Ciera <3!
This is friggin hilarious. You need to lay claims on the tadpole description, I mean, best ever. I can’t wait to call my sister’s tadpoles out. We all have em and it’s sad. It’s not due to over plucking, we just have eyebrows that are far apart. So when I learned how to shape my brows…um..complete life changer. I know that sounds vague but it really does change and frame your look for the best. Great post! I am going to try the brow kit, right now I use the Anastasia brow pencil.
thanks for sharing babe!
xx,
becky
You’ll love it! Good luck babe : ). Anastasia is amazing. xoxo.
Hilarious! And so true.
I wasn’t blessed with brows. I am naturally a dirty blonde and my brows are even lighter and very sparse. I tried using Latisse but it didn’t make any difference. I have tried several brow kits (not the one you mentioned above though) and I feel like I look like a clown when I fill in my brows. I am going to look into tinting!
I HATE to admit it, but I have tadpole eyebrows…I wanted the CHOLA look in high school + they just never grew back in! I am going to give your brow suggestions a shot + cross my fingers something happens with these TADPOLES 😉 Thanks for sharing! Love + shine CourtStar
Hi Lauryn, thank you for including this humorous, informative, and very necessary post! In high school (way back in the late 90s), I had a tragic over-plucking situation that lead to what I call “dog eyebrows” (like a half eyebrow) that were forever immortalized in the yearbook. Ever since then, I’ve been anal retentive about my brows and can’t help but notice the “tadpole” brows of others. Thank you for your awesome recommendations. I can’t wait to purchase the kit. As always, your posts never fail to disappoint! Do you have any advice for picking an eyebrow waxer that you can trust? I hate going to a new waxer only to have them overwax and not follow my instructions for a natural brow.
I am OBSESSED with brows! annnnddd I too brush my brows every day! It is part of the process of perfection! Brows are everything 😀
I loved this post!! I got lucky with naturally thick dark brows and I always get scared going to a new place to get them done because I never want them to take that away. I’m like you though, I am SO conscious of my brows 😛
In the UK and I think overseas there is something called HD Brows which are all the rage right now. However, I seriously have to thank them after a brow shaping mishap when I was younger. I now have almost perfect brows… I say almost, hopefully another 6 months of HD Brow care and they will be perfect!
This post could not come at a better time for me!! My mother just surprised me with the Anastasia eyebrow kit while I attempt to grow mine out and re-shape them. Thanks so much for this roundup of tips!!!
Mine are over plucked a bit too, and when I do fill them in with some powder, just looks a little strange to me. Will have to try out the serum or castor oil, but have wondered quite a bit about the tinting too. How long does it realistically last? I’m not the girliest girls ever, but do have my moments of getting out of my fitness clothes or jeans and flip flops and want to glam it up a bit. 🙂
This is what I came up with, in honor of brows and our shared appreciation of them. And thanks for the Anastasia tip, I’ve been using Tarte and Urban Decay products, so I’m excited to try the product you recommended! much love from the east coast!!
I like big brows and I can not lie
You other brothers can’t deny
That when a girl walks in with a really pretty face
And a great arch on her face
You get sprung
Wanna pull up tough
Cuz you notice that brow was filled
Deep in the makeup she’s wearing
I’m hooked and I can’t stop staring
Oh, baby I wanna get with ya
And take your picture
My homeboys tried to warn me
But those brows you got
Make Me so horney
Ooh, rump of smooth hair
You say you wanna get in my benz
Well use me use me cuz you aint that average groupy
I’ve seen them raisin’
To hell with romancin’
She’s Sweat,Wet, got it goin like a turbo vette
I’m tired of magazines
Saying thin brows are the thing
Take the average gay man and ask him that
He’ll fo sho say that’s whack
So Fellas (yeah) Fellas(yeah)
Has your girlfriend got the brow (hell yeah)
Well raise it, raise it, raise it, raise it, raise that healthy brow
Baby got brow…
Wow some awesome eyebrow shaping info love it :). i always seem to overpluck mine although im getting alot better at my eyebrow shaping 🙂
You are all going to be tweezing again in 2017-2018, trust. Thick brows are on the way out. The caterpillar trend was never a good one, anyway. Made some women look positively cro-magnon.