Like the slender brows that were popular in the ’90s, bleached eyebrows are contentious and controversial but also very in style.
Lizzo, Lily James, Dove Cameron, Bella and Gigi Hadid, Julia Fox, and Amelia Gray are just a few of the A-list celebrities who have sported the look this year. Kendall Jenner, who bleached her brows for the 2022 Met Gala, is another.
The SKKN founder, though, who of course made the most of the attention by baring bleached brows and an exposed bottom for Interview’s “American Dream” issue, was the most notable. In fact, according to Cloud Nine, after Kardashian shared the photo on social media, web searches for “bleached brows” more than doubled, and the TikTok videos “bleached eyebrows,” “bleached brows,” and hashtag #bleachedbrows have received a total of 515 million views.
Translation? Here is all the information you require regarding the trend of bleached eyebrows, which isn’t likely to fade very soon.
The bleached-brow trend
The bleached-brow trend is obviously popular with celebrities and fashion designers, but why is it so popular right now? The craze, in the opinion of celebrity eyebrow expert Joey Healy, is just another development of the 1990s and Y2K style. According to Healy, “people are willing to take more risks these days and people are looking backward while they are moving forward.”
People want to experiment with their appearances and remake themselves with something new and different in this environment where we are trying to escape the plague, Healy says. Although it can be challenging to pull off, it is also a very fashion-focused appearance, and individuals are willing to take a risk and think outside the box. Additionally, he claims that makeup artists like Kevyn Aucoin were responsible for popularising the style, which was undoubtedly inspired by the runway where it currently reigns supreme.
How to lighten your brows
If you’re feeling particularly motivated, please be aware that all brow specialists advise against whitening your own brows and instead advise visiting a professional. Healy advises using Jolen Bleach, a facial hair bleach, to start if you have to, in order to lessen the intensity of the pigment in your brows.
“It works best when you’re taking a brow from black to dark brown or dark brown to medium brown,” he adds, noting that the product lacks toner. However, if you keep it on for too long, they may start to become orange because you’re lifting the hair without necessarily being able to tone it. Consequently, if you choose a particular blonde shade or appearance (and to be as safe as possible)
Healy highly advises exercising caution and keeping in mind that bleach is far harsher than typical brow dyes if you do decide to go the DIY route. Make sure it’s not leaking or too close to your eyes, and remove it right away if you experience skin sensitivity, suggests Healy. After removing the sand, be sure to thoroughly rinse the brows with moist cotton balls to prevent the brow hair from processing further. Realize that eliminating the colour from the hair can be slightly detrimental to the brows if it is thinner or dryer, he advises.
How to keep bleached brows looking good
After bleaching your brows, maintenance can be challenging. You can’t really do much to maintain the aesthetic. Healy tells Glamour, “It’s a little tricky: When your brows grow back in, they don’t just have roots. They essentially “grow, relax, and shed. Waiting until your brow has returned to its original form before lifting it again is the best course of action because bleached brows might get flecked with natural-colored hairs.
In summary, it’s preferable to let them grow out because it will be difficult to adequately touch them up otherwise. You won’t be able to spot-treat [the bleached regions] when you apply bleach again, according to Healy. “The natural hairs lift beautifully, however previously raised or bleached hairs can turn orangey or behave strangely. You need to make sure that you bleach “virgin” hairs every time because you can’t specifically target those, unlike with brow dye where you’re merely depositing the colour rather than lifting it out. In order to avoid uneven brow shading, it is preferable to rebleach your brows only when they have fully grown in again.
Having said that, there are steps you may take to safeguard your brow hairs and cover the patchy regrowth. If you’re not sure if you want to commit to bleaching your brows, you can always try a lighter brow gel, says Healy, who also adds that tinted brow gel can help conceal the brows as they are growing back in and provide a more even look. Depending on your complexion, you might be a lighter blonde or a soft brunette, but an opaque brow gel like [Joey Healy] Brow Lacquer can help you create the bleached brow appearance because it completely coats and conceals every hair.
Added choices? Simply use makeup to hide your brows. Healy advises, “You can use your concealer and a mascara wand, so it kind of looks like your skin tone.” “[Do this] at the very least before bleaching them, simply to see how it will look.”
Last but not least, Healy advises using nourishing eyebrow serum to repair any damage you may have done to your brows. “Bleaching specifically does lift up the colour, and sometimes lift lubricating oils that make the brow a little softer, so you’ll want to replenish them with peptides, botanicals, and vitamins,” she says.
Do you feel inspired? Below, you can begin your brow-bleaching journey.
