I’m no stranger to beauty mishaps — I once ripped half of my eyelashes out with a drugstore lash curler. After such an incident, it’s easy to take to the internet to look for advice. The trouble is, there is simply too much out there. Which is why, when I have a beauty dilemma, I prefer to go to trusted friends — people who’ve been there before, know their stuff, and can give me helpful, tailored advice. I’d like to be that friend for you, so I created the email riopleasehelpme@gmail.com. Send me your strange, specific beauty problems, and I’ll respond with tips, tricks, and remedies to get you through your predicament.
Two weekends ago, at a bachelorette target-shooting event, I forgot all instructions and put my eye too close to the scope of the gun. The pushback cut my eyebrow and now I have a scar and a noticeable gap in my brow hairs! Because the scar is (ever so) slightly raised, eyebrow pencils tend to slide off when I try to fill in the gap. Help me Rio! —A Gun Stole Half My Eyebrow
Oh no, AGSHME! Although this incident might seem completely tragic, there are a few things that’ll help you repair the damage. I’m not going to speak to healing the scar — you should go see a dermatologist for that. But I do have some makeup tricks that’ll let you at least pretend your eyebrow isn’t missing half it’s hairs. And I’ll also have you know, you’re not alone — when I was 13 I shaved off half of my left eyebrow. Needless to say, my eighth-grade school photo day was deeply traumatizing.
For promoting hair growth in the surrounding area
Sadly, it’s impossible for hair to regrow over a scar, as scar tissue lacks the hair-growing-capable glands that normal skin has. But what you can do is grow the hair in the surrounding area so that they can be brushed over the scar — kind of like a little mini brow comb-over! This will also make it easier to fill the area with a brow pencil. A great way to nurture the hairs around the scar is with castor oil, which has antioxidant properties that help stimulate your body’s ability to grow hair. Apply this with your finger or a Q-tip all over your brow once a day, preferably in the evening.
For avoiding makeup slippage
Here’s how you’re going to properly cover this thing up: You’re going to apply an eyebrow primer that ensures that any makeup you put on the sparse area doesn’t slip and slide all over the place and look really obvious. A fan favorite that happens to be very cheap is this one from NYX, which is almost glue-like — it’ll make sure your brow pencil won’t budge all day.
For faking realistic hairs
On top of that, I recommend going with Brow Flick. Brow Flick is beloved by many (including the Prophet Katie Jane Hughes) for its tiny, thin, bendy brush that easily draws wispy lines that really mimic the shape of brow hairs. I had a traumatic over-waxing experience, and this was a lifesaver for me.
For a possible permanent solution
Seeing as your scar isn’t aggressively raised, you might consider investigating microblading (a.k.a. eyebrow tattooing). I don’t microblade myself, but I’ve read great things about Piret Aava. Good luck!
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