The brow code

MANILA, Philippines - Spock is my eyebrow hero — eyebrows that outrageous will look good on anyone, by Final Frontier standards. On Earth though, they would, needless to say, look alien. It would be difficult to get away with eyebrows at that level of perk on a regular day, unless you’re part Vulcan or constantly surprised. Us non-aliens need a new eyebrow champion. While Cara Delevingne’s definitely deserve their moment — maybe the longest in the history of eyebrows, I am kind of getting tired of seeing it on runways.

A refreshing alternative came this recent fashion week, when designers showed their spring/summer 2014 collections along with some adventurous beauty looks. In a lot of shows, brows took center stage — which only shows how evolved our ideas of beauty now are, at least in some parts of the world.

At Mercedes-Benz Fashion Week, Patrick Mohr’s models sported uni-brows — didn’t we used to make fun of them? Now they’re front and center on the runway. When Aussie label Bless’ed Are The Meek showed its fall/winter 2013 collection, models were given what MAC Cosmetics’ James Molloy called the “smoke and feathers” brow, using MAC Chromacake in Black and White.

At Céline, whose spring/summer 2014 was an explosion of color, print and texture that would make Picasso blush, models had matching “surrealist illustrated eyes.” Asymmetric brows were drawn on using Shiseido’s Automatic Fine Eyeliner. Raf Simmons spring/summer collection for Christian Dior turned to Pat McGrath to give each model a gilded glaze by generously covering the eyebrows with gold-flecked powder. At Istanbul, Beste Gürel models were spotted with orange lips and matching eyebrows — which turned out to be a flattering combination.

Raising Eyebrows by Cameron Tuttle is an entire book on the subject, published exclusively for Benefit Cosmetics. It tackles everything from brow shaping to iconic eyebrows throughout history. It says, “Every now and then, a model, fashion designer, singer or actor, introduces some crazy new look for the eyebrows. Enjoy it for what it is — fashion theater — and appreciate it from a distance.” This makes me wish it were Halloween every day just so I have an excuse to channel those golden arches at Dior. On the other 364 days of the year, however, us non-catwalk walkers have to abide by certain brow protocol. Here are some nuggets of eyebrow wisdom from the book.

Face shape

If your face shape is…

Round

Enhance the natural angles in your brow and maximize the peak of your arch. Don’t shape your eyebrows into a rounded arch.

Square

Try an angular brow with a well-defined arch; don’t go with a soft, rounded shape.

Oval

Go for a strong, defined brow — never a flat or thin one, which will make your face appear longer.

Heart

Go with a softer arch to soften the point of your chin; don’t go with a straight, flat brow, which will weigh your face down.

Some pointers

• Stay out of the “no zone” — the area that defines the shape of your brows. Leave this area to the professionals.

• Brows are not twins, they are sisters. They don’t have to be completely symmetrical.

• If you place too much emphasis on your eyebrows, you run the risk of overtweezing. Never search for the meaning of life in your brows.

• When using brow products, always brush in the direction of hair growth.

• If you’re going for drama, add highlighter just beneath and above the brow line.

Shaping

• Waxing is the most effective, modern way to shape your brows. It’s fast, safe and relatively affordable.

• Tweezing is great for removing stragglers and strays. If done correctly, it can be as effective as waxing.

• Trimming should only be a complement to another form of hair removal, such as waxing. You can’t shape your brows by trimming alone.

• Threading is best for women with dark, very thick brow hair, because it can be done weekly.

• Shaving on the face is for guys! Period.

• Depilatories are off limits — unless you want to go blind.