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If our eyes are the windows to the soul, our eyebrows are the window frames – and they have certainly been through a lot over the years. From ultra-skinny styles worn by 1920s flappers and, more recently, all of us in the early Noughties, to Instagram 2016 brows, how we style those few hairs above our eyes makes all the difference.
With the full but natural look now taking centre stage, there is a plethora of different options for styling your brows – whether it’s with a quick brow gel, a classic pencil or a trusty pomade.
One iteration of product that gets a little less airtime than the others is a eyebrow pen. At first, the idea of using a pen might make you think of a permanent marker which, granted, could feel a little daunting, but fear not, because a brow pen is all about recreating natural, hair-like strokes that stay put all day.
Mac’s global senior artist and one half of the judging panel for BBC’s Glow Up, Dominic Skinner says one of the biggest mistakes people make happens when picking a shade: “Most people pick a colour that matches the colour of the brow hair. However, what this does is give you a very dark, blocky brow.
“In reality, you should be looking for a colour that is one or two shades lighter than your natural brow. This gives a shadow effect, making the brow more visible but not heavy. Then when you brush the hair, they look full, textured and, most importantly, real.”
With that in mind, it’s also worth thinking about your hair colour, because, if you’ve dyed it a different shade to your natural strands, you may want a warmer or cooler tone of eyebrow pen to match.
How we tested the best eyebrow pens
To make sure we only included the best eyebrow pens here, each offering got a full day’s wear, including at the gym, on the London Underground, in the rain and on one of the hottest days the UK has ever seen. Through that, we noted how easy it was to use each eyebrow pen, what the colour was like and, of course, whether it lasted all day.
The best eyebrow pens for 2024 are:
- Best eyebrow pen overall – Glossier brow flick: £18, Glossier.com
- Best budget eyebrow pen – Revolution hairstroke brow pen: £6, Lookfantastic.com
- Best eyebrow pen for natural strokes – Anastasia Beverly Hills brow pen: £23, Lookfantastic.com
- Best shade range – Nyx Professional makeup lift and snatch brow tint pen: £9, Amazon.co.uk
English (US) ·