The shape and thickness of your eyebrows are really important when it comes to the appearance of symmetry (and youth) in your facial features. Unfortunately, as with everything else that changes with age, one of them is that the eyebrows do become thinner. Aging tends to give us hair where we never had it (and didn’t want it!) and thins the hair out that we DO want in its ever so clever way of keeping us on our toes in maintaining appearances:)

A look at me before and after eyebrow penciling and shaping really emphasizes the point of how important they are. I look almost like a different person before and after. So if they are so important to our appearance, how do you maintain the thickness as much as possible as the years go on, and how can you keep them shaped? Related: Silica for Hair Growth

Is there a difference between how men should shape their eyebrows and how women should shape theirs? Not really. It's all about following the natural contours of your brow bone and ensuring the shape you choose is complimentary to the shape and symmetry of your facial structure.  

Professional Options

Of course, there are professional options to eyebrow maintenance. The big caveat to this is finding the right professional that you can trust to not overpluck. Under-plucking is not as big a deal. Over plucked eyebrows can really present a problem because with repeated overplucking, your eyebrows hairs simply will stop growing back in those areas. It doesn’t grow back quite the same as the hairs on your head, especially as you age.

There’s also the issue of shaping. Entrusting the shaping of your brows to a professional takes a lot of trust too. They have the not-easy task of ensuring they are shaping your brows to fit your facial features best. This is not a one size fits all endeavor. Sure, you can buy things like eyebrow shaping cutouts that help you to "stencil" your eyebrow dye or even the way you pluck them, however these are not necessarily fool proof. 

You could just go to a professional once and see how they do it, take notes, and then follow their technique at home. It is definitely something you can learn, but not something you want to go full bore doing without some preparation. Once you pluck these previous hairs, it's difficult to regrow them and this can end up being a bigger problem than if you have overgrown brows!

Some technicians are likely a lot more talented in this arena than others. Eyebrow shaping is a bit of an art. It’s like finding the perfect hairstylist who does exactly what you want every time. They’re worth their weight in gold and you hold on to them for as long as they continue practicing!

Self-Maintained Brows

The other option of course is to maintain your own eyebrows. There are several things you at least want to look into if you’re going to be doing your own brow maintenance. One is an excellent pair of tweezers. Tweezers that can get a firm grip on the hair are the best. Look for grippers on the end, maybe textured metal or even rubber tips.

Eyebrow dye – Although this can be really tricky to get right, when you get good at dying your brows, it can really make your eyes pop. It’s also nice because you don’t have to pencil them in as much. It takes all those tiny peach fuzz hairs that don’t really “show up” and dyes them so your brows look instantly fuller.

This is one of my favorite tricks to making my brows appear fuller and younger. It doesn’t last but a few weeks, but it really cuts down on maintenance and penciling. It’s very cost effective too. Most kits come with several applications and cost under $20.

Stencils - as previously mentioned you can purchased multiple stencils that have different brow shapes. Simply hold each one up to your brow bone, use some of your brow liner and fill it in, and when you pull it away, since which one of the shapes is most flattering for your face.  These can be tricky to use, so make sure you fully adhere the stencil to your skin before you go plucking (or dying) the area. You want to get the shape as perfect as possible.  

Maintaining Thickness and Regrowing Thin Brows

One of the best folk remedies for helping brows grow in thicker is castor oil. It is a very thick oil that has properties that help to stimulate hair growth. The thickness also protects the hairs that are there and can help reduce the thinning process. Related: Using Castor Oil to Thicken and Regrow Brows

You can apply it every night before bed time. It’s not ideal to apply this during the day due to its fairly sticky and thick nature. It’s perfect for the night time when your body temperature goes up and you get the extra benefit of increased absorption.

While you’re at it, you can smooth a bit of this rich oil under your eyes. It’s an extra way to help combat crows feet! Nightly use of this thick and emollient oil can help reduce the effects of side-sleeping, which can increase wrinkles to the corners of the eyes (aka crows feet), and help replenish deep moisture to this area which also reduces their appearance.

Dietary Eyebrow Growth Boosters

Eating a diet rich in hair-health enriching vitamins, omega 3 oils and minerals is also key to helping maintain healthy brow hair. Get a lot of omega 3 fatty acids from high quality sources like fish, flax seeds, avocados and the like. Also make sure you get a lot of silica-rich foods or take a silica supplement like horsetail or bamboo. Silica is found in green vegetables like leafy greens and green beans most abundantly. Related: Herbs that Help with Hair Growth