Beauty Fix: How to repair over-plucked eyebrows, the best brush for blowouts and more answers to your beauty questions
Every week we take on your questions about makeup, skincare, hair and more and provide all the answers. This week, Beauty Fix is focused on hair. From voluminous waves to sparse eyebrows, we’re here to help you brush up on everything you need to know about hair. Is it true that you can pluck your eyebrows to the point of them never growing back? Should you ditch your drugstore-brand hair dryer and invest in a professional-grade one? We have all the answers and more! In need of a beauty fix yourself? Email us at [email protected].
Does it matter what kind of brush I use for a blowout? I’d love a bit more lift at the roots.
Yes, it most definitely matters which brush you use for a blowout! Different brushes produce very different results, from subtle waves to smooth-yet-full-bodied volume. The actual components of a hairbrush—including the materials that the brush and bristles are made of—play a significant factor in how the brush will work with your hair and help you achieve the look you desire. If you’re interested in adding voluminous waves to your hair, try a vented round brush, like Nexxus Volume Effexx Large Round Brush ($17, well.ca), which features ceramic technology to evenly distribute heat (ultimately leading to dry hair quicker with minimal damage) and tourmaline (to minimize frizz). Once you’re nearing the end of drying each section of hair, wrap the hair section around the brush as you hold it vertically, then hit the brush with a cold blast of air from your hairdryer to set the wave so it holds its shape.
My drugstore-brand hair dryer is on its last legs. Is it worth it to invest in a professional-grade hair dryer?
While everyone can appreciate the price point of a drugstore-brand hair dryer—especially given that most incorporate ionic technology that works to reduce frizz—professional-grade hair dryers are better suited to anyone who frequently blow dries her hair. This is due to the inclusion of an advanced-yet-fantastically-lightweight motor that is meant for extended use by professional stylists. A lightweight motor means no overheating will occur and that means no burning smell will be emitted from the dryer as it’s used. One to consider: T3 Featherweight 2 ($220, sephora.com), which will dry hair with a gentle, wide airflow of ionic infrared energy to heat the hair from the inside out to minimize damage and avoid over-drying hair.
I have super curly hair but it often looks super dry and frizzy. I would like to try a smoothing serum but don’t want it to make my hair look slick. Help!
Curly hair and hair that generally has more natural texture to it tends to be naturally dryer than its smoother, straighter counterparts. It’s important to try to add as much moisture back into textured hair in order to keep it in its best condition. While turning to creams and serums is the logical solution, it can actually be quite easy to go awry with the product application! The heavier the product, the smaller the amount you should use in hair in order to avoid using too much. You know how it goes: it’s always easier to add more than it is to remove product! Try applying Aussie Smoothing Serum ($6, well.ca) to damp hair. The trick here is to focus on the length of the hair—which is driest since it’s the oldest part of the hair shaft—and avoid the roots and crown. If you do need to apply product to your hairline or crown, do so sparingly to avoid the hair becoming oversaturated.
I have a really noticeable sparse spot in one of my eyebrows. I try to fill it in, but I can’t seem to find the right product that will last all day.
I definitely feel your self-consciousness with this one! My right brow has had a small gap in it for as long as I can recall, so I’ve been on the ongoing quest for a product that will stay put and still look relatively natural. It’s a very frustrating feeling to be completely fine with how my brows look even after filling them in at the beginning of the day only to see that my right brow looks disconnected by the afternoon. Not ideal by any stretch of the imagination! I found that harder wax formulas tend to stay put better and offer prolonged adherence. I have found brow solace in Benefit Cosmetics Brow Zings ($35, sephora.com), which is a fairly cohesive brow kit that’s equipped with mini tweezers, an angled brush to apply the wax and powder, as well as a blending brush to ensure a flawless end result. The key to a natural look when filling in sparse spots is to build the product up gradually, applying a small amount at a time on the angled brush in very light, short strokes.
Is it true you can over-tweeze your eyebrows to the point where they won’t grow back?
In a word, yes. We all know that plucking is anything but permanent as far as hair removal goes, since plucking just removes the hair from the follicle base, which ultimately grows a new replacement hair shaft. It’s possible to pluck the same hairs repeatedly over the span of several years, creating inflammation that can then lead to scar tissue development. The scar tissue would effectively destroy the ability of new hair to grow again in that hair follicle that is now blocked by scar tissue. If you’re facing less and less brows to shape as you get older (possibly due to consistent over-tweezing when you were just learning how to yield tweezers!), try brushing a fortifying serum like Givenchy Mister Lash Booster ($33, sephora.com) through brows at night, and give your tweezers a rest. Try giving brows a chance to grow back in and commit to only plucking serious strays as opposed to restructuring your entire brow shape, which is a slippery slope too many have stumbled down!
, which features ceramic technology to evenly distribute heat (ultimately leading to dry hair quicker with minimal damage) and tourmaline (to minimize frizz). Once you’re nearing the end of drying each section of hair, wrap the hair section around the brush as you hold it vertically, then hit the brush with a cold blast of air from your hairdryer to set the wave so it holds its shape.
My drugstore-brand hair dryer is on its last legs. Is it worth it to invest in a professional-grade hair dryer?
While everyone can appreciate the price point of a drugstore-brand hair dryer—especially given that most incorporate ionic technology that works to reduce frizz—professional-grade hair dryers are better suited to anyone who frequently blow dries her hair. This is due to the inclusion of an advanced-yet-fantastically-lightweight motor that is meant for extended use by professional stylists. A lightweight motor means no overheating will occur and that means no burning smell will be emitted from the dryer as it’s used. One to consider: T3 Featherweight 2 ($220, sephora.com), which will dry hair with a gentle, wide airflow of ionic infrared energy to heat the hair from the inside out to minimize damage and avoid over-drying hair.
I have super curly hair but it often looks super dry and frizzy. I would like to try a smoothing serum but don’t want it to make my hair look slick. Help!
Curly hair and hair that generally has more natural texture to it tends to be naturally dryer than its smoother, straighter counterparts. It’s important to try to add as much moisture back into textured hair in order to keep it in its best condition. While turning to creams and serums is the logical solution, it can actually be quite easy to go awry with the product application! The heavier the product, the smaller the amount you should use in hair in order to avoid using too much. You know how it goes: it’s always easier to add more than it is to remove product! Try applying Aussie Smoothing Serum ($6, well.ca) to damp hair. The trick here is to focus on the length of the hair—which is driest since it’s the oldest part of the hair shaft—and avoid the roots and crown. If you do need to apply product to your hairline or crown, do so sparingly to avoid the hair becoming oversaturated.
I have a really noticeable sparse spot in one of my eyebrows. I try to fill it in, but I can’t seem to find the right product that will last all day.
I definitely feel your self-consciousness with this one! My right brow has had a small gap in it for as long as I can recall, so I’ve been on the ongoing quest for a product that will stay put and still look relatively natural. It’s a very frustrating feeling to be completely fine with how my brows look even after filling them in at the beginning of the day only to see that my right brow looks disconnected by the afternoon. Not ideal by any stretch of the imagination! I found that harder wax formulas tend to stay put better and offer prolonged adherence. I have found brow solace in Benefit Cosmetics Brow Zings ($35, sephora.com), which is a fairly cohesive brow kit that's equipped with mini tweezers, an angled brush to apply the wax and powder, as well as a blending brush to ensure a flawless end result. The key to a natural look when filling in sparse spots is to build the product up gradually, applying a small amount at a time on the angled brush in very light, short strokes.
Is it true you can over-tweeze your eyebrows to the point where they won’t grow back?
In a word, yes. We all know that plucking is anything but permanent as far as hair removal goes, since plucking just removes the hair from the follicle base, which ultimately grows a new replacement hair shaft. It’s possible to pluck the same hairs repeatedly over the span of several years, creating inflammation that can then lead to scar tissue development. The scar tissue would effectively destroy the ability of new hair to grow again in that hair follicle that is now blocked by scar tissue. If you’re facing less and less brows to shape as you get older (possibly due to consistent over-tweezing when you were just learning how to yield tweezers!), try brushing a fortifying serum like Givenchy Mister Lash Booster ($33, sephora.com) through brows at night, and give your tweezers a rest. Try giving brows a chance to grow back in and commit to only plucking serious strays as opposed to restructuring your entire brow shape, which is a slippery slope too many have stumbled down!
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