I’m about to share a secret with you. Are you ready?
My eyebrows don’t look even remotely like this naturally. If I didn’t fill them in daily or slap myself every time I even thought about pulling out my tweezers, then my face would very nearly look bald. There are two reasons for this:
1. Unlike the rest of my peers in middle school, my trendy pencil-thin eyebrows never really grew back. That’s one more reason for me to try and forget early 2000s fashion.
2. The eyebrow hair that remains is significantly lighter than my dyed, black mane. The contrast does not help my sparseness situation in the slightest.
With that said, it’s easy to imagine why beaches and swimming pools make me feel a little uneasy. It’s one thing to have mascara running down your face, but have you ever seen drippy eyebrows? You might as well be the matchmaker from Mulan.
So, when I was preparing for a trip to Cancun for spring break, I needed to try and find a product that would help my painstakingly drawn brows stay on in the sun and surf. In the process of searching for a transparent eyeshadow primer at Ulta, I found something even better. For only $7, NYX’s Proof It! Waterproof Eyebrow Primer was a godsend. NYX is a well-loved, incredibly popular cosmetics brand that sells surprisingly high quality products at drugstore prices, so I trusted that it was going to work well.
Honestly, purchasing this primer may be the best cosmetic choice I’ve ever made – I’m not exaggerating! NYX claims that the formulation was made specifically for “thin, sparse brows” and I believe it. The clear gel primer comes in a little tube with a doe-foot applicator. While some reviews express that a spoolie brush would have been more appropriate, I personally find the doe-foot really helpful because I don’t have a ton of hairs to comb through, and will need to draw directly onto my skin in some places anyway. I also don’t mind my eyebrows being a tad “crunchy” if it means actually having them at all.
After applying my foundation or BB cream, I smooth a little bit of the primer over my brows (or where I’d like my brows to be). Next, I go in with a slanted brush and apply my usual Anastasia Beverly Hills Dipbrow Pomade, and finish with brow gel from the same brand. It’s a waterproof triple threat of a routine, and I am 100 percent satisfied. Against the odds, my eyebrows survived the spring break shenanigans relatively unscathed. It’s even proved to be pretty helpful back at home because I have fairly oily skin that tends to melt my makeup, and the primer helps combat any fading.
If you’re brow-challenged like me, do yourself a favor and bring this primer into your cosmetic arsenal – seriously.