Choosing the perfect eyebrow shape depends on the qualities of your natural brows, the shape of your face, your eye positioning, and the strength of your facial features. This may sound like a lot to consider, but identifying all of these different factors will help you select the most flattering shape for your brows. Some people are able to freehand their perfect eyebrow shape, while others use stencils or brow pencils as guidelines. If it is your first time shaping your eyebrows you may wish to consult a professional to create the initial shape and then simply perform a little maintenance to keep them looking neat.
Some general tips for eyebrow shaping are helpful no matter what your unique shape will eventually be. Typically, it is most flattering for the widest part of the brow to be the inside edge, which should line up with the center of the nostril. From there, the brow should gently taper and become thinner until it stops above the outer corner of the eye. The highest point of the arch usually falls above the edge of the iris, more than halfway across the brow from the inside edge.
The first step in choosing your perfect eyebrow shape is to determine the shape of your face. While there are many variations on face shapes, the three basic shapes that are most relevant to eyebrow grooming are round, long, and square. You will also want to note whether you have a high or low forehead, since this will make a difference when selecting your perfect eyebrow shape.
As a general rule, if you have a round face your perfect eyebrow shape will have a prominent arch, which will help elongate the look of your face. The opposite is true for people with long faces, who should choose a shape with a flatter arch to lessen the impact of length. If your face is angular or square, your ideal brow shape will be a hybrid of the previous two shapes. Square faces should have a moderate, rounded arch to downplay the possible harshness of angular features. Regardless of face shape, people with higher foreheads should choose more arched eyebrow shapes, while people with low foreheads should choose flatter brows.
Another important element to consider is how close together your eyes are. If your eyes are set very close together, the inside edge of the brow can be moved further away from the nose. In contrast, if your eyes are too far apart, you can shape the inside edge so it falls closer to the nose, which will make the eyes appear closer together. Keep in mind that these should be very subtle changes and that going to extremes with any brow shape alterations can make your face look frozen in one facial expression.
It is not necessary for brows to be precisely identical because the face itself is asymmetrical, but they should definitely be close. After you have selected your perfect eyebrow shape, you can look for a stencil with those same features to help you match each side to the other. If you are nervous about botching the whole process, have your brows shaped for the first time at a salon, and then simply tweeze or trim stray hairs as the grow back in.