BROW definer

If there is one single gesture that works to ‘lift’ a face – literally, like a mini-facelift – it’s defining brows. Not the slug-like brow that’s all over Instagram (not our thing) but subtle enhancements to the shape and colour of your brows. Brows, it’s said, are like ‘face architecture’: once they’re defined, everything else falls into place – and that’s so, so true.

These products gained delighted new fans and some very high scores. FYI, we’re fans of going to a professional brow-shaping service (eg Benefit or Blink) so you have a blueprint to create your best brows.

SILVER AWARD Benefit Precisely, My Brow Pencil (Warm light brown)

A best seller for this dedicated brow range, this ultra-fine, brow defining pencil comes in a range of 12 blendable shades in cool and warm tones, from light blonde to soft black and cool grey – basically something to suit every colouring. It promises natural looking, hairlike strokes that will transform brows from ‘shapeless & undefined to filled & defined’ face frames that will last up to 12 hours. The twist-up, non-sharpen tip with a spoolie the other end comes in a full size option and a mini. And it’s budge-proof and waterproof. To apply, use tiny hairlike flicks drawn in the direction of your natural hairs, they recommend. Four testers gave this full marks.

£22.50 - click to buy 

OUR TESTERS’ COMMENTS:

‘10/10. I loved the look of this pencil from the start - it was so cool. It did a great job - a bonus that it had a brush at the end. It was easy to apply and had staying power. A great investment for my dark brown, medium thickness, naturally well shaped brows, which now need a bit of filling in. the thickness of stroke was just right. It was very easy to apply and came with a brush at one end - which was great to tidy up brows. I received a few compliments. A really good eyebrow pencil, looks great, does the job and is reliable’ • ‘I love this product for my thick pale brows – perfect thickness of stroke, natural looking and stays put for 8 plus hours. I will buy it again for easy effective use’ • ‘I have natural brown brows, microbladed and neat arched shape, regularly tinted. This is a great brow pencil: perfect precision, good colour and glided on with no difficulty’ • ‘When I opened this I thought it may have been a bit of a pain to apply with the pencil being so fine; however, I really liked it.  It went on really well, looked very natural and the colour was good for me too. It was so easy to build up, easy just to target the areas that needed a bit of a boost and didn’t look false at all. Because it’s so fine it’s much better than my usual pencil’ • ‘First time using an eyebrow pencil and this seemed a good to start with. I liked the fine tip and spoolie brush and was certainly able to create a very natural look. The pencil also came with a useful small 'tips and tricks' leaflet. I found it stayed in place very effectively throughout the day. A great eyebrow pencil for creating natural looking definition to eyebrows. Easy to use! ’ • ‘The pencil was comfortable to hold and worked like a propelling pencil, where the end was turned and the pencil emerged. The other end of the pencil incorporated a brush, which I feel was definitely required to give a natural look’ • ‘I was very impressed with how it looked. It enabled me to fill in some of the areas where my brow is a bit sparser but with a very natural looking effect. The colour (warm light brown) was a good match for my hair colour. By using the brush to even out the lines it created the definition I wanted without it being obvious that I have applied the pencil’ • ‘I haven't used an eyebrow pencil before but my brows were patchy due to an alopecia episode and Using this pencil definitely helped me feel more confident. My mum noticed my brows looked thicker. I liked the Fun packaging and no mess due to the twist up function; there was a blending brush which definitely helped to soften the line.’

£22.50 - click to buy 

BRONZE AWARD delilah Brow Line Retractable Eye Brow Pencil

In two colours, Sable and Ash, this has a spoolie brush one end and a retractable pencil the other. The helpful online tutorial suggests brushing up the brow hairs first so you can see where the gaps are. The fine nib is designed to be used with short sharp strokes to fill in gaps with a hair-like effect. Then you brush again to blend and soften the brow. Our testers trialled Sable and gave it rave reviews – again! This was an Award winner last year – and converted Sarah among others. A bunch of high scores from most testers but one just couldn't get on with it so gave it a very low score, which brought the average down.

£22 - click to buy 

OUR TESTERS’ COMMENTS:

‘10/10. I really liked this product, which was a perfect match with my own medium brown brows. I don't have massive brows, but they do tend to be paler/blonder at the ends so I used this to even out the colour. This product was easy to apply - one end had a pencil and the other a brush for combing out the brows. My only comment with this was that I regularly opened the wrong end first as the ends looked the same! The pigmentation is good and the colour lasted all day; I would touch up in the evening if I was going out, just to refresh my face. I would definitely buy this’ • ‘I am glad I tried this as I have found my new favourite in moving forward. I have medium thick black brows but as a result of trying this, I have moved away from a black pencil to this sable colour, which gives me a more natural look. I really love this pencil; the tip is thin for fine strokes but also glides on to fill bigger gaps if necessary, and the brush is perfect to touch up. It lasted all day; I think it would have stayed if I’d slept in it’ • ‘This is a must for people who use brow products to keep in their make-up bags. So simple to use, even for a brow definer virgin like me’ • ‘Brilliantly easy to use and the spoolie at the end helps brush the hairs through to create a natural look. Really handy little pencil, which did a great job of filling in sparse brows and a handy size for travel. Definitely a keeper!’ • ‘I really liked this liner; it was easy to make natural looking hair strokes. The colour was perfect for me, not too dark but it has a good pigmentation. The brush is great for grooming my brows and it has good staying power, which is important for me as I don't have time to touch up my make-up during the working day. The packaging is sleek and luxurious looking.’

£22 - click to buy