Jane Iredale Bitty Brow Kit

When I worked for Benefit Cosmetics, I could never keep their Brow-zing! eyebrow palettes in stock. Why? Because whenever I did a client's makeup, I always used one of their wax based brow pigments. Even if the client wasn't in the market for a brow product, had no interest in plucking their full set of pre-Cara Delevingne brows, or had tweezed what nature gave them into oblivion and were marred with a permanent expression of surprise or anger, they almost always would ask me what I did.

It was simple, I just dipped an angle brush into the taupe-y shaded wax and lightly buff it along the highest point of the arch, sometimes working down to the tail. I learned this trick from Meredith, an incredible makeup artist at Barney's New York. She believed defining the arch and adding a swirl of blush to the cheeks is fool proof way to bring out the eyes. Instead of rimming them with a dark smokey liner, she thought this a balanced and less obvious way of framing the eyes.

Sadly, I've yet to find a perfectly neutral colored brow wax in the clean beauty industry. But this Jane Iredale kit comes pretty close, one only needs to blend a bit of the wax and powder on the same brush. It's believable looking, no one would guess you've got anything on. And if you're on the fence about which color, go with the ashy blonde shade. Any dark haired brunettes like myself, better stick with the brunette shade, photographed below:

Ecobrow Defining Wax

When it comes to brow products, I prefer wax based formulas because they look more natural. The wax has a soft sheen and reflects light like hair, versus powders or pencils which can look flat. I hadn't yet found a non-toxic wax based product to phone home about, so I was excited to try Ecobrow. This small line was developed by a makeup artist and made up of stellar, clean ingredients.

I picked up a pot of "Penelope" and the accompanying brush. However, designed for a brunette, I found the shade was way too red to be natural. Plus, the formula was a bit slippery and took too more effort to control. Eyeshadow, lipstick, eyeliner - it's okay if those products are obvious. But brow products – much like foundation and concealer – should be nearly impossible to detect. This one was a slight disappointment for me, but I think the other colors (Marilyn, in particular) may have potential.

Detox Market / $26