How to bleach your eyebrows at home, according to an Australian hairdresser
IMAGE VIA @MADISONSWORLD22/INSTAGRAM
WORDS By Ruby Staley
Bye-bye fluffy brows.
Move over wolf cuts and slicked back Jenner buns, bleached brows is the latest trend that has my social feeds in a chokehold. The pared-back brow has been a mainstay in editorial photoshoots and on international runways for years, but more recently it’s been spotted on famous faces like Kim K, Lizzo and Bella Hadid. It seems the white-blonde brow style has well and truly moved beyond ‘out there’ status.
It’s almost become a rite of passage within the beauty industry, and it seems like everyone on TikTok and Instagram is trying out transparent brows for size. With bleach blonde hair myself, I’ve thought from time to time about bleaching my brow hairs as well but always felt unsure whether I could pull it off.
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But after watching a fellow beauty lover and friend of mine, online creator Bianca Hill, blondify her brows, I was utterly convinced. A little less intimidating than a full-on white bleach, a blonde brow could be an excellent way to dip my toe into the trend.
To find out a little more about the process and to minimise the chances of burning my face to oblivion, I asked hairdresser Madison Finn, the owner of a Naarm-based boutique hair salon, how I could (safely) do it myself.
Let’s start off easy, tell me a little bit about what you do and your salon.
I’m Madison! I’m a hairdresser, and I own a hair salon in Fitzroy, Melbourne. From loose haircuts to bright colours, we got you!
What’s your opinion on the current bleached brows trend? Would you have bleached brows?
Personally, I love the look. It’s been going around for years now [it] looks great on browns coppers and blondes! I used to have a black bob with bleach eyebrows, then a year or two ago had the full blonde on blonde. It’s all very alien hot! And to be honest, my mum hates it when I do it.
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Would you, or do you bleach brows in your salon?
Yes! I have done, and still do offer eyebrow bleaching in the salon.
Hypothetically, how would one bleach their own brows at home?
It’s quite straightforward – mixing some bleach and 20 vol and popping it on and combing it through.
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Any safety precautions to look out for?
Vaseline for the skin around your eyebrows and I always put Glad wrap over the top! The Glad wrap helps for two reasons. First, it’s to prevent it from dripping or going anywhere else like your eyelashes. Second, it keeps the bleach damp – when bleach dries out it doesn’t process as much.
I’m worried they’ll grow out weird or fry my brow hair. How can I prevent this from happening?
Essentially, they don’t get regrowth. Eyebrows fall out and new ones grow. You just have to be sure you have enough new growth before you re-bleach or you could further damage the already bleached hairs.
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If I do decide to bleach my brows, in your opinion what’s the upkeep like?
Every two (or even three to be safer) months you would have to re-do them.
Any general advice for people bleaching their brows (and hair) from home?
I wouldn’t recommend bleaching your hair at home. But eyebrows are a lot easier! Here are a few general tips.
- Make sure the mix is thick enough, so it doesn’t run and the thicker the mix the stronger the bleach.
- Set a timer and have a look, wipe some off and see, if they aren’t blonde enough re-apply and pop the glad wrap back on for 10-minute intervals.
- You can (and should) purple conditioner them.
- Be sure to let your skin rest after, lather them with some vitamin E cream and let it rest.
- It will be red, but it will settle over the next hour!
- Oh, last but not least! Try out the Fluffy Candy Eyebrows filter on Instagram before committing to give you an idea.
This article was originally posted on October 12, 2021.
If you’re a visual learner, follow along with Maddison’s at-home bleached brows how-to here. Or book to get yours done in the salon at @madisonsworld22.
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