First thought that comes to mind at the thought of a brow marker or brow pen: Sharpie? Well here’s a quick video demo to show you why you might want to think about adding one to your routine. Er — brow pen, not Sharpie.
At the moment I’m obsessed with the new fine-tipped brow pens from Urban Decay And Stila, so much so that although I mentioned them recently, I have to highlight them again. They are a lot like markers. Only better, because unlike Sharpie on your face, they say nothing about what kind of partying you get up to.
The Urban Decay Urbanbrow Precision-Tip Brow Tint ($24) comes in Universal Blonde and Universal Brown; the Stila All Day Waterproof Brow Color Pen ($27) comes in Light and Medium. I’m particularly taken by the Blonde and Light shades because they’re so perfect for blondes: zero red undertones, sheer enough for light blonde brows and buildable enough for light-to-medium brunettes. And both formulas are water resistant.
A quick visual on how to use the pens might be useful. Here, on “The Marilyn Denis Show” (see full segment here), I’m using the Stila All-Day Waterproof Brow Color Pen in Light on model Karen, who, like me, overtweezed just once when she was a teen (sheesh). The key with these pens is light strokes. But don’t worry — you’ll find them easy to use, I promise. Heck, I use my Urban Decay Urbanbrow Universal Brunette in the back of cabs.
Will you think about switching from pencil or powder to one of these?
The Stila and Urban Decay brow pens are available at Shoppers Drug Mart and Sephora starting this month.
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Hi Janine,
I love brow pens! I think they’re more like markers in feel and application. They go on relatively sheer, and mistakes can be wiped away. I like how they also give a bit of hold as well – without using a separate wax (like the Smashbox one I used to use). I’ve been using the Anastasia pen (in Universal Deep) until recently. I stopped using it because I felt I used it up too quickly, and at $27 it was a little pricey for a monthly purchase. I will definately try the ones you listed.
Love your blog! Thanks!
I haven’t tried the Anastasia pen; $27 is a lot if you have to replace it every month. I haven’t used up a Stila or Urban Decay pen yet; crossing fingers that they last a bit longer!
Thanks so much for your kind words :-)
I love these mofos.
“Mofos.” The technical term. Love it.
I need to find the Stila one asap. I hope they have it at my Shoppers!
Happy Friday!
The Urban Decay Universal Blonde is pretty much the same shade, so if you see that one, give it a whirl!
what about a brow pen for the dark skin…it sounds so good i want one but I am dark skin with dark brows…can you help?
Hi Norma,
I think it’s worth trying the Universal Brunette by Urban Decay. You don’t want black-black — too harsh and Sharpie like. Sephora may have a tester so you can give it a go without spending first. As well, I remembered as I was answering the Q below, GOSH at Shoppers has a Dark Brown that I think is a tad deeper than the Urban Decay Universal Brunette.
If that shade isn’t dark enough, you may have to go to a pencil or to powder (I prefer powder; it’s a softer finish). Chanel actually has a black brow pencil; I’ll look up the shade and get back to you!
I too have black brows. Do you have recommendations us dark haired beautygeeks?
Hi Chantelle,
If you have fair or medium or medium-dark skin, the Universal Brunette will work for you. A very light application will work for brown-browed folk; a few more strokes will darken the colour enough to define black brows. But like Norma, you’ll want to test that theory with your hair and skin. GOSH at Shoppers also has brow pens, four shades including a Dark Brown which may actually be darker than the Urban Decay. And the last time I was in a shop near me, there were testers :-)
I am a brow pen convert! My previous HG was Shu Uemura Hard pencil in Seal Brown. You can get a brow pen with nearly identical ingredients/formula as the Stila ones from Paula’s Choice (online retailer) for half the price!
Hi. this is the first time I’m coming to your website and I love it. I have a question though: I have copper red hair. What pen would I use? My brows are naturally strawberry blonde/light red, so I guess the blonde color? thanks