Eyebrow Pencils from Wet n Wild, Prestige, NYC, Rimmel and Milani

Before starting the group review, let me give you a little background on my brow and related subject matter.I have thick (when it come to the width, not about hair intensity or thickness of each strand)eyebrows with black hair ( not quite "black and hairy brows") that grow like weed. My brow routine, for the past few years, consists of two simple steps: Tweezing and pulling (an unhealthy habit but I do it so frequently I might call it a routine). Technically my brows are fine they way they are but after strolling through Zhang Xinyuan's photos for quite sometime, I decided that it doesn't hurt to get them just a tad stronger...

And this is how I ended up with half a dozen of brow products...From left to right here are the individual reviews:
Wet n Wild Arch Envy Color and Set in Medium Ash ($3) - This double sided jumbo pencil with setting wax is and has been my favorite brow filler for the past few months. The grayish brown tint is dark but thanks to the semi-hard (dry) formula, I can add on color gradually without worrying about overkill. I don't normally use the wax side since it has a tendency to deepen the color beneath and keep the brow hair stuck to the skin (not a look I want to emulate). The 3 dollars price tag is just OK consider it runs out pretty quickly (and the fact that I only use the pencil side)but you can always find it cheaper...Never mind this part, I found it 50 cents a piece at my grocery store so I guess it's already discontinued.
Prestige Perfection Marbleized Brow Pencil in Light/Medium ($5-6) - The marbleized (pure gimmick if you ask me, it's not like you can adjust the depth anyway so they might as well make the core a uniform color)pencil is creamier than WnW Arch Envy but it still managed to look soft, natural (or powdery) once I blend it with the spoolie on the other end. The shade light/medium also seems like a perfect color match for my hair/skin since I prefer a bit of warmth in my brow colors. Again, the price is a tad steep (I usually pay around 0-3 dollars for any drugstore items so anything above 4 bucks is "steep") but it's well worth it. 

NYC Kohl Brow/Eyeliner Pencil in Taupe ($1) - The shade match is rather good (a tad warmer and darker than Prestige). But the formula is so creamy that I need to pay extra attention so I don't overkill. People with extra thick brow strands might find the waxy base helpful when it comes to taming the hair. (On me, it's just ended up gluing them together). As an eyeliner, it just smudges. easily and looks patchy.

Rimmel Professional Eyebrow Pencil($4) - The texture of this pencil is similar to that of Prestige (Rimmel goes on sale quite frequently at Walgreens so you can snatch the pencil for a dollar when you use a coupon during one of those promotions) but I don't get how this seemly harmless taupe brown would turn so coppery/red/brown, just plain weird on me.

Wet n Wild Color Icon Liner Brow & Eye Pencil ($1) - Texture wise, this is almost identical to the NYC Kohl eye/brow liner. This taupe is slightly cooler than the NYC version but they aren't too different on the brow. Mink brown is very deep but totally usable when used with a light hand (and a spoolie/brush to diffuse the color). In fact, if I want to emulate the exact Xinyuan brow look (which I personally find too dramatic), this will be the color I reach for. By the way, the dual sharpener from Wet n Wild is totally useless that the core keeps break off as I sharpen the pencil. The one from Styli-Style, that costs a dollar more, works a lot better.

Milani EasyBrow Automatic Eyebrow Pencil Natural Taupe ($3-5)  - Not shown on the top 2 pictures, the shade is pretty light but still usable and quite handy when I want to add a bit of color. The pencil is harder than Wet n Wild/NYC and slightly creamier than Prestige. With the spoolie attached at the other end, a natural effect is easily obtained.
Here is a brow swatch of Wet n Wild Arch Envy Medium Ash since I like it so much with nada on the left (I trimmed it and messed up a bit), Wet n Wild(and a bit of shimmery eyeshadow from Kiko) on the right. See how a few stroke can make a life-changing improvement. Apparently it's not drastic enough that I have already grown out of the brow-product kick. Actually, it's more like my laziness has kicked out any kick I have that requires more than 30 seconds to apply...
In March issue of Vivi magazine, there is a spread about brows I found pretty interesting (even though it's so difficult to get a hold of any of those products. Do you know that Maybelline Japan has a brow-color gel pot? I totally wish US drugstore brand would make something that cool). According to the spread, my brows are totally 80s...

Anyway, do you do much to your eyebrow or are you lazy like me?

Comments

  1. Awesome colors.. I am using eyebrow pencil because it is more convenient to apply. Thanks for sharing..:)

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  2. I am CRAZY about eyebrow pencils, I've hoarded a lot during my Korean trip!!! I want more! it's just addicting!

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  3. i'm totally envious of girls with "enough" brow hair as I am obviously the opposite. Brows really frame the face... :)

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  4. lol your eye pictures make me laugh, it always looks like you're trying really really hard to make your eyes bigger

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  5. Notcathy:
    I like how user friendly pencils are but now I am more gravitated toward powder, which takes less overall time (no blending with spoolie!).

    Nikki:
    Haha, it sure is! Look how many pencils (7 so far) did I end up with...I would totally try some Asian brand since they are usually natural-looking.

    frecklesspeckles:
    Have you tried any lash serum (on brows)? The two I have tried (Wet n Wild and L'Oreal) totally made they fuller.

    Laura:
    I am glad that my pictures made you laugh, that's what my blog is for, isn't it?

    P.S. For my next EOTD, I will try to do a sexy-Asian slit-like bedroom eyes just for you :)

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  6. Wow, you have a lot of brow pencils! :) I rarely paid attention to my brows until a month or two ago.... I was always too lazy to worry about them >.< But I plucked them to my liking and that was that until my friend kept encouraging me to fill them in. Now I fill my brows in everytime I wear makeup and I can see the difference. I like to keep my brows quite natural :) This post will certainly come in handy when I'm in need of a new pencil!

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  7. That's a lot of eyebrow pencils! I like the shape of my brows so I usually only tweeze some stray hair and do anything else to them. On special occasions, I will fill them in with powder, I think it looks more natural than pencils. :)

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  8. AngelicBetrayal:
    You can still get them *now* (beauty blogger define "need" differently) since most of them are a buck or below!

    Gio:
    Before I got into brow color, I would actually just brush on some mascara to tint/set them. It's actually pretty handy (and good for people who never finish up mascara before they expire).

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  9. I love the Wet n Wild Charcoal pencil as a brow pencil. Most brown brow colors turn too red on eyebrow hair, kind of obvious that I filled in my brows. Charcoal is perfect for me :)

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  10. cjx3pooh:
    I am glad you find the brow pencil you love! I don't use grey that much since the color tend to look like bruises on me (there is a bit of purple undertone that's waiting to get unleashed).

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