When I worked in Chicago, I splurged on a brow styling session at Nordstrom.  The esthetician happened to be an extremely good-looking 20-year-old lad (hereinafter “Hottie”) who had just stepped off the plane from a house call to pluck J.Lo under the tutelage of Anastasia, the Beverly Hills brow goddess.

Hottie chastised me for over-plucking, and sent me home with strict orders not to touch my brows for four weeks.  It was excruciating.  I only made it that long sans plucking because I looked forward to another session with Hottie, and I was afraid he might otherwise ban me from his client list.  Perhaps it was the power of my new brow (and the infamous Prada shoes), but several months later I was engaged and left Chicago, never to see Hottie (or a brow stylist) again.

But the power of the brow stuck with me.  Five months ago, I seriously considered taking a light brown eye pencil to my newborn before the photographer showed up to take record of her life’s debut.  I decided not to after the nurse shot me a look from hell when I – jokingly – asked her if she thought filling in my baby’s brow (lightly, of course) would be wrong.

So what?  I have a brow problem… add it to my long list.

For women, sporting a groomed brow is akin to a polished cognac Italian leather shoe.  A pretty  shoe is nice to look at, even if it is a little scuffed.  And if it gleams, you probably won’t say to yourself, “wow, that shoe is really polished!”  But deep down, that detail makes a difference.

The firm I worked for in Chicago once hired a shadow jury to sit in the audience on a live trial and tell the defense team at the end of the day what they liked and disliked about their presentation to the real jury.  After the first day, the shadow jury told the head partner of my firm that his shoes needed polish.  You can imagine that every member of the defense team sported impeccable shoes from that day forward.  (And yes, I do have analogies and/or posts that do not involve shoes.)

Back to the Hottie, I do still keep up my brows and have a small arsenal of products to help me.  Although I have tried some cheaper drug store brands, my favorite products are Anatasia’s.

The Brow Express is the perfect starter kit.  I use it everyday before I leave the house.  Even if I only have time for a little concealer and lipstick, I open up this little book and fill in with the powder, swipe a little highlighter under the brow, and dash a little wax over to keep them in place.

For my travel bag, I carry the Brow Definer.  Gel on one side, light brown pencil on the other.  Lightly follow the upper line of your brow from inside to the ends.  And be sure to use the pencil to slightly extend your brow out towards your temples.  I swear it add a little something extra.

Brow Duality, a highlighter, is a nice bonus product, although instead, you can brush a highlighting shadow underneath the arch of the brow.

I hope you enjoyed today’s pow-brow-wow.  Please feel free to add tips, thoughts, and products you like in the comments.