DIY Life

Got no romantic plans for Valentine's Day? How about staying home for a pamper-yourself evening? In the realm of DIY beauty, we have already tackled some haircare basics. (Check out our posts on cutting your own hair and cutting your baby's hair, for example.) Now let's move onto something equally tricky: plucking your own eyebrows.

According to NZGirl ("NZ" stands for New Zealand, but the site has no connection to this Kiwi), the key to brows that are shapely, yet natural-looking, is to have them echo the shape of your eyes. How, you ask? Here are some tips:
1. Check out photos in magazines and use your favorite examples as your guide.
2. Color your brows with pencil as you would like them to be. Then pluck around those areas. This way, you can be sure you won't accidentally overdo it.
3. Aim for a fan-shape, lining up your inner and outer brow edges with the inner and outer edges of your eyes.
4. Restraint is critical. In particular, go easy if your brows are heavy. Do you want to announce to the world you spent last evening plucking your brows? No, you don't!
5. Do a little from each brow, switching back and forth, with frequent breaks to stand back and rethink.
6. Remember that the key to a flattering result is to accentuate the natural arch of your brow line.
7. Essential tools are a magnifying mirror and a pair of slanted-edge tweezers.
8. Numb the sting of tweezing with a dab of baby teething gel.

Finished? Well done. You just saved yourself around $20!