Eyebrow trends: from 1920s pencil lines to 2026

Bold brows were the make-up trend of the last decade, driven above all by the model Cara Delevingne. Eyebrows are also one of the most important parts of the face: they shape the whole look and bring out particular features. Nobody doubts that brow shape should be chosen for the individual face rather than for the current fashion, yet few people think about which product to reach for in which situation.

This guide first shows how eyebrow trends have changed over several thousand years, and how strange some of them were. It then covers the eyebrow trends of 2026 and explains how tinting, lamination and permanent make-up differ. Every illustration shows the same face; only the eyebrows change, so you can see how much they alter a person.

Each treatment has its own in-depth guide:

• Brow lamination: the steps, how long it lasts, aftercare and risks.
• Eyebrow tinting: tint or henna, choosing a shade, tinting at home.
• Eyebrow shapes: shapes by face, mapping, tweezing, waxing and threading.
• Microblading, powder brows and nano brows: techniques, healing and removal.

What eyebrows are for

Eyebrows keep sweat, water and dust out of the eyes, but their main job is communication: by moving they signal surprise, doubt, sympathy or anger. They balance the face and frame the eyes. That is why brow shape changes a face more than almost any other detail of make-up, and why every era has had its own opinion about what brows should look like.

Eyebrow history: the ancient world and the Middle Ages

In ancient Egypt both men and women defined their brows, thickening and lengthening them with black pigment so the eyes looked more expressive. Ancient Greece and Rome prized natural, dense brows that met above the nose. Women whose brows did not meet painted the gap in.

In medieval Europe the fashion flipped: a high, smooth forehead was the most admired part of the face, so brows were plucked until almost nothing was left. In Elizabethan England high-status women removed their eyebrows altogether or dyed them a reddish blonde, like Queen Elizabeth I. The browless portraits of the Mona Lisa and Elizabeth I still recall that fashion.

Shaved and redrawn: from Japan to Hollywood

In Japan during the Heian period (794–1185) aristocratic women plucked or shaved their eyebrows and painted new ones, shaped like smoky ovals, high on the forehead with a soot-based ink. The practice was called hikimayu; in the Edo period married women followed it, and it was banned in 1870.

In the 1920s silent-film stars began to set the fashion. Brows were heavily plucked and pencilled in thin, extended beyond the eye and sloping downward, which made a face more dramatic on screen. It was the first decade in which eyebrow products were made commercially. In the 1930s the thin line stayed but rose into a high rounded arch, with the natural brow plucked almost away and redrawn where it was wanted.

From the strong arch to bushy brows: 1950–1980

After the war brows thickened: in the 1940s and 1950s the look was a dark, pencilled brow with a clear high angle. In the 1960s attention moved to the eyes and lashes and brows slimmed down again; some women shaved theirs and drew them back in short strokes that imitated hairs. The 1970s favoured a natural look, and the 1980s brought full, unplucked brows.

Thin eyebrows: the 1990s and 2000s

In the 1990s bushy brows gave way to their opposite: they were tweezed until only a thin high line remained. In the early 2000s the fashion reached its extreme, and many photographs from those years raise a smile today: a rounded start that suddenly turns into a hair-thin tail. Around the same time the eyebrow slit spread among young people: one or more narrow gaps shaved through the brow.

Those decades also left a lesson. Brows plucked for years often grow back sparser, and in places not at all, so many women who wore thin eyebrows then later pencilled, tinted or tattooed them.

Bold brows and internet oddities: the 2010s

In the 2010s fashion returned to thick brows. At first they were full and natural; then social media turned them into the so-called Instagram brow: dark, sharply outlined with pencil and concealer, with a lighter squared-off start. Microblading became popular in the same years.

2017 was the strangest year. The Finnish make-up artist Stella Sironen posted "feather brows", parted down the middle, as a joke, and the internet made them a trend. Squiggle brows, bent into a wave, followed. These fashions lived for a few weeks and mostly in photographs, but they show how fast eyebrow trends now move.

Bleached and shaved brows on the runway

The avant-garde version came from Prada and Balenciaga, whose autumn/winter 2009–2010 shows were dominated by models with bleached or shaved eyebrows; the look also appeared on Gareth Pugh's runway at Paris Fashion Week. Magazine covers followed: Italian Vogue devoted a cover to the American supermodel Kristen McMenamy with bleached brows, Vogue Nippon lightened Edita Vilkevičiūtė's brows for a shoot, and Adriana Lima bleached hers for a Givenchy campaign.

This radical, slightly aggressive look spread quickly through fashion and has kept coming back: bleached brows are named among the eyebrow trends of 2026 too, and the next section shows what they look like. Experts advise not rushing: what a drop of peroxide or a pair of tweezers does so easily is not always as easy to undo.

Eyebrow trends 2026

After a decade in which everyone wanted the same thick brows, 2026 has no single fashion. British Vogue picked out five directions from the spring/summer 2026 shows, and make-up artists add a sixth: the return of slimmer brows.

• Natural brows. The biggest trend is to leave brows almost alone, in their own shape and colour. Off-White and N°21 showed them.
• Bleached brows. Back on the runways (Fendi, Ferragamo, Dolce & Gabbana) and on celebrities. They accentuate the eyes and visually lengthen the forehead.
• Almost invisible brows. A more extreme version, seen at Dries Van Noten: not blonde, just barely perceptible. At home a clear gel and a little powder are enough, which makes this the safest way to try a browless face.
• Thick, fluffy, ungroomed. Big full brows, seen at Isabel Marant and Ralph Lauren. They suit every face shape and need almost no work.
• Straight eyebrows. A horizontal line instead of the classic arch, seen at Giambattista Valli and Blumarine. The face looks shorter and younger. Do not pluck the arch straight away: try it with make-up first, hiding the lower part of the arch with concealer.
• Slimmer brows. Make-up artists predict that brushed-up fluffy brows will give way to natural, tamed, thinner ones. Not the 1990s thread, but a neat, narrower shape.

What these directions share: brows are matched to the face, not to a template. That is good news for anyone who does not want to change shape every few years.

Eyebrow shapes: how to find yours

The classic make-up artist's rule rests on three points: a pencil from the side of the nose past the inner corner of the eye marks the start, past the outer edge of the pupil the arch, and past the outer corner of the eye the end. A straighter brow shortens a long face; a higher arch lengthens a round one. Six main shapes on one face, a table by face shape and the ways to tweeze, wax and thread are in our guide to eyebrow shapes; for face shapes themselves see hairstyles for your face shape.

Pencil, gel, powder or wax

Make-up is the safest way to change your brows: it all washes off at night, so you can try any trend.

• Brow pencil. Best for changing the shape a little (a sharper angle, a longer tail) and for hiding scars, bare patches and tweezing mistakes. Draw soft, fairly thin, short lines and blend them into the natural brow with a spoolie. A retractable pencil needs no sharpening.
• Brow gel. The quickest product, good for long unruly hairs and for holding a set shape. With a tinted gel, check that it coats the hairs and does not stain the skin, that it is not too shiny, and that it does not flake once dry.
• Brow powder. Looks natural and makes brows seem fuller, but it does not build a shape, so use it on brows that are already tidy. It suits sparse or very fair brows least. Choose a shade no darker than your natural brow colour, and often two shades lighter, because powder fills the whole shape.
• Brow wax. The most water-, sweat- and heat-resistant product: it sets brows that are already defined and protects pencil or powder in rain and heat. Use it sparingly, or brows look wet or oily.

Eyebrow tinting and brow lamination

Eyebrow tinting colours the hairs themselves, so fair or sparse brows look more defined for 3–6 weeks without daily make-up. Use only products made for eyebrows and patch-test first: hair dye is not for this area and can injure the eyes. Tint versus henna, choosing a shade and tinting at home are covered in our guide to eyebrow tinting.

Brow lamination is a chemical treatment: a solution softens the hairs, they are brushed upward and set. The result lasts 6–8 weeks and should not be repeated more often than every six weeks. The steps, aftercare and who should skip it are in our guide to brow lamination.

Permanent make-up: microblading and powder brows

Permanent make-up puts pigment into the skin: microblading draws separate strokes, powder brows are an even shading. This is where the lesson of history matters most. Cleveland Clinic reminds patients that what is fashionable today may not be tomorrow, and that removing pigment can be a long, painful and expensive process that may not remove all of it. So choose a shape close to your natural one, not this season's fashion. The techniques compared, healing day by day and what to ask an artist are in our guide to microblading, powder brows and nano brows; lips and eyes are covered in the permanent make-up guide.

Shaping: tweezers, wax or eyebrow threading

Tweezers are the most precise way to keep a shape at home, wax is the fastest, and threading gives an exact line with neither heat nor chemicals, which suits sensitive skin. All three are compared, with rules for not overdoing it, in our guide to eyebrow shapes and shaping. If you are growing brows back after years of plucking, leave them completely alone for a few months and fill gaps with pencil or powder meanwhile. A steady skincare routine keeps the skin around the eyes in good condition.

A modeling agency's view: why models do not change their own brows

For a model, eyebrows are a working tool. You go to an open call or a casting with natural, tidy brows, because the client needs to see a face a make-up artist can turn into anything: bold brows or "invisible" ones. Bleaching or even shaving for a shoot or a show is done by the team's make-up artists and is always agreed with the agency, because for several weeks afterwards the model looks different on other jobs too.

• Before a casting, do not change your brows drastically: no bleaching, thin shapes or heavy tinting.
• We do not recommend permanent make-up to a new model: it limits what a make-up artist can do with the face.
• If a client asks to bleach or shave your brows, tell your agent first.

Which brow shape and colour suit your face can be discussed in an image consultation. Want to try modeling? See the Supermodels open call.

Frequently asked questions

What are the eyebrow trends for 2026?

There is no single fashion: natural, bleached, almost invisible, thick and fluffy, straight and slimmer brows are all named. The common direction is a shape close to natural and fitted to the face.

How long does brow lamination last?

Typically 6–8 weeks. Repeat it no more often than every couple of months and use a nourishing oil on the brows afterwards.

Can you tint eyebrows with hair dye?

No. Hair dye is not made for eyebrows and eyelashes and can injure the eyes. Use only products made for brows, and patch-test first.

What is the difference between microblading and powder brows?

Microblading draws separate strokes that imitate hairs; powder brows are an even shading. Both are permanent make-up: pigment goes into the skin and fades gradually.

Do over-plucked eyebrows grow back?

Usually yes, but slowly, over several months. After many years of plucking some hairs may not return, so it is safer to get a thin shape with make-up than with tweezers.

How do you find where an eyebrow should start and end?

Hold a pencil against the side of your nose: straight up past the inner corner of the eye marks the start, past the outer edge of the pupil the arch, and past the outer corner of the eye the end.

Are thin eyebrows back?

Slimmer, tidier brows are predicted for 2026, but not the thread-thin line of the 1990s. Try the shape with concealer and pencil before you pluck anything.