I Was Using Hairspray On My Eyebrows ‘Til I Discovered This $6 Mega-Hold Brow Gel
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Okay, I’m not proud of this, but for months I was spraying hairspray onto an eyebrow spoolie at the end of an eyebrow pencil. Although, yes, it worked and kept my eyebrows rock hard and in place all day, the result was a gloopy, sticky mess that eventually rendered my spoolie unusable. Call it inventive or desperate, either way, I knew there had to be a better option to keep my stray eyebrow hairs down instead of letting them roam free.
I have super thick, long eyebrow hair that literally falls downwards towards my eyes throughout the day if there’s nothing applied to tame them. I wasn’t necessarily going for a laminated look; I was just trying to find something that would keep them from drooping downwards. And when I came across Essence Brow Lifting Gel Set, I finally had something that worked and that was easy to travel with other than hairspray.
If you’re unfamiliar with Essence, the affordable drugstore brand is perhaps best known for its iconic line of mascaras in the Lash Princess line . As a self-proclaimed mascara queen myself, I love that they have endless options to achieve whatever look you’re going for. You can pick up a mascara that’s for volume, curling, drama, etc. So, all that to say, I basically had high expectations for the brand when trying out its brow wax.
Upon first glance, I love that when you unscrew the flat jar (it seriously takes up no space in your makeup bag), you’re met with a brow brush attached to the lid. It keeps the brush completely away from the product itself, and it ensures you’ll never misplace the brush. It snaps into a holder and then you just lift up the top lid to reveal the product.
How to Use the Essence Brow Lifting Gel Set
One of my favorite things about the formula is that I barely even need to dip the brush into the product—a little goes a long way. I just lightly dab the spoolie into the gel, and that little bit is enough to slick down my stubborn eyebrows and keep them in one long cohesive line. You can also use the gel to push your eyebrows upwards if you’re into a more laminated look.
I recently brought this product on a trip to Sweden, and I was shocked that it kept my eyebrows in place all day long. Sometimes they needed mild fluffing to put them back in shape, but that was far less effort compared to having to pack up my hairspray and spoolie separately.
The brand promises extreme hold all day long, and in my experience, it’s delivered. Plus, if you look at the ingredient list, it’s pretty impressive for a brand this affordable. There are only six ingredients, plus water in the formula, and it’s completely vegan, paraben-free, alcohol-free, and microplastic-free.
All in all, if you’re jet-setting anywhere this winter or just need a stronger brow product, this brow gel is a must-have for your beauty arsenal since it absolutely gets the job done.
