Everyone has had an eyebrow disaster at least once in their lives. Perhaps you got a little eager with the tweezers, or your hand slipped when simply adding some shading, it’s understandable that sometimes it can be tricky to master the art of the brow. Then there’s the way that trends keep changing. Are they thick? Is a unibrow now acceptable (it was there for a while)? If you haven’t quite managed to get the right shape for you, then it’s probably best to consult a professional. If you’re not sure why, then a few glances through this article will show you. Here are some examples of people who really, really got it wrong.
An Eyebrow or Forebrow?
Regardless of what the current trend is, this woman seemed to completely miss the point that the brow is supposed to frame the eyes. Or perhaps she thought that she would stand out more and detract from those bags below with a punchy new brow statement.
We’re not sure what she was going for, but it probably wasn’t what she thought. Either she hasn’t got a mirror in her house, in which case, kudos for getting that shape, or… well, there are not many other possibilities. Your eyebrows should never be that far from your eyes.
If Brows Could Speak...
It seems this woman really wanted to make an impassioned plea about something. If her eyebrows could talk, they probably would be pleading to get off her face. Since this is a TV still, it begs the question of what make-up artist let this past them?
Surely there were mirrors somewhere in the studio? Her nails look on point, and that cute jacket could really have been set off with the right make-up, but somewhere, likely around the eyes, this went badly wrong. The blue eyeshadow is a style choice, particularly if you like a throwback to an '80s look, but the eyebrows - there’s no excuse.
Trying Out the French Songstress Look
One of France’s most famous exports for over three decades, Edith Piaf had a beautiful singing voice and with songs such as La Vie en Rose, and Je Ne Regrette Rien, she left a legacy that resounds. However, her eyebrow game isn’t largely talked about, for good reason.
Slimline, barely-there brows were a preference for Piaf, and times were different. This girl may think she’s emulating the French siren’s style, but she’s probably taken the wrong tack. With stunning eyes like that, a strong brow should be a necessity. But if she writes songs like Piaf, she’s forgiven.
Be Sure to Use the Tools Right
Sometimes your makeup is perfect and your hair is just right, but you need the right brow for the photo. In these instances, there’s Photoshop, and thank the tech wizards for that. If you’re going to use the tools, however, then a little attention to detail is required.
Digital eyebrows are fine, no one needs to know. However, you may just want to ensure that the brow is tucked under the bangs in the future. It doesn’t seem like it would have been that difficult to do either. Perhaps it was a digital slip of the thumb?
Block Style
This is less Jenny from the block as Prisoner Cell Block. However, this lady is actually a big name in Yakutsk, located around 450 miles south of the Arctic Circle in Russia. Perhaps her brows have some thermal use, as it’s probably pretty cold there?
If not, it’s hard to know why she is sporting such enormous black blocks on her forehead. It’s sad because it draws attention from an otherwise very pretty face. Maybe her eyebrows made her famous? Then absolute kudos to her, you go girl.
Famous for Fifteen Seconds
Sometimes the most mortifying things in the world may lead to you becoming a meme. This lady was just casually in the background of a CNN political broadcast. Many may not have even noticed her, but then… what is going on with those brows? Did she accidentally almost shave one off and then do the other to match?
Perhaps she was trying to draw attention to herself. She looks pretty earnest and totally unaware that millions of people can probably see her eyebrow disaster on national television. Maybe her eyebrows are a cry for help? If so, someone get a beautician on speed dial, please.
Lessons Learnt
Sometimes when you look back at an old photo, you can see where it all went wrong. This girl may have suited the blond hairstyle, but her barely-there brows weren’t doing anything for her. Even her expression said as much!
Ten years on, she’d managed to lay down the tweezers, and get that enviable arch. Gone too is the black eyeliner. In fact, most would say that she looks better now, even though she’s aged ten years. It just shows what good beauty routines (and lighting) can do for you.
Baby Abuse
There are no words for this. Well, there are, but they should be screamed into this mother’s face. How could you do this to your new baby? They’re so tiny and perfect, and these brows are absolutely terrifying. Mom’s eyebrows are nothing to shout about, but these weird caterpillar brows that she’s clearly drawn on her baby are super strange.
It genuinely begs the question if she’s cut out for this job at all. Babies' wispy soft eyebrows are super cute, and she’s already instilling a future lack of confidence in her baby’s looks by making a statement with those eyebrows so early on. No wonder the baby has its arm out, it’s begging to be adopted by someone else!
Put Some Gap in It
I mean, if it’s for Comic-Con, then we get it. One glance at this girl and she is rocking the Milhouse look. It’s a canny representation, but then you think about the fact that she probably has to walk around with those brows for a while.
The Milhouse look is definitely a bold statement, but the brows have a little too much gap for comfort. She looks permanently surprised. It’s hard to know whether she’s regretting the eyebrow shape and heavy-duty filling in, but we’re willing to bet that it won’t catch on.
In the Audience
Of course, it’s easy to feel smug when you’re sitting in the audience of The Jeremy Kyle Show. Many of the people that cross that stage don’t have a lot to be thankful for. However, did the woman in the pink top actually look in the mirror that day?
The sad thing is that she probably had to, in order to get that teeny line so straight. Is there any hair on those eyebrows at all, or is it the work of an eyeliner pencil? She seems pretty delighted with her handiwork, but she should probably get a specialist in.
More Is More… Sometimes
Getting your makeup on point is not as simple as some people think. That’s why there are thousands of YouTube tutorials out there. However, you may get ‘stuck’ in a look for some time and let various trends pass you by. That’s ok, especially if you’re doing what works for you.
This girl liked a dramatic look for a while, and there’s no doubt that it suited her. Unfortunately, though, her eyebrows were ruining the look as they were barely there. When she decided to let them grow in fuller, she also ditched the heavy make up, which revealed the beauty underneath. How great does she look now?
Don’t Pass Those Brows Down
The joy of having your baby back home from the hospital is so special, and of course, you want to take all the photos of the cute little things they do, even just sleeping. It’s understandable that Momma also wants to look her best for the photo. Perhaps her partner, mom, or friend didn’t have the heart to tell her to put down the brow pencil.
The one good thing about this is that there’s no way those things grew naturally on her face, so the baby can rest assured that it won’t grow up with those little slugs on its forehead. It’s probably not very comforting to wake up to either. Let’s cut the mom some slack though, she’s probably had very little sleep.
Prom Style
Imagine forking out a pricey sum to get your prom makeup done and ending up with this? Is it possible that eyebrows even grow in this way? Probably not. The red lippy is beautiful and the eyes certainly pop but then you get to those brows and it’s just way too much.
This one is definitely about a trend, but we’re certain that the poor girl will look back on her prom photos and think, “Why did I let the makeup artist do that to my brows?” It’s better to go classic for your prom, so you can admire the photos in years to come.
Thinking About Stealing Christmas?
At first glance, it’s a perfect Christmas postcard. She’s got her Christmas jumper on, she’s working that girl next door look and then the unnatural shape of her eyebrows reminds you of… The Grinch! It’s possible that her eyebrows just have this shape, as the hair looks natural.
But she definitely looks like she might be up to some mischief. That slight head tilt and unusual pose make it look like she’s hiding something. If it’s a new micro-blading set, that’s wonderful, but if not, then she should ask Santa for one.
Acceptable in the ’90s
Most people who were teens in the '90s say that they were glad social media wasn’t around. When you see images like this, you understand why. Some called it teardrop, but most people could see that it looked like something else.
Yeah, who thought that one up? To be fair, they were mostly drawn on quite thin, with a more rounded bit near the bridge of the nose. Then this girl came along and thought hey, what’s an extra inch? Well, they look like they might take over!
Eye Brackets
Maybe she’s a math fanatic or thought that a pair of suitcase handles would be a quirky addition to her make up? Why bother with the star filter when all anyone is really going to see are those enormous black blocks on your forehead?
The fact that she’s wearing a little smile could mean that she’s actually just joking. It’s not a trend that’s likely to take off - she couldn’t get them even on both sides so it looks like a lot of effort for a very odd bit of statement eyebrow art.
Tiny Hoof Marks
What is going on here? With all that lustrous hair on her head, one would expect that she’d have some lovely, thick eyebrows, but something happened along the way to change that. Maybe she got tired of the thick look or someone suggested that tiny black rainbows were worn by the likes of Beyonce (they’re not).
Did a tiny horse mount her forehead and leave a couple of little hoof prints right above her eyes? Given how crazy these excuses for eyebrows are, that doesn’t actually seem so far-fetched. But really, someone needs to take the eyebrow pencil off her and never let her near it again.
Highlight This
This appears to have been done by a digital highlighter. It would seem that she wanted to make her eyes pop, but went a bit high with the whitener. She seems pretty pleased with herself, so maybe it’s for the stage?
There’s a definite Helga from Hey Arnold vibe going on here. Maybe she walks home on a dark road and wants to ensure people don’t miss her in the dark. Those brows too, where one ends and the other begins, I can’t fathom.
A Leopard Can Change Its Spots
Well, maybe that’s not strictly true, but a human can up their brow game considerably. We should have empathy for the young these days, all their bad makeup decisions are out there on Insta. This girl had strong game on her eyes and lips, but her brows were letting her down.
She knew she wanted an arch, but she’d gone a little too high with it. The photo on the right shows beautifully arched full brows that set off her whole face. This truly is an example of practice makes perfect! There’s hope for everyone.
An '80s Pop Tribute?
Let’s start with the good - someone is a dab hand at the smoky eye. It’s just, it doesn’t really work with the rest of this look. Can anyone tell what ‘look’ this even is? It seems to be a tribute to some '80s act, with the bleached blond slicked-back do, and what about the lip liner?
However, she seems to have used the same pencil for her lips as for her brows. Did she mean to make her lips look like a cat? Was the intention just to scrawl two lines where her brows should be? So many questions. It’s worth noting that this is a mugshot, but unless it’s crimes against makeup, there aren't many excuses for that.
Bushy Eyebrows - Straight Up
Bushy eyebrows are definitely in right now, as the beauty world rushes to upload their tutorials and demonstrations of the trend on social media. This lady clearly got the memo on that, but somehow ignored the part where you either begin with plenty of hair or fill in gently with a light hand.
It’s an interesting look, especially if she’s going for slightly terrifying. Simply put, a professional could have done so much more here. Look at those cheekbones! On second thought, there’s the possibility that this is for a theater role, which would give some explanation.
Tough Lookin’ Bae
There’s no mistaking that this woman clearly means business. From the slight frown to the pursed lips, and that scary direct scare, she’s not buying whatever you’re selling. So, we assume that the eyebrows here are not a mistake, but are meant to contribute to the overall effect of being menacing.
However, in the hopes that she won’t hunt us down for saying so, she must have been distracted as the right and left eyebrows don’t match at all. As eyebrows go, they are absolutely dreadful. It’s odd, because her lashes are so lengthy and she’s got pretty good skin, but no one’s ever shown her how to use a brow pencil.
Meeting in the Middle
If there is an award for precision, then this woman deserves it. These uniquely-shaped brows look like they were drawn on using a stencil, and they have that fine line where they just about meet. However, that doesn’t mean this is a good look. In fact, it’s probably a crime against eyebrows.
She seems pretty pleased with her handiwork, and there’s every chance that she could get away with it if she did it for a laugh. The other thing to consider here is that she may have had this tattooed on, in which case there’s no hope left.
Matching
It can be pretty difficult to get your eyebrows to totally match, which is why the experts tell us that they’re more like sisters than twins. If you wear them a little heavier, then it’s easier to get away with small differences. This lady obviously prefers total symmetry though.
What’s disappointing is that you can clearly see she had more brow to begin with. That means that she has shaved them off to put these two lines in, which, frankly do absolutely nothing for her. The height of them leaves a permanent look of surprise, so perhaps that why she’s pursing her lips, aware that she’s messed up here.
Just Did It
Advertising on your eyebrows - it’s definitely not been floated yet, perhaps for good reason. Who knows what was in this woman’s mind when she went ahead and did this, maybe she thought Nike would give her a promotional deal? We’re not sure this is exactly what they have in mind when it comes to innovative advertising.
Having just done that, she didn’t follow up by removing all of her natural brows either, which can be seen in the photo. The good thing that can be gleaned from this is that it likely wasn’t a tattoo. Perhaps leave the sports brand names and slogans off your forehead in the future.
Sleeping Kitties
Everyone loves cats, right? There are whole swathes of the internet dedicated to these mysterious creatures so it’s true that they have plenty of fans. But do you love cats this much? This lady clearly wants to show her love with her eyebrows, as she placed two cats who appear to be napping.
There’s a term ‘crazy cat lady’ and we think it applies here. Why would you shave off your eyebrows and get these tattooed on in their place? Why would anyone want cats rather than eyebrows? You don’t have to feed eyebrows or put out a litter tray. It’s all very strange.
Dot, Dot, Dot
If you’re heading off to a festival for the weekend, it’s common to do some funky things with your eye makeup. Girls put glitter, sequins, and bold colors all over to get ready for a party. This woman went one step further. She removed her eyebrows completely and just put some dots in their place.
However, we’re willing to bet that she may have been under the influence of something illegal at the time. That would explain how she ended up having her mugshot taken, courtesy of the police. Unfortunately, there’s no such thing as the fashion police, so it’s not just her eyebrows she’s in trouble for.
Dracula Brows
At first glance, we’d have to say that if this man is auditioning as a villain in a stage version of a Disney film, he’s in with a real shot. He has nailed that evil glare good and proper. Then, take a step back. What’s actually going on here?
They are cartoon eyebrows, no doubt about it. They can’t possibly be real. The question here is why? Why do the arches go halfway up his forehead? Why is he slightly smiling? Did he do this to himself? So many questions.
Snapshot Brows
Your eyebrows are a frame for your face, so beauty experts say. This girl took this to a new level and obviously aimed to create an actual frame for her face. Perhaps she thought that the normal eyebrow shapes that trend just weren’t angular enough for her.
So, she removed her own natural brows and drew in these right angles, with what looks like a marker. Let’s hope it isn’t permanent, as this is not a look anyone would want to live with. Could employers say something about this look? She’s probably not going to be working on a makeup counter anytime soon.
Cat Brows
Do cats have eyebrows? Well, technically yes, but they aren’t the same as human ones. This little cutie has some comical brow action going on, so we thought we’d include him to break up the list a little. We’re assuming the kitty’s owner didn’t draw the brows on, so it’s just a cute natural arch.
Cats have other things to worry about other than brows, like if you’re watching them when you shouldn’t be. Look at that disapproving face, that kitty definitely doesn’t want you to know what he’s up to! Cute, but always a little bit shady.
Ironic Eyebrows
Sitting there in his orange jumpsuit, this guy is in trouble but his ‘devil may care’ expression wouldn’t hint at it. In fact, he saw this coming, according to his eyebrows. He had thoughtfully shaved them off and replaced them with text, one of which reads “Convicted”.
It seems life’s had plans for this dude for quite a while. If he’d like to get back on the straight and narrow, we’re unsure any employer is going to look at those brow tattoos as customer-friendly.
Lost Along the Way?
So, another lady who decided that this was a good look. This '90s trend hasn’t quite died out, it would seem. The two shapes above her eyes look like they were in some sort of important race and got lost along the way.
She seems pretty pleased with them, and that’s her right. Our advice is that a more natural thicker looking brow would do much more for that great bone structure. Sometimes it’s better to stay up to date, then stick with the same style for 20 years.
Diving In
When we said thicker, this wasn’t exactly what we had in mind. Here’s a lady that definitely kept some original brow, but for some reason decided that she needed to make a sharp contrast between where her brow starts and ends.
It’s truly terrible, although probably still isn’t the worst on the list. Still, it begs the questions why? As it appears this is also a mugshot, perhaps she got bored while waiting and decided to practice some new looks? She doesn’t look particularly pleased about her results though.
Dog Gone Awful
Our fuzzy little friends normally look adorable no matter what you dress them up in. Then there’s this doggy. The owner might have been joking, but it’s hardly fair on their best friend. Drawn on eyebrows are simply not for pooches.
Is it any wonder that the dog looks taken aback? She’s probably upset that her owner thought this would be a fun thing to do. The pink eyeshadow doesn’t even properly match the scarf! People like this shouldn’t be allowed to have a dog.
Supernatural
It’s clear this girl likes to stand out from the crowd. It’s great to embrace your individuality and express yourself through your clothes and makeup. However, we’re here to talk about the brows. Where are her natural brows? What happened to them?
If they’d been there, perhaps she wouldn’t have tried to match her brows to her outfit. Even if she’s committed to her otherworldly image, couldn’t she have made them a bit thicker? Two white lines do no qualify as eyebrows, and that’s one for your beauty book.
Caterpillars
Woah! What happened here? Maybe this lady has no access to YouTube or Insta, or even a mirror! She has some eyeliner that meets her eyebrows and then some sort of double or treble brow going on. The overall effect is absolutely dreadful.
A thick brow is great, but it looks like she already had pretty thick brows to begin with. We’re not here to talk about lips, but that shade shouldn’t be seen anywhere apart from a futuristic stage show, and even then it won’t look good. Someone gift this girl a makeover, please.
The Ultimate Unibrow
Some people are born with a unibrow and while it may be common to poke fun at that, it’s not really nice. A unibrow is when your eyebrows just meet at the bridge of the nose, without any break in hair. Maybe this lady was tired of the constant jibes, or perhaps she simply wanted to make a statement.
However, it certainly looks like this unibrow has been tattooed onto her face - it’s incredibly even and those arches are perfect. Some interesting facts about the unibrow: the author, Martin Amis, also referred to it as a monobrow in a 1973 novel. It’s considered a sign of beauty in Oman and Tajikistan, so if you are rather hairy up there, you know where you can move to.
Life Support for Eyebrows
What does this remind you of? For us, it’s like the lines on a life support machine beeping away on the screen. So, it seems like something in this woman’s life is steady, but you have to wonder what else? Certainly not her hands.
She could probably do with a little assistance in the make up department to be perfectly honest. She’s obviously a fan of a pencil, whether for lips or eyes, but she hasn’t quite mastered its usage by the looks of things.
A Strange Hue
This girl is really happy about life if this picture is anything to go by. She’s also sorted for a job in the mines with those pickaxes on her forehead. We’ve seen this bracket look before, but here she’s gone with a pencil in a completely different tone to either her skin, current hair color, or even what her natural hair color probably looks like.
It’s a kind of brown, but not one normally seen on eyebrows? Such a strange combination, and it really takes away from how pretty she is. Why do some pretty people make such odd eyebrow choices? This girl knows but she’s not telling.
How Many Brows?
There’s a kind of 3D effect here that must be appreciated. She looks like she’s stepped right out of a sci-fi movie. Perhaps ‘Lauren’ was trying to distract from those lips? Anyhow, not only has she gone for a treble lash effect, but clearly two eyebrows are better than one.
Or is that three? It must be said that every brow here has been perfectly drawn, with a gentle arch that is to her credit. In many ways, she wins the award for the best brows on this list, and she’s certainly got more of them than anyone else too!