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I've been getting my brows tinted for about four years — ever since I first met Bob Scott, brow extraordinaire. As someone who is constantly looking to cut down her morning routine, I liked the idea of tinting, since it would pretty much guarantee I didn't have to fill in my brows for about five weeks.
But with COVID-19 still making in-salon visits a distant memory, I started to miss Scott and our tinting sessions. So I gave them a call to see if it was possible to do the procedure at home. Turns out, tinting your brows from the comfort of your own bathroom isn't as difficult as you may think.
Who is brow tinting best for?According to Scott, pretty much anyone can tint their brows at home, and, if done right, see positive results from the process. "They'll see brows that appear denser, hairs that may look longer, or more hair present than they had noticed before. But the transformation is greater and more useful on brows that are naturally faint, or patchy brows that are being regrown." I tend to fall into the latter category, with brows that are super dark but have noticeable patchy spots.
How to pick the right colorIf you're unsure about what color to pick up, and you go to a hair colorist, it's a good idea to reach out to them. They'll be able to guide you on a complimentary color to your hair hue. But if you don't, it's always a good idea to err on the side of lighter, says Scott. "Reversing dark brows is very tough and requires bleach," they explained. And unlike your brow pomade, tint takes five to six weeks to fade, depending on your skincare products and your sun exposure.
The first time I tinted my brows, I actually ordered a color that looked a shade lighter than my natural hair color, which I was worried about. But I just left it on for a minute longer, which wound up being perfect. So don't fret if your color looks a little light the first time you put it on.
Tips and tricksTo prep for your tinting, all you need is clean, moisturized skin. "Dry skin tends to stain more, and though staining is a normal effect of tinting and does wash away in the shower, some people want to avoid staining entirely," Scott says. "A light oil around the brows — but not on the hairs — would be sufficient to keep the skin protected. But there are tint removers that you can apply to the skin under and around the brow before and after tinting that won't get in the way of the color being deposited."
When I tint my brows, I also like to keep cotton buds around to clean up any stray color that may fall outside the boundary of where I want the pigment to deposit. These Muji buds are super precise, so they just pick up the amount of color that I want to erase.
Scott also recommends having all of your tools on hand and ready to go before you start tinting, just in case anything goes awry. I like to pre-moisten a few cotton pads in a shampoo/water mixture, so I'm ready to wipe off the tint when it's done developing.
Finally, it's important to remember that you won't really see the true color your brows have taken on until they're dry. So if you think you want to go darker, give them a little blast with a hairdryer first before you reapply your tint.
Tools you'll need