Get Fabulous Brows With Just one $3 Product!!

By BR Kellie

I'm no cosmetics snob. My collection is a random mix of high end and low end. My only critieria when it comes to buying a product is that it has to do a good job. I've had expensive foundation flop where cheap as chips foundations have flown. Wallet killing blushers have blotched, bank manager-friendly blushers have blended beautifully. But... like so many things in life you never know what you've got until you've given it a try. So when I read that an eyebrow pencil was taking the beauty world by storm and it was cheaper than my daily flat white - and I was due to book in my brow tint and shape lady but didn't have the time - I had to give it a go*.

Meet the Essence Eyebrow Designer. It comes in four shades and I grabbed 02 Brown for the ridonculously affordable price of $3.35 at Farmers. 

Now, I must be honest, I was weary going into this - because shades of brown eyebrow pencil and I have never really gotten along. Previously the ones I've tried (and discarded) have had a reddish tinge, which doesn't look good on me. So the first test - and the one that would see it straight in the bin if it didn't pass was - does the colour suit?

Before we go any further, here's the before pic...

As you can see I have a goodly amount of brow going on, but there are definitely areas that could be filled in, thickened up and evened out.

First things first I used the brush attached to tidy up my brow hair - I have to be honest, I'm not a huge fan of the brush. It was a bit fiddly to use, and while it does put the hair in place I found myself wanting to grab a spoolie to really sort my long and lush brow hairs out.

The pencil itself is a standard pencil - you'll need a sharpener on hand for when it gets blunt. So... how was the colour?

Great, actually. Yep, I was surprised. Initially I was like 'woah' it's darker than I expected and I felt I was all brows and bland face, but once I applied lipstick before heading out into the great wide world it balanced out.

The pencil is really lovely in that you can do feather light strokes and it applies the colour very subtly. You can really work on those areas that need a little help, but they don't end up looking obvious or unnatural. If I did see an area that looked a bit 'strokey' I brushed it out - and the attached brush (despite my lack of love for it) did this well. 

So how'd it go once all was said and done (or coloured in and blended)...?

Here's the after shot...

Filled in and ready to rock the day! (Pass the lipstick)!

Final thoughts? You know - I'm pleasantly surprised with this. I can see why it's getting buzz. It's super affordable, it gives you great control, the pencil isn't too soft that it smushes or too hard that you have to work to get the colour on the brows. Most importantly, I'm happy with the result. I may not be Cara Delevinge, but my brows look more pulled together, my overall look more polished.  

The Essence Eyebrow Designer gets the Pixie stamp of approval! It's a Budget Bargain!

So... are you fan of beauty bargains? Have you tried the Eyebrow Designer - did you rate it or hate it? Are there any bargain beauty products you'd like us to buy and try so you don't have to? Chat away!

*As always, unless specified otherwise, any product we're reviewing has been paid for out of our own hard earned dollars. BR Kellie paid for this with BR Kellie's own caaaaaash.