Suddenly, eyebrows are in, and in a big way.

Those of you who are old enough to remember the caterpillars which framed the eyes of Brooke Shields and Margeaux Hemingway might be cringing at the new trend in brows which Kim Kardashian, Ariana Grande and Cara Delevingne have popularized, better known as #EyebrowsOnFleek. What is fleek? Flawless, perfect. So if you have any interest in new makeup trends, you had better make sure those brows are meticulously groomed and filled in.

Similar to the trend in the early 1980’s, today’s brows are full and thick, but an obsession with drawing in a false silhouette to “shape” the brow has dominated the makeup world. The problem I have with this trend is that it creates a false brow line, rather than accentuating a natural arch. Take a look at this transformation, and you will see what I am talking about.

Women these days are encouraged to keep tweezing to a minimum, and let it all grow out, which means that those who have anemic, pencil-thin brows will be forced to use eyebrow waxes, stencils, permanent tattooing, and even faux brows to create the illusion of much fuller brows. Faux brows? Oh yes. There’s something called lace front brows, which are fantastic for people who have gone through chemotherapy or alopecia.

As for me, I plan to work with what Mother Nature gave me. Though I have a sparse area on my left brow, it can easily be filled in with a bit of brow pencil or brow wax. I accentuate my natural arch, and only make my brows look thicker if I have full makeup on with a dark smoky eye. After seeing too many young women with shaped brows which make them look like clowns, I prefer to avoid jumping on the brows-on-fleek bandwagon. It seems to be a trend best suited for the young crowd anyway.