Here’s how you can shape your eyebrows so they can do all of your emoting for you

By creating different shapes for your eyebrows, you can create certain illusions. So think of this as an eyebrow guide for changing the way people perceive you. It’s basically the closest thing we have to magic, apart from electricity, which I still definitely don’t understand. Basically, eyes, as we all know, are the windows to the soul. So eyebrows are, therefore — not curtains exactly, because they don’t cover our eyes, but they’re more like “window dressings.” They entice you to look again, look deeper, discover more. They act as signposts, pointing into your hypnotizing eyes so you can make people do what you want.

So, I’m here to show you how eyebrows can transform your look — sometimes making you appear surprised, sad, or angry.

Here I am without any eyebrow makeup on, looking lackluster.

Let’s get started, shall we?

The first look: Surprised eyebrows

These are my everyday eyebrows, aka jubilantly surprised. Why not see the world with the joyful naiveté of a child? It makes you look *fun* and not like someone who spends a lot of time thinking about eyebrows.

For this, I used a brow gel. Because my eyebrows are larger and more imprecise, I actually enjoy a brown mascara for this job, but the L’Oreal Brow Stylist Plumper ($6.81 to $7.97) or the infamous Benefit Gimme Brow ($24) are great if you desire a smaller brush.

And now for the revolutionary part: brush your brows in an upward motion. Every hair must stand on end; you want to look borderline electrocuted. ElectroCUTEd, if you will. The upward-facing-ness of your newfound eyebrows will make them look slightly raised as if you are engaged and interested in what is going on around you. People like these eyebrows, because they make them look interesting and important.

They’re essentially eyebrows for the community.

The second look: Sad eyebrows

Up next, sad eyebrows. For days when you simply can’t deal with life, sad eyebrows will do the trick. These elicit feelings of sympathy and charity. Pair them with pouty lips for a delicate constitution vibe. Cute!

For these, you’ll want to use a wet product. I used the L’Oreal Infallible Sculpting Palette, $12.79, (the contour shade, of course). This worked fine, but any pomade type product will work perfectly. The eyebrow shape is the focus here.

Sad eyebrows tilt slightly upwards in the middle. Put your thumb between you eyebrows and pull them upwards. For a more subtle version, put your brush at the top inner corner of your eyebrow and push it up slightly.

Sad eyebrows also have less of an arch, and sort of an inverse curve. When you reach your natural arch, instead of going straight down, try to slightly flick a line.

Extend the outer corner of your eyebrow slightly further than usual. This looks v. dramatic, and despondent. However, dramatic equals compassion. I don’t try to accentuate individual hairs for the sad brows look, instead, I create more of a smudgy, watercolor effect. It’s actually kind of romantic!

The last look: Angry eyebrows

Lastly and the most insane of all are angry eyebrows. These are best-suited for when you’re going out, particularly if you’re going somewhere intimidating. Scare those who scare you, that’s my motto!

For this look, I used dark eyeshadows: the darkest brown and the gray shade from the Viseart Neutral Matte Palette ($80). I mixed them together. This created a shade much darker than my natural eyebrows but it helped with the severe and cross vibe.

Angry eyebrows come down further in the middle: frown in the mirror to get an approximate (keyword: approximate) shape to aim for. The arch is everything in angry eyebrows, so make it as high as you can. My natural eyebrows are quite archless, but I gave it a good go.

Finally, again using a brow gel of your choice, comb the arches of your angry eyebrows outwards. You want them curly and prominent, sort of like an evil-old-man-Count-Olaf look. I used the Surratt Brow Pomade, $25, (it’s sadly out of stock) which is great for redefining hairs and stopping dramatic eyebrows from looking too blocky.

These are bold, and if anyone questions them, refer to them as an editorial look. This is one of my best life tricks, you’re welcome.

Do you ever use makeup to elicit emotion, or am I revealing my inner sociopath?