We Have Brow Gel, But Would Shave and Paint Them?

In China, women shaved their brows. At least during the Tang dynasty (618-907 CE). They didn’t go browless, but rather, redrew them in (this link shows some samples, ranging on time period within the dynasty). Pretty crazy to our eyes, right? Imagine the types of looks which circulated had Instagram existed at that time! It sounds cool to me, yet, at the same time, something I won’t do. I’m lazy, yes, and only get my brows waxed/cleaned if I have an important event. However, from a 2016 perspective, the idea of drawing in brows just sounds…fake. It’s fine to ENHANCE one’s brows with gel (hey, I just got two products from Benefit’s new brow line), but to get rid of everything and then draw them back in is weird. Even weirder is tattooing them.

Some brow gel/enhancers I recently purchased

So what if social media existed at that time? If there were many women who were painted with certain looks – certain styles of brows, for example, how many Instacelebs would have come to be back then? I’m sure, if they had the chance, these women would have taken MANY selfies (though there were periods in Chinese history where “ladies” were not painted – the models were mostly courtesans, to my understanding). And I’m sure there would have been many “out there” brow looks – ranging from colour to shape – not that there wasn’t according to artwork from the era. Of course, “it” looks would change much quicker. Anyone for green eyebrows?

I have to admit that there are standards from centuries ago which remain today on the other side of the Pacific. Fair skin, for example. Sometimes, I wonder if the German-authored Snow White was meant to be East Asian – in the original Brothers Grimm tale, Snow White is described as having “skin as white as snow, lips as red as blood, and hair as black as ebony.” I realize that this look was probably fairly universal (the light skin and red lips, anyway – at least for Europe and Asia), and dark hair would have been seen as being more “exotic” in Germany some 200 years ago, but still. Then again, they may very well have adapted a story from Asia. After all, many cultures have their own version of Cinderella.

So my question is this: Would YOU shave your brows only to draw them in? Or do you prefer the tweezing/waxing/gel (or pencil) method?

About Cynthia Cheng Mintz

Cynthia Cheng Mintz is the founder and webitor-in-chief of this site and the petite-focused site, Shorty Stories. She has also written for other publications including the Toronto Star and has blogged for The Huffington Post. Her first novel, Aspirations, was published in 2007. Outside of writing, Cynthia researches and advises philanthropic ideas for family funds and foundations and also volunteers.