So this weekend I learned a very important lesson that I’m going to pass on to all of you. Very simply, do not try to wax your own eyebrows. I know, this is a shock, but just trust me on this one, ok?

I’ve never been a make-up person. On very rare occations, I may use some lipstick or even a coat of mascara but that is pretty much the limit of my beauty routine. In high school, the extent of my experimentation was electric blue eyeliner which so traumatized me that I didn’t touch anything else for the remainer of my high school years. It wasn’t until college that I realized what I was missing.

My roommate freshman year could have been a professional makeup artist. She would wake up two hours before me ever day just to do her hair and put on her face. She used moisturizer, concealer, liners, blushes, sprays and lotions. However, at the end of the process, she didn’t look like she was wearing any makeup. I knew that she had freckles and dry skin but to the rest of the world she presented as beautifully smooth face. For me, the extra two hours of sleep was worth much more than a flawless face so while she dabbed in the wee hours of the morning, I slept. I did, however, pick up a few tips from living with her which have helped me later on down the road. Eyebrows, however, were a totally different story.

I didn’t get my eyebrows “shaped” until my wedding day. Yup, up until three years ago, my eyebrows were natural and it didn’t bother me one bit. However, after getting them done for my wedding and being told over and over and over again how nice it looked, I decided to add it to my routine. No big deal since the bottom floor of my office building had a hair salon so I could just pop in during lunch or before I went home when they needed a little help. Having quit the world of the working folk, I’ve faced a small problem. I’m too lazy and too cheap to have someone wax my brows. As luck would have it, the answer to my brow problem struck me as I was walking through the cosmetic section of my grocery store.

An at-home waxing kit.

Here, I decided, is the answer to my prayers. Now I can have the beautiful eyebrows on my own time and at a fraction of the cost. The application looked easy enough – smear on, rip off. No problem! So the other day, I gave it a go.

It’s a lot harder than it looks. The goop is totally uncontrollable so you never know what’ll go and what will be left behind. Making each side match is, unfortunately, totally beyond my hand/eye coordination. And the pain! Ack!

Thankfully, my old college roomie turned me on to a wonderful product called an eyebrow pencil so at least the holes are covered. Besides, I have gone out with my newly mangled brows and haven’t noticed any gasps or oogling so I suppose it isn’t that bad. So take it from me, leave your brows to the professionals. It’s worth it in the long run!