Editor’s Pick: Couture Brow, the New Brow Mascara from YSL

It started with Benefit's Gimme Brow, and then Maybelline's Brow Drama. Now, for fall, it seems like a dozen more brands have followed suit with their own versions of brow-building mascara thingies.

The one that deserves your attention the most? Definitely Couture Brow from Yves Saint Laurent.

(Well, Clinique's new Just Browsing, Instagrammed here, is almost as great, but obviously not nearly as fancy. And I don't have it in the right shade for me yet, so can't speak to the colour.)

But the YSL Couture Brow, well, it knocks it out of the park on a few fronts: colour, hold, brow-building ability and ultra-luxurious packaging. I can see it replacing my Gimme Brow for sure.

Couture Brow is bigger than most brow stuff, the same size as a regular lash mascara:

The difference, of course, being the brush is much smaller and works on the brows instead—to shape them, intensify them and hold them in place.

This is the lighter of the two colours, 2 Ash Blond (the other is 1 Glazed Brown).

What I like is that a) it's actually light enough for me, as it can look a bit scary when brows are both full and dark, and b) it's not too warm nor too cool. 

There's actually a hint of gold undertone, which balances out the usual ashiness. Out of all the brow mascaras I've seen, I think 2 Ash Blond is the best, most natural-looking shade for blondes.

On the brows, I love to use this product to build up my inner “fans” and hold them in place. I would say what Couture Brow does is closest to Gimme Brow, but with more hold and much less clumpiness (yay!). I think that's because it's a tinted gel mascara, not actual fibres—but even still, the gel does build impressive thickness.

I also brush Couture Brow through the rest of my brows in one direction to tidy, tint and tame the lengths, and the effect is quite dramatic. 

You could even use it the same way I suggested for Brow Drama, in a “windshield wiper” technique back and forth through the brow, if you wanted to build even more fullness. It won't hold up the lengths of your brows quite as strongly, but it doesn't dry hard and crunchy like Brow Drama can; your brows will still feel very soft.

Here are my bare, ashy/mousy brows before and after Couture Brow:

Conclusion

Before this, I was using a combo of Gimme Brow and Brow Drama to get my brows the way I wanted them, and sometimes even Givenchy Mister Eyebrow for hold. 

With YSL Couture Brow, the process is MUCH faster, because unless my brows are very overdue for a shaping appointment, I can get away with just the one product. Hooray! 

If you're into your brow stuff like I am, I think you'll find this product was worth the wait.

Where to Buy

Nordstrom ‣ Sephora ‣ Neiman Marcus ‣ Saks Fifth Avenue ‣ Selfridges

What's your favourite brow mascara?
Have you tried this one?