The thin, over-plucked eyebrow that dominated beauty aesthetics through much of the 1990s and early 2000s began its retreat, replaced by a preference for fuller, more natural brows that better frame the face and project a different kind of confidence.

The shift was visible on runways, in beauty editorials, and in the growing cultural influence of celebrities who wore their brows thick and defined — Cara Delevingne became the exemplar, her distinctive arches becoming perhaps the most discussed facial feature in fashion for several years.

The change reflected broader movements in beauty culture. The ultra-groomed, high-maintenance look of the early 2000s gave way to aesthetics that prized natural beauty, ethnic diversity, and the particular rather than the standardized. Fuller brows, which are more natural to most people and which occur across a wider range of ethnic backgrounds than the pencil-thin Western ideal, fit this shift.

Eyebrows are, as any makeup artist will confirm, unusually important to facial expression and perceived age. They frame the eyes, contribute to perceived emotions, and — perhaps counterintuitively — fuller brows tend to read as younger and more vigorous than thin ones. The thinning of brows through aggressive plucking can give an older appearance, while fuller brows restore something youthful.

The beauty industry, of course, responded to the trend with products: brow gels, pencils, pomades, and — most dramatically — microblading procedures that can deliver semi-permanent fuller brows. Fashion trends in facial grooming have never had a more willing commercial ecosystem to support them.