¡Que bonitas cejas!

Where did 2009 go? Reviewing our original post on 100 New Things, it is quite obvious that we, the Roberts sisters, have fallen short of achieving our original goals. That acknowledged, we could take one of two paths at this time: give up on the blog and shamefully reflect on our endeavor as an unrealized, silly dream, OR change the rules and go forth on our quest. I vote for option two and since the other two sisters are currently not present, my vote is unanimous.

Towards the end of last year, our cousin, his wife and their son visited for the holidays. Some people have hidden talents that you have to coax to the surface. Roman and Roxana are quite the opposite. They exude talent. To top that they are a gorgeous couple, exemplary parents and have a child with the cutest Mexico City accent. If only my little nephew could teach me to speak as beautifully as he does. That not quite being possible, I began my journey with Roxana, learning a bit about cejas...aka eyebrows.

Eyebrows are a facial feature that I hardly notice until I decide to pay attention to them. Once I consciously decide to focus on them, they predominate each person's face and start looking really odd. Try it! If you don't notice them usually, go on a walk and study each person's brows who cross your path. Apparently, however, there are people who notice these kinds of things all of the time. I was at a salon last year and when I was about to leave, my esthetician looked at me and informed me that my brows were crooked and needed fixing. I told her she was wrong so she asked the opinion of another patron who agreed. So there it is, I have no sense of the state of my eyebrows...or HAD no sense until I spent some time with Roxana.

Step by step, I learned there is a proper way to shape your eyebrows. All you need is a mirror, a straw/pencil/some straight edge and tweezers.

Step one: Center yourself...or at least your eyebrows. Line up your straight edge with the outside of one nare. Directly above that spot should be your limit for hair growth. This is unibrow removal happens. Once finished with one side, move to the next and repeat.

Step Two: The outer limits. Line your straight edge up from the corner of one nare to the outer corner of your eye. Any stray hairs beyond that boundary should also be eradicated.

Finally, figure out where your eyebrow should arch by creating a line from the corner of your mouth straight up to your eye.

Pluck around a bit and add some highlights and there you have it! Shaped eyebrows.

Here she is, la reina de la ceja, Roxana. Mil gracias, you have made it possible for me to walk into a salon and not worry that the mean lady is going to tell me my face is lopsided.