If like me, you’ve spent your adult life plucking at your eyebrows with tweezers, cursing at removing too much or producing two lopsided hairy ‘caterpillars’, then you might consider waxing as an alternative option.

If you thought waxing was restricted to armpits, legs and certain other parts of the body, then think again. Even tiny areas like the eyebrows can be successfully groomed and shaped using the technique.

And the effect lasts much longer than plucking — around three to four weeks depending on how quickly your hair grows. Once done, you can pretty much forget about it for a while.

A new boutique from the wild and wacky cosmetics group, Benefit, has opened in Farnham, and eyebrow waxing is just one of its beauty treatments.

The new store is attracting  huge interest and excitement among local women and it’s not hard to see why.

Decorated in refreshing candy colours, the interior resembles more of a fantastical sweet shop, with little pots of this and neat packets of that all artistically arranged on shiny shelves.

The clean modern lines of the store are offset by a bit of a 1950s vibe thanks to Benefit’s characteristic packaging, featuring voluptuous pin-up girls in various poses. It all adds an innocent yet cheeky glamour to the brand.

Benefit originated in San Francisco, the brainchild of identical twins Jean and Jane Ford.
That was back in 1976, and over the years the company has slowly been building its product range and name, to become one of the funkiest and most desirable cosmetic labels around.

After all, who wouldn’t love to have a gorgeous tin of Body So Fine body balm on their bathroom shelf or stash their make-up in the sexy Lana bag?

Even the simplest packaging on the more down-to-earth products has a cool, pleasingly stylish look and with names like Lust Dusters and Do It Daily there’s a saucy naughtiness to the range.

The first Benefit product was the lip and cheek stain Benetint, which was created at the request of an exotic dancer who wanted it to enhance her nipples.

It was an instant hit with American women, although generally for a more modest application.

And that is where Benefit has continued to score over the years — by creating products which do that little bit more than regular make-up.

The eye shadows, lipsticks, foundations and so on are all there, but it’s the quirky little products that make the difference.

They include Posie Tint, an alarmingly bright pink stain which in reality gives a healthy glow to cheeks and lips, and She Laq, a sealer to help make-up stay put, or Bad Gal Blue mascara that makes the whites of your eyes appear whiter.

It’s all clever stuff that helps you make the best of what you’ve got but also gives you the tools to disguise those less-than-perfect bits.

Of course, the eyes are usually the most important features for gauging allure and beauty, and most women will happily apply mascara, shadow and eyeliner to accentuate them.

But they will show scant attention to their brows, apart from a quick flick with a pencil.

To enable women to get the most from their eyes, Benefit developed its signature Wow brow, which subtly gives a value-added factor to any beauty routine. It’s a look which has stood the test of time over the last 30 years.

Store manager Denise Millard explained that each woman gets a treatment personal to her from the specially trained staff, starting by checking for allergies and any other potential problems.

The Wow brow is characterised by the beautifully curved arch, but getting this in the right place for each individual is essential for maximum impact and requires specific skill.

Denise showed me how the therapist starts the process by mapping the face. This involves creating imaginary lines to establish the points where the brow should start and end and the position of highest part of the arch, all in relation to the other facial features.

This means the brow will be in balance with the face as a whole, as well as being the correct shape.

To get the correct shape and thickness, the therapist applies warm wax to the hair to be removed and this is then pulled off in a sharp movement, a bit like removing a plaster.

It isn’t as painful as it sounds and is all over in a jiffy.

The brow is then fine-tuned using tweezers to achieve the perfect arch, after which a little aloe vera gel is applied to soothe any redness, followed by Boo Boo Zap to close the pores and add an antibacterial layer.

Brows then can be tinted using spcial dye, or a bit of Brow Zings (a tinted combination of wax and powder) brushed on to give an even colour and definition.

The finishing touch is supplied by applying a little High Brow along the browbone.
This is a slightly pearly highlighter which gives an instant lift and opens up the eye as if by magic.

Result: a beautifully shaped brow which frames and flatters the eye and looks neat, tidy and feminine, whether you’re going au naturel, aiming for everyday subtlety or creating
a full-on glamour-puss look.

In other words, it’s the perfect finishing touch.