28 Of The Best Eyebrow Trends From Every Decade
Join us on an epic walk down memory lane
Join us on an epic walk down memory lane

1920: Thin and Rounded Arches
During the last leg of the silent film era, thin, rounded, and über-dramatic brows took the lead. Actresses like Clara Bow penciled their eyebrows into high-impact, drooping arches.

1930: Strong and Arched Brows
Stars like Billie Holiday defined the bolder, more fleshed-out arches of the 1930s.

1940: Full and Natural Arches
The ’40s marked the beginning of fuller, more natural-looking shapes. Joan Crawford inspired women to manicure their natural brows with a light hand.

1950: Arched and Brushed Eyebrows
Throughout the ’50s, definition was added to natural brows with subtle pointed arches à la Marilyn Monroe.

1960: Short and Mod Brows
Eyes became the focal point of 1960s beauty thanks to Twiggy’s signature lashes, which meant brows were treated as more of a sideshow (read: short, neat, and understated).

1970: Waxed and Arched Eyebrows
The ultra-glamorous makeup of the ’70s (think: vibrant eyeshadows and lots of blush) was accompanied by thin, heavily arched brows like Donna Summer’s.

1980: Thick and Natural Brows
The ’80s saw a spike in full, au naturel brows thanks to beauty icons like Brooke Shields.

1990: Skinny Brows
Eyebrows were majorly plucked in the 1990s, with thin shapes defining the faces of models like Kate Moss.

2000: Pencil-Thin Arches
Playing on the grungy brows of the ’90s, the following decade saw even thinner, barely-there shapes on pop stars like Christina Aguilera.

2005: The Natural Brow
Reeling from the tweezing obsession of the early 2000s, women like Angelina Jolie began to gravitate towards clean, natural shapes with minimal sculpting.

2010: Bold Brows
As the Kardashian Klan ascended to power, strong, powerful eyebrows followed suit.

2011: Thick and Manicured Arches
Elongated, flat brows popped up on red carpets in 2011, especially on rounder face shapes, like Selena Gomez’s.

2012: Strong and Powerful Arches
As Cara Delevingne rose to fame in 2012, so did her incredibly bold, power brows. Thick and bushy, they purposefully contrasted with her honey-blonde hair.

2013: Brushed-Up Brows
Thinner brow-wearers, like Rosie Huntington-Whiteley, took their own spin on high-impact brows by brushing and combing their brow hairs upward to create the illusion of volume.

2014: Accessorized Arches
In 2014, makeup artist James Kaliardos sent models down the Rodarte runway wearing faux eyebrow rings — an edgy, dramatic look that paved the way for other brow accessories.

2015: The Instagram Brow
Year 2015 marked the beginning of the “Instagram Brow” and the #OnFleek revolution. IG became the go-to destination for brow inspo thanks to beauty influencers like Patrick Starrr. You know this look well: They were perfectly brushed up at the beginning of the brow, and then faded into a super defined arch all the way to the tail.

2016: Bleached Brows
Moving away from the plucking, waxing, and sculpting of the early aughts, 2016 served as the beginning of alternative eyebrow trends — like these bleached, whispery brows.

2017: Feathered Arches
With 2017 came a whole new crop of unusual brow trends. Case in point: Beauty-obsessives flocked towards these weirdly beautiful feathered eyebrows created by makeup artist Stella Sironen.

2017: Barbed Wire Brows
Later in 2017, makeup artist Athena Paginton left us with these spiked, barbed wire brows — a look that we discovered was deceivingly hard to recreate.

2017: Lighting Bolt Brows
Year 2017 also bore witness to bold, angular lines, as evident in trends like makeup artist Zakia Wahbi’s infamous lighting bolt brows.

2017: Boxed Brows
Brow trends continued to take a turn for the absurd in late 2017, from ridiculously pretty to generally unwearable creations, like boxed eyebrows.

2017: Wavy Brows
Year 2017 also birthed meme-like brows — makeup artists and beauty bloggers trolled their followers with wacky variations like the wavy brow.

2017: Rainbow Brows
For more evidence that 2017 was incredibly extra when it came to brows, look no further than these vibrant, rainbow arches by Alexandra Merino.

2018: Bejeweled Eyebrows
This year began with a nod to Rodarte’s accessorized brows with these super-extra (but totally inspo-worthy) bejeweled arches dreamed up by The Gypsy Shrine.

2018: Fishtail Brows
Year 2018 opened up an entire new arena of brow trends: SkyEditz created the insanely cool fishtail brow trend with a little help from Photoshop.

2018: Emoji Brows
Digitally enhanced brows didn’t end with fishtail sculpting — SkyEditz was also responsible for the swarm of emoji-covered brows on our Insta feeds this year.

2018: Dip-Dyed Arches
Earlier this year, makeup artist Bea Sweet created these vibrant, dip-dyed brows for Simi & Haze — a look we’re highly considering recreating with electric-pink eyeliner or mascara.

2018: Halo Brows
And for proof that 2018 will not be the year that Instagram eyebrow trends cease to exist, meet the latest variation blowing up our feeds: halo brows.
More From Cosmo Reports, Homepage
Unmissable Female Writers at Emirates Festival of Lit
Hear award-winning female novelists at this year’s Litfest
A Ranking Of The 8 Best Hair Masks For Rescuing Straw-Like Strands
Don’t waste your money on ‘meh’ masks
5 Of The Best Oil-Free Moisturisers For Every Skin Concern
Whether you’re acne prone, or sensitive.
MORE FROM AROUND THE WEB
Moroccan Beauty Rituals With Izil’s Founder Mouna Abbassy
Oh, we’re currently taking notes
Amina Taher Is Officially The Arab Fashion Council’s New Chairwoman
She’s about to make big moves
Narin’s Beauty Just Proved Whimsy Belongs In Every Wardrobe
Forever in our whimsy era✨
These Movies Will Give You Serious Main Character Energy In Your 20s
Here’s your ultimate watchlist to enter your It Girl era
Editor’s Letter: Power Looks Good On You, Babe
This one’s for the queens, the baddies and everyone rewriting the rules. Welcome to The Power Issue ✨
