A Laser Tech Seared Off Part of My Eyebrow—Here's How I'm Coping

An incident that happened 11 weeks ago forced me to discover the best products for sparse eyebrows. But first, let's rewind. After my usual laser tech didn't have availability for an appointment, I agreed to have a different woman perform my laser hair removal treatment. She began situating the device to target the baby hairs between my brow and hairline, but before I (or possibly she) was ready, the laser bolted out and we both gasped. She then lifted the tissue she was holding over my left brow, inspected my face, and sighed in relief, declaring more to herself than to me, "Oh good, it still looks okay." When the session was finally over and I rushed to the restroom to see the damage myself, I discovered that it did not, in fact, look okay. Rather, she had zapped off a sizeable portion of my left eyebrow, leaving me devastated and not entirely looking like myself.

Historically, my left eyebrow has always struggled. They say eyebrows are sisters, not twins, and if that's the case, my left brow is the black sheep. It's never come close to achieving the full, balanced shape of my right brow and, despite patiently forgoing plucking, it never completely grows in.

So when my own person episode of Botched occurred, my already lagging brow was suddenly significantly more sparse and misshapen. My usual lineup of brow products wasn't enough for the task of breathing new life into (read: drawing back in while growing back in) my left brow, so I had to incorporate a few new products that could rise to the occasion.Here are the products saving me while I grow back my left eyebrow.

Grow Girl Let It Grow Hair Growth Dietary Supplements $13.00

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I'm very into using vitamin supplements to help support my skin, nails and hair, but I don't always see results. Over the past month, I've been taking two of these gummies every morning and I've noticed my hair growing faster—including my left eyebrow finally becoming fuller and filling in. Grow Girl launched earlier this year to offer a line of accessible hair growth products (I'm also a fan of the brand's hair regrowth scalp detox).

Wunderbrow Fiber Filler $22.00

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Before the incident, I usually filled my brows in with a dark eyeshadow and did a swipe of clear brow gel on top. While that's still my go-to when my eyebrows are healthy and full, the approach simply didn't do enough to naturally fill in the sparse part of the brow that the laser had zapped. I tried this fiber filler, a brow powder that you swipe on to leave pigment and hair-like fibers for natural-looking dimension.

Wunderbrow Extra Long-Lasting Eyebrow Gel $22.00

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For slightly more permanent results, Wunderbrow also has a waterproof and smudge-proof eyebrow gel that lasts up to three days. This version goes on a little more like a paint (though the wand makes precise application easy) and provides the right amount of coverage by leaving a natural-looking pigment. I liked the set-it-and-forget-it model knowing I'd good for a few days without having to be self-conscious about the bald spot on my brow.

Shiseido Full Lash and Brow Serum $36.00

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I get a little wary about lash and brow serums, but this multi-tasker from Shiseido had great reviews and is a best-seller in Asia so I figured I'd give it a try. I noticed an improvement within a couple of weeks of using the product and am looking forward to trying it on my lashes next.

Anastasia Beverly Hills Clear Brow Gel $22.00

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Even with the semi-permanent pigmented gel and fiber fillers, topping off my brows with a clear brow gel always brought everything together to look more natural and put together. This clear version from Anastasia Beverly Hills is a staple of my makeup bag in whatever condition my brows are in, but it was especially helpful to keep what hairs I did still have in place and swept in the right direction while I grew back in my left brow.

Now here's how to choose the best eyebrow shape for your face.