Form Follows Function

A new brow-shaping hot spot has popped up in Pasadena. Brauhaus is located in a sleek mid-century modern space off of one of Old Town's charming brick alleys. The name "Brauhaus" is more than just a cute play on words; the salon's work is inspired by the Bauhaus principle of design "form follows function." In other words, their artists shape eyebrows while maintaining their natural arch. (No Cruella De Vils here.)

To say Brauhaus founder and superstar brow sculptor Zoey Van Jones is a master of her craft is an understatement. We thought we'd just have our eyebrows cleaned up and shaped, but she included a slight tint as well to better match our recently colored hair. She also started with sketches and a detailed explanation of how to get our brows to look their best. Zoey is a proponent of fuller brows (more youthful and natural-looking than the overly arched brows that so many of us seem to fall victim too). She pointed out the areas where we'd been over-plucking for over a decade, and drew a sketch of the boxier shape that we should be aiming for. Finally, she waxed, tweezed and trimmed, finishing up with the application of eye-brightening makeup, some well matched shadow to fill in the areas that still needed to grow in more fully (our "homework") and some shaping brow gel. We were amazed at how Zoey's work transformed the whole face, and made a vow to stop butchering our brows at home.

Review originally published 8/21/2008.