Review: Flower by Drew Barrymore Raise Some 

Brows Defining Brow Pencils

I'm in permanent panic-mode when it comes to my eyebrow pencil. I live in fear that my beloved Holy Grail eyebrow pencil, Maybelline Define-A-Brow in Dark Blonde, is going to be discontinued (some shades in this line were discontinued last year but, knock on wood, Dark Blonde hasn't been...yet). 

So when I noticed that the new brand, Flower by Drew Barrymore (available exclusively at Walmart, in-store on online), had a line of brow pencils, I ordered two shades from Walmart in the hopes that I might be able to find a new go-to product. Since I prefer automatic pencils for my brows, I was delighted to see that these are twist-ups! Let's see how they've been working for me...

Flower Raise Some Brows Defining Brow Pencils in Blonde and Light Brown

(retail: $5.98, 0.01 oz)

Before I get into this review, I want to point out something VERY cool about this brow pencil range. There are eight shades available, and three of those shades are for "unconventional" hair colors such as green, blue and purple! Check out all eight shades here. I've never seen brow pencils in purple, green or blue offered at the drugstore level before, so kudos to you, Flower!

Keep reading for my full review....

As with all of the Flower products I've reviewed to date, the packaging indicates that these products are made in the USA and not tested on animals.

All of the products that I've purchased (that come in plastic/cardboard packaging) have these cute little "Drew-isms" hidden beneath the product that you can only see once you've opened the package. They're like little beauty fortune cookies. A very cute touch!

These pencils comes with a sharpener that you access by pulling off the end of the pencil:

Blonde

 

Light Brown

Blonde (top)

Light Brown (bottom)

Looking at the swatches above, the first line was done using quick little brush strokes (I tried to replicate the look of application) and the second line is just a straight line.  

You can see that the shade Blonde has a lot of red to it. I would definitely suggest that you only purchase this shade if you have warm blonde hair or red hair--it is NOT going to work if you're an ashy blonde (like me).

As for Light Brown, it's definitely an ashy brown (no warm tones at all), but it's a bit dark for me personally. I have to use a very, very light touch to get this shade to work. Here's a pic of me wearing Light Brown:

Light Brown

I deliberately did not comb my brows after application because I wanted you to see something. This pencil is creamy, so what happens during application is that my brow hairs often get stuck together when I'm trying to get down between the hairs. I find that I have to apply, then stop, comb my brows, and apply some more. The problem is that I always end up removing the product when I comb through my brows too much, so it's sort of an endless loop.

Pigmentation: Both shades that I purchased have great pigmentation. I had no issues with getting the color to show up on my brows.

Texture and consistency: These brow pencils are very creamy. Due to my oily skin, I prefer a stiffer, drier, waxier pencil because it's been my experience that pencils that are stiffer and drier tend to last much longer on my oily skin. I also like the precision that a stiffer, waxier pencil allows you. When a brow pencil is too creamy, it feels like you lose control a bit, and that is what I experienced with these pencils. I have to use a very, very light touch and really focus when I'm apply this pencil to my brow. I think that if you're just looking for minor fill-ins, this probably won't be too much of an issue for you, but if you need to seriously "construct" your brows every day (like I do), then you might find these pencils a bit too high-maintenance due to their creamy nature.

Staying power: Due to their creamy nature, I start to see fading and a bit of smearing on my (very oily) skin at about the six hour mark. I can't get through an 8-9 hour work day and find my brows looking perfect. I definitely need to touch up in the afternoon, and keep in mind that I've been testing this product during the winter. I don't have high hopes for this product during the dead of summer, but if you have drier skin, your results may certainly differ from mine.

Fragrance: I detect no fragrance to these pencils.

FINAL VERDICT: If you favor a creamier brow pencil and you have normal-to-dry skin, these might work well for you. But if you favor a drier, waxier pencil I'm not sure you'll be happy with these. They're quite creamy and if you're heavy-handed with your brow pencils, you'll find that you really need to pull back the reigns and use a very, very light touch to get these to work. Also, if you have oily skin like I do, you might find that these pencils fade and smudge before the day is through. I personally couldn't get them to last longer than six hours before I saw major fading. As for the colors I purchased, Blonde is definitely for those with warm blonde or red hair, while Light Brown would be good for dark, ashy blondes or light ashy browns, since it has no warm undertones whatsoever. These were not a love-match for me, but I can see them possibly working for those with drier skin who are just looking for minor enhancements to their brows. If you need serious precision from your brow pencil, you might find these a bit too soft and creamy.