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Do you know it really sucks to have light coloured hair and dark eyebrows? It just makes a person look a little weird IMHO. And to dye your brows in salons are just too costly, especially when all you need to do is lighten your brows a little bit. I used to have to put on this brownish eyebrow mascara so as to have totally contrasting brows and hair, but it is a little tedious to put on and I don’t wear makeup that often. (My skin needs to breathe too..).

Anyway, the last time I managed to find bleach for facial hair was in Australia. I suppose Malaysian stores don’t carry them because once your facial hair is bleached, it is a little on the yellowish side which doesn’t really match Asian skin tones (despite people referring Asians as yellow skinned… go figure). So, when my brother took a trip to Melbourne, I wasted no time in pestering him to get me a pack of facial bleach. In Australia, you can almost get this in a regular drugstore. It is as common as hair removal products at our drugstores. Long story short, my brother grabbed this brand – Sally Hansen Creme Hair Bleach for Face & Body.

Just like your usual facial hair bleach, there are three bottles – a Pre-Conditioner, a bottle of powdered Activator and a bottle of Creme Bleach. And of course a measuring cup and spatula for mixing and application.

The Pre-Conditioner is to prepare the hair before bleaching. According to the instructions, you have to wash the area with soap and water and dry off before you start. Then put some Pre-Conditioner on a cotton ball/cotton square and smooth over the area to be bleached and allow to dry.

My eyebrows aren’t very dark as I did this bleaching about a month or so ago, so some of the strands are still a little brownish at the ends. But still a lot darker than my hair colour.

Anyway, after applying the Pre-Conditioner, you can now mix the bleaching solution. Since the eyebrow area is really small, just use a little – say about 1-2ml of the powder. The mixture ratio is 1 part Activator to 3 part Creme. Frankly, I didn’t do EXACT measurements as the measuring cup is too big, so as long as the ratio is more or less 1:3, then it’s ok. Mix well to a creamy consistency.

If you have never done this before, or have sensitive skin, best if you do a patch test first. Smooth Pre-Conditioner onto a one-inch square area on the inner fold of your elbow. Prepare the misture and apply over the patch. Leave for 10 minutes and rinse off with cool water. Wait 24 hours and if there is no redness, irritation or eruption, then you should be ok to go ahead.

To lighten your eyebrows, make sure you coat every part of your brow or it might be patchy. Try to spread evenly. Make sure to not get any in your eye! Use the spatula to apply.

Wait about 8 minutes. I recommend to set an alarm in case you don’t keep track of time. If after 8 minutes it isn’t light enough, use the spatula to remove the mixture on the area and apply more from the cup. Wait another 5 minutes. So far for myself, 8 minutes was just about right for me. I don’t want to look like I have no eyebrows… that would be even weirder. (=_=”)

The instructions ask to wash off your bleach with cold water. However, since this is the eye area we’re talking about, I recommend to use a wet cotton to remove it. Remove one side at a time so you can keep your eye closed while tending to that side before moving on to the other. After removing both sides, only do you rinse your face with water and dry off.

Whatever is remaining in your measuring cup cannot be kept so make sure you dispose of it. Don’t worry, you’re not wasting that much.

There! Lightened eyebrows to match light coloured hair. By the way, it is better to bleach in short intervals to make sure you don’t over lighten your brows. If my hair was a darker shade, I would probably only leave the bleach on for 5 minutes or so.

Frankly, I like Sally Hansen facial bleach. I think the packaging reduces wastage compared to those sold in sachets. I am not sure how long one pack like this would last, but since the eyebrow is such a small area, probably for quite some time.

The price is about AU$21.99 if I am not mistaken. Shouldn’t be that much more expensive. So if you want this, you can either get someone to buy it for you from overseas, or you can order online.

Another tip: Please READ THE INSTRUCTIONS properly. You don’t want to have allergy reaction to this.. and another thing – if you haven’t shape your eyebrows before bleaching, make sure you do it AFTER bleaching, as open pores may create sensitivity.