New Benefit Brow Collection – Everything You Need to Know

Yesterday I hopped on board the Good Ship Benefit on a windy, rainy day – the boat was a’rockin’, I was a’nauseous – to fine out all the incredibly exciting new Benefit Brow Collection. We all know Benefit are the king of brows, so when it was announced that the whole range was being redone, alongside a whole host of new brow goodies, I could not have jumped on board more quickly.

The entire range has been completely revamped in a new, chrome-effect finish which I much prefer; the amount of times I have to hunt through my make-up bag for my beloved Gimme Brow, which is in a lovely shade of “blend in with everything brown”, but the new silvery chrome finish is much more eye catching.  There are now nine products in the brow range, plus three tools (Grooming Tweezer and Brush – £15,50, Angled Brow Brush and Spoolie – £15.50, All Purpose Sharpener – £4) but I think the most exciting aspect of all the newness is the fact that there are more shades available, and all products correspond with each other, meaning, once you’ve found your shade in one product, you’ll know what shade you are in all the others.

First of all, I’m sure the hardcore Brow Zings fan will be reassured to hear that the product is staying, but it’s been given a bling-tastic makeover to include a fold-out brush that clips together to make a longer handle, which is much better than the previous, dinky-but-useless brush you got in the set.  There are also now six shades available which is mega; as someone who is almost always the palest in everything, I’m actually a 3 in the whole benefit range, so if you have very fair hair and skin, you won’t struggle to find a match.  The new Benefit Brow Zings are £24.50.

Also staying, thankfully, is my all-time favourite brow product, Gimme Brow.  The new packaging makes handling a lot easier and a lot less fiddly, plus there are now three shades rather than two – the shades are 1, 3 and 5 to correspond with the other colours in the range, so 1 is fair, 3 is medium and 5 is dark.  Benefit Gimme Brows are £18.50.

High Brow and High Brow Glow are the final products from the old range that are staying, and these are the perfect example of products that you’d think you wouldn’t get much from, but then you start using them and wonder how you ever did without.  High Brow is matte and High Brow Glow is shimmery, and they’re both highlighting pencils that are designed to perfect the shape of your brows, although you can use them both all over the face in place of a highlighter.  My favourite for a very natural finish is the matte High Brow  as it allows you to subtly sketch in a bit more definition which makes a huge difference.  Both High Brows are £17.50.

Now on to the exciting newness! Let’s start with Ka-Brow, which is a potted brow gel available in the full six shades with a brush in the lid, that you can take out and slot into the outer lid if you like a brush to feel longer and sturdier in your hands.  This is the product for those who like seriously defined arches that look perfected and polished; this is the equivalent of the red lipstick for brows – nobody will think they are your natural brows, but nobody will care because they’ll look so fab.  Ka-Brow is £18.50.

From one extreme to another, if you want completely natural brows that are just set in place, the Ready, Set, Brow is the product for you – a clear and sturdy brow gel that promises a flake-free, 24 hour hold.  I will always, always reach for Gimme Brow over a clear brow gel, but if you’re going for that perfectly polished but completely make-up free finish, this is the product for you.  Ready, Set Brow is £18.50.

There are now two brow pencils in the Benefit Brow Collection, the first of which is called Precisely, My Brow Pencil, which is a precision, twist-up pencil that allows you to create tiny, feathery hair-like strokes to give brows a really natural finish, although of course you can build it up to a more dramatic look if you fancy it.  Precisely, My Brow Pencil, is available in six shades, priced at £18.50.

3D Browtones is an interesting product if used correctly, and a bit of a wacky one if not! I think the best way to describe it is like a highlighting brow gel mascara, which softens the look of too dark brows and adds a slight shimmer.  It isn’t your everyday, wear-to-work product and it’s definitely more suited for a night time look alongside a dramatic eye, but it’s certainly novel and one that there’s a market for.  3D Browtones is available in 2 and 4, so 2 for lighter brows, 4 for darker, and costs £18.50.

Goof Proof Brow Pencil is likely to be the one I reach for most, not just because of the awesome name. The tip is angled and pointed, so you can pretty much create any kind of finish you like, making this a great all-rounder as you can add definition, colour and natural, hair-like strokes, all in one tool – which of course has a spoolie at the other end too.  It’s also twist-up, so you don’t need to sharpen, which is great for me as I can never find a sharpener.  These are available in the full six shades with each costing £18.50.

Finally, the Brow Vo Conditioning Primer is the product I would’ve happily passed up had I not tried it, but it’s actually a really good idea; it has an applicator brush head that allows you to shape brows into position, and the primer gives them very gentle hold allowing for you to apply your colour and finish products on top – it’s very much like a face primer for your brows and it definitely does the job! It’s clear, so there’s just one shade and it’ll last you a while as you only need one drop for both brows.  Brow Vo Conditioning Primer is £21.50.

I’ve included the very handy colour guide so you can see what shade you might be across the range.  The full collection is due to launch everywhere on 24th June 2016, but I believe the Benefit site are doing a 24 hour early release at the end of this month – I’ll double check the date and update as soon as I know.