I Tried DIY Brow Lamination & I’ll Never Go Back To Brow Gel

Brows are big on TikTok. One quick search will serve up all manner of hacks and trends, from skinny brows (they're back, apparently) to brow mapping (don't knock it 'til you've tried it). But one brow movement is taking over entirely.

Enter: brow lamination.

If you're a Refinery29 regular, you'll know that the technique isn't brand-new. Brow lamination makes barely there brows instantly thicker by enlisting a lifting serum or lotion (similar to that used in a lash lift) plus a tailored tint to enhance the hairs. The result is brushed up brows that appear fuller, fluffier and a tad more natural than the popular microbladed look.

TikTok's beauty lovers are obsessed with DIY beauty so it was only a matter of time before they dreamed up a solution for laminating brows at home. It doesn't involve salon-grade lotions and potions, nor an expert hand. All you need is a tube of lash glue.

Chloe Morello recently went viral for showing her followers how she uses the affordable product in place of brow gel — amassing a huge 442.9k views to date — and the end result is so close to professional brow lamination that you'd be forgiven for mistaking the two in pictures. "This is the best eyebrow hack ever," says Chloe. "Tiny bit of non-latex eyelash glue as brow gel will be the most full-on, heavy-duty brow gel ever," she says. Chloe warns her followers, though. "This is some Gorilla Glue shit and you need to work really fast. You have about five seconds before it starts to set and you can have a big old mess on your hands or white dots all through your brows. But check this out. It's not moving."

Chloe sets her brushed up brows with a dusting of translucent face powder and suggests filling in any sparse areas if that's what you do usually. It wasn't long before Chloe's followers began to flood her comments section. "Just tried it. It works. These brows won't move ever in this life," wrote one. Another commented: "Lmao yes! I use lash glue to perm/laminate my eyebrows."

If you're a fan of R29's beauty section you'll know I'm willing to try all the eyebrow trends. My eyebrows are very thick and long but they have a mind of their own and no brow gel keeps them in place for longer than a couple of hours. I'm also boycotting the thin eyebrows movement (it's not for me) and leaning into the fluffy look that's all over Instagram and Pinterest in a bid to embrace what God gave me. Until now I've been a little scared to try brow lamination. I've seen some influencers go completely overboard, ending up with brow hairs that seemingly defy gravity and don't look particularly natural. But Chloe's arches are goals so I had to give this a try.

Per Chloe's instructions, I picked up Duo Quickset Striplash Adhesive Clear, £6, which is latex-free. I proceeded to squeeze the tube directly onto my brow hairs but that was my first mistake — it's very runny and went absolutely everywhere. On my second attempt I very carefully daubed tiny dots of glue onto my hairs using the applicator and ran the spoolie through them. Unlike brow gel, I felt a little bit of resistance as the glue began to dry in just a couple of seconds. The key to nailing it? Being really speedy.

That said, I was pretty surprised on my first swipe. The lash glue worked so well to lift my brow hairs to new heights — but that's not the look I wanted to go for. I ended up brushing them down slightly and was really happy with the fluffed up result. I like to take time on my makeup and thought I'd go back in with an extra brush but this turned out to be mistake number two. Another swipe simply made the lash glue flake and I was left picking white bits out of my brow hairs. Oops.

Still, I couldn't deny how well the glue worked to give definition to my otherwise unruly right eyebrow and so I moved onto the left, working very quickly to lift the hairs. To finish, Chloe applied a light layer of translucent powder over her brows but mine are jet black and I didn't fancy a dusty finish so I just left them as they were. Sure, they felt slightly tacky to the touch but that's nothing compared to some brow gels I've tried, which leave hairs rock hard. You might be thinking, Is lash glue safe to use on brows? As the product is friendly enough to be used on the lash line, I'd say it's a much better option than hairspray or even hair gel, which I've seen TikTokers using to achieve similar results. It's also so much cheaper than an actual brow gel.

I put my newly laminated brows to the ultimate test on the boiling hot Central Line, through a long dinner and a journey back in drizzle. To my surprise, they didn't budge a single millimetre. I thought it would be a mission to scrub the glue out of each and every hair but it dissolved with a few swipes of CeraVe Micellar Cleansing Water, £10, on a cotton pad.

I'm so impressed with the result, I've actually binned my crusty brow gel and have been laminating my brows using lash glue all week. There are a few things to bear in mind. A spoolie brush will get clogged easily as the lash glue is really thick but that doesn't mean you have to throw it away after every go. I've been using the remnants of my clarifying shampoo to wash the residue out of my brushes and it works a treat. Lastly, if you fill in your brows, you might want to do it before applying the glue. Chloe suggests this should be your last step (she used Stila Stay All Day Waterproof Brow Colour, £17) but I found that the glue changed the texture of my trusty defining pencil and made it harder to perfect my brows in the end.

I can't deny this is a game-changer, whether you consider yourself a big brow obsessive or you're looking for a product to enhance your brows without too much effort. I can't believe I didn't think of it first.