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1920s -

As demonstrated by Chinese-American actress Anna May Wong, stylish silent movie stars of the 1920s wore their brows finely plucked, with a distinctive downward slope.

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1920s -

Iconic 1920s movie star Clara Bow was another big screen star whose look encouraged women everywhere to reach for the tweezers.

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1930s -

By the 1930s, moviegoers were inspired by the arched, tweezed look of glamorous stars like Merle Oberon.

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1930s -

Eyebrows remained painstakingly plucked throughout the decade, with stars such as "Blonde Bombshell" Jean Harlow leading the charge in the style stakes.

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1930s -

Using an eyebrow pencil to shape the brow was also in fashion, as demonstrated by uber-stylish American singer Billie Holiday. Stars kept their lipstick game strong, too.

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1940s -

The plucked-and-painted brow continued to be a major trend into the 1940s, with beauty icons like actress Marlene Dietrich setting eyebrow goals for women everywhere.

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1940s -

But the 1940s also saw some stars embrace a heavier, more natural look. Thick-browed women must have breathed a sigh of relief when screen siren Joan Crawford made her bigger brows into a style statement.

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1950s -

By the 1950s, eyebrows were less severe, but still made a statement. Mega star Marilyn Monroe made a feature of perfectly-arched brows and bold red lipstick.

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1950s -

Who says blondes have more fun? The 1950s also saw bombshell brunettes inspire seductive looks. Elizabeth Taylor reportedly used makeup to make her envy-inducing brows even more dramatic.

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1950s -

Singer and actress Eartha Kitt provided eyebrow inspiration, too. She straddled a neat line between the arched, shaped brow and the emerging trend for a more natural look.

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1960s -

The swinging '60s saw stylish women ditch the tweezers and reach for the eyebrow pencils. Elegant movie stars like Audrey Hepburn embraced a look that enhanced their eyes as well as their brows.

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1960s -

Legendary 1960s model Twiggy also helped popularize a look that saw false lashes, lots of liner, and carefully-painted brows come to the fashion forefront.

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1970s -

American singer Diana Ross was among the stars setting the beauty agenda in the 1970s. Her brows had a distinctive angle that many women sought to replicate.

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1970s -

The birth of disco made glittery eye makeup a nightclub trend, and stars of the time plucked their eyebrows super-high. Donna Summer created a wide-eyed look that left plenty of space for eyeshadow!

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1980s -

The 1980s saw Madonna make a dramatic entrance onto the music scene, bringing her big, bold brows with her.

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1980s -

By the time she made 'Who's That Girl?' in 1987, her eyebrows practically had their own starring role. The contrasting bleach-blonde look caught on with fashion-conscious young women looking to emulate her star style.

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1980s -

Actress Brooke Shields was another star who wholeheartedly embraced the trend for bigger brows. Eyebrow makeup became very much a thing as women attempted to create their own power brows.

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1980s -

A fresh-faced Whitney Houston worked the thick-browed look, too. It looked like super-thin brows had been firmly banished to the past.

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1990s -

Wrong! The style stakes changed dramatically in the 1990s, when the music scene swapped disco for grunge, and emerging trendsetters like Kate Moss appeared on runways and fashion shoots with super-plucked brows.

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1990s -

In a trend that many women's brows never recovered from, stars like Drew Barrymore embraced the tweezers and eyebrow pencils with great gusto.

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1990s -

Some stars took it even further, with Gwen Stefani in particular having a substantial role in encouraging a trend for 'eyebrow art.'

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1990s -

A young Christina Aguilera was an enthusiastic plucker, too. Her eyebrows were among the thinnest of a lineup of '90s stars seemingly intent on getting rid of their natural brows altogether.

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1990s -

Meanwhile, Spice Girl Geri Halliwell inspired teenage girls everywhere to pluck their brows into almost-cartoonish arches. It was like the 1930s all over again!

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2000s -

By the early 2000s, brows got a bit of a break from the over-tweezing. But monobrows were definitely not acceptable. Victoria Beckham's wide-apart brows were typical of the time.

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2000s -

Cameron Diaz's style was admired by fashionistas everywhere, and her tweezed-but-natural look became increasingly commonplace.

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2000s -

Angelina Jolie made a brow statement, too. Her enviable arch took some work to copy, but many people attempted to do so.

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2010s -

If ever one woman could be credited with changing the shape of eyebrows, it's Cara Delevingne. Like Kate Moss before her, the young British model made an instant impact on the global fashion scene, and big, black brows were suddenly the height of style.

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2010s -

The Kardashians were setting the fashion agenda, too, and women everywhere looked to Kim K's bold, shapely brows for inspiration.

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2020s -

The beginning of a new decade may have been indelibly marked by a global pandemic, but at least brows were looking healthy! Even Gwen Stefani's brows survived their '90s tweezing ordeal to come back strong.

Sources: (InStyle) (Vogue)

See also: Should these '80s fashion trends make a comeback?

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