Beauty Box: Hair Removal
The sun is finally shining, so this week we try to find the most effective - and least painful ways - to de-fuzz.
Charlotte's Pick: I have a three-pronged method of attack against hair removal, created through lots of trial and error and lots of pain! My weapons of choice are a Venus Divine razor, a Phillips Epilator, and Nads. Despite a lack of evidence to the contrary I still can’t help but believe the myth that if I shave my legs too much I will grow a sea of untameable dark spiky hairs. Due to my irrational fears, I try to epilate and use Nads when I have the time (and can bear the pain).
In my experience epilating doesn’t remove the smallest hairs, but the hairs it does remove (by yanking them out in a constant tweezering manoeuvre) don’t grow back quickly. And when they do, they are finer and less noticeable. Try one with a pain-reducing feature, such as ice packs, but to be honest they don’t help that much. It gets less painful though, I promise.
Nads – a green Aussie hair removing goo often seen on QVC. It’s made of all natural ingredients meaning you can even eat it if you so wish (as they do on QVC). It works like a wax, but instead of heating it, you use it straight out of the pot. Spread it on using the enclosed spatula, rub a waxing strip on top, leave for a few moments, then whip off. It hurts. Although not as much as epilating. It is however, much more messy and time consuming. Why do I bother? Because I'm convinced it works the best.
Gemma's Pick: Poor old Gem. I may have inherited my dad's mousy blonde locks and pale skin, but my brunette mother passed on everything else to me. Like Charlotte (and every flatmate I've ever had) I stash away a Gilette Venus razor for quick de-fuzzing. The problem with most women's razors on the market is that they're so concerned with being safe and looking pretty that they don't actually do anything. The Venus actually removes hair. Genius.
I really shouldn't admit this to you, but I have been known, on occasion, to wax my own bikini line using Veet's mini wax strips. I'm not going to lie to you about this. It hurts, it's easy to make mistakes and you need to be a complete idiot to attempt this yourself if you've not done it before on another part of the body (do your legs and see how you cope). All that aside, if you've no time to book a salon trip, a bikini crying out to be worn and a plane to get on the next day, they work pretty well if you know what you're doing. Just make sure to apply them in the direction of hair growth and to pull back quickly, staying close to the skin, rather than ripping it away like they do in sitcoms.
For those with a lower threshold for pain, the other thing I keep in my cupboard for emergencies is the Veet Rasera kit, which is essentially a can of foamy looking hair removal cream and a plastic remover that looks like a razor. It can be used for most areas, but works best on legs. I love this because it's impossible to cut yourself (good news for the girl who's been known to take a chunk out of her ankle when she 'slipped' while shaving). If you need to get rid of the hair on your legs and you don't trust yourself with a blade, this is great fun. Whack it on, leave it for a few minutes, then 'shave' it off, leaving foul-smelling gunk in the bath. Mmm, lovely.
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I have not tried the Philips epilator, but I have tried everything else you mentioned!
However, I prefer the pre-waxed strips by Veet over the Nads. I used to use Nads and it was such a pain to heat up the wax and wash the cloth strips afterwards. It made waxing a huge production that I never had time for. Now I use Veet's pre-waxed strips with the pre-waxing comfort spray that numbs your legs and I am hooked.
As for hair removal cream, I have yet to find one that actually works. My skin is very sensitive and hair removal creams just make my legs red and sore and don't actually remove any of the hair! Very frusterating.
I too use the Venus razor for touch ups in between waxing and also for underarms. Works great and I love it.
Now I am going to have to go get a Phillips Epilator... sounds like something I could use.
Posted by: Sarah-Jean | April 19, 2006 5:42 PM