I love being Italian, but I hate being hairy! Unwanted body hair is a huge inconvenience and if your hair is dark and thick like mine, shaving might not get you smooth or long-lasting results. Luckily for you, I have tested out multiple methods of hair removal so you don’t have to. If you want to say goodbye to unwanted body hair and hello to irresistible, silky skin, check out these five hair removal methods!
1. Shaving
Shaving works best for areas of the body with fine hair, like the arms and legs. Some of the pros to shaving are that is it relatively quick, easy, and painless (assuming you don’t cut yourself). Unfortunately for me however, shaving doesn’t last and I become as prickly as a porcupine the next day! So if you have coarse hair like mine or hair that grows back quickly, shaving is probably not your best bet.
2. Hair Removal Creams
Creams like Nair and Veet can be applied to the skin to chemically burn off your unwanted hair. Although I have not tried Veet, Nair’s cream works wonders for my skin. The cream penetrates the deep into the hair follicle for longer lasting, smooth skin. Although this method works for me, I did notice some negative consequences. Since this cream contains harsh chemicals, it has the potential to burn your skin and leave you with red, painful patches. That said, I don’t recommend hair removal cream to sensitive skin! Additionally, this method is quite messy and you must make sure not to touch anything while you wait for the cream to work.
3. Tweezing and Waxing
Unlike shaving and hair removal creams, tweezing and waxing serve to rip the hair from its follicle. This method is one of my favorites, as it yields results that last up to three weeks! Although tweezing/waxing works wonders, there are a few things to keep in mind. First of all, you have to wait until your hair is as long as a grain of rice before you can get it waxed off. That may mean going weeks with hairy legs, so maybe try waxing over the winter. Second of all, if you have a low pain tolerance, I would not recommend waxing as it stings. A lot. Third of all, and perhaps most importantly, you need to be careful where you choose to wax/tweeze. According to my waxologist, when you rip the hair from its root in hormonally dependent areas (lip, chin, neck, chest, and stomach), it actually strengthens the hair follicle and promotes it to produce thicker, darker hairs. On the contrary, if you wax non-hormonal places (arms, legs, armpits, etc.), the follicle becomes weakened and will eventually produce finer hair.
4. Laser Hair Removal
After being unsatisfied with the three temporary methods mentioned above, I decided to turn to laser. Although it worked to permanently rid a majority of my hair, there are a few things to consider before you do it. Firstly, laser hair removal only works with dark hair—blonde and light brown hair won’t be removed! This is because the laser is attracted to the pigment in your hair, so generally speaking, the darker the better. Secondly, it takes six treatments on average to clear your hair. These treatments should be at least 6 weeks apart to ensure you target the hair in the active growth cycle. Lastly, make sure you do your research! Unfortunately, there are a number of people out there who just want your money and try to give you a low-level laser treatment so you need to come back past the sixth treatment. And let me tell you, laser is not cheap. So be sure to check out reviews online!
5. Electrolysis
Although laser hair removal is great, it only works with dark hairs. Electrolysis on the other hand, can work on any hair type and still yield permanent results. It works by sending electrical currents to each hair follicle, killing the follicle in the process and preventing further growth. Unlike laser however, this method only sends currents to one hair follicle at a time and therefore it may be months to years before you are fully clear. For this reason, I don’t recommend electrolysis on larger areas like arms or legs.
I hope my reviews helped. Now go enjoy your new, silky-smooth skin!