The Ultimate Guide To Hair Removal At-Home

Whether you prefer to shave, thread, wax, use hair removal cream or go all natural? It doesn’t matter, as what matter is your preference. But, the best way to decide what hair removal would be ideal for you, is to arm yourself with both the pros and cons of each option. So I’ve put together the ultimate guide to hair removal at home.

Threading

Best for: Brows and lips.

Threading involves looping a string thread around each tiny hair, effectively lassoing it, beforepulling the loop taut to catch and pull each hair out from the root.

Pros: Through threading, it gives you an ultra neat finish, as well as being a much gentle option compared to waxing especially for sensitive, thin or redness-prone skin.

Cons: It’s pretty tricky to do it yourself at home so it may mean that you’ll have to visit a professional each time. The technique pulls the hair out from the root, making it a little uncomfortable and painful. Also, you are only able to remove a few hairs at one time, making it not that great at covering wide surface areas.

Hair Removal Cream

Best for: Bikini lines, armpits, legs and upper lip.

Hair removal cream [Also known as; depilatory] works by breaking down the keratin structure within the hair, basically dissolving the bonds that hold the hair together, and when you wipe the cream away, it takes the hair with it.

Pros: There’s pain, and it’s fairly speedy. It can be less irritating on the skin as there’s less friction compared to waxing and shaving. It also leaves a better finish, since the end of the hair isn’t squared off at the tips [unlike it is when shaving], it makes your hair feel softer when they grow back through.

Cons: As the cream only removes the hair above the skin instead of the roots, it, therefore, means that the smooth feeling is short-lived and the regrowth will come through more quickly. The hair removal cream can also get pretty messy and has whiffy scents, as well as feeling a little itchy during the three or ten minutes that take to work.

Waxing

Best for: Lips, legs, brows, pits and bits [bikini lines].

This involves using strips of hot or cold wax, that spread over the hairs [in the same direction as the hair growth], then rip off in the opposite direction to remove both the hair and root.

Pros: Through waxing, both the hair and root are removed, giving you a longer-lasting smoothness compare to razors or hair removal creams. Also, over time waxing repeatedly, it can weaken the hairs which makes the finer and much less painful to remove and less stubbly if left for longer periods. Another thing is that you may find yourself waxing less frequently.

Cons: At first it can hurt like a b*tch [especially for thicker-haired gals], also it can be messier than shaving and you need some nerves of steel.

Dermaplaning

Best for: Baby hair on cheeks and upper lip.

Dermaplaning is when you use a single blade to remove the hair and dead skin cells from the surface of your skin [very similar to shaving]. You usually use the method to get rid of peach fuzz [the soft, ultra-thin baby hairs that tend to appear along the upper part of the lip].

Pros: Cause of only using one blade, it help to be much more precised, it’s also painless and very simple to do. As is removes dead skin cells, it leaves your skin feeling alot smoother and creates an even base for make up.

Cons: As the roots aren’t being removed, the hair will therefore grow back fairly quickly, and if you are too rough then you can aggravate the skin creating or exacerbating irritation and acne.

Epilating

Best for: Armpits, bikini lines and legs.

This a handheld device that has a rotating head with tiny little mechanical tweezers which catch, pulls and plucks the hair out from the root.

Pros: Since it removes the hair from the roots, it will last a lot longer. And over time the hairs will weaken, meaning it will take longer for the hairs to grow back, finer and softer [or not all].

Cons: It can longer to remove the hairs, than it would to shave or wax. It can also be quite painful and doesn’t also remove all the hair, causing it to be slightly more patchy than other methods.

IPL

Best for: Legs, armpits, upper lips.

IPL stands for Intense Pluse Light and it involves using light therapy that targets the melanin in hair follicles and damages the root in a way that inhibits it fro producinh new hair.

Pros: This method use to only be a salon-only treatment but at-home devices have meant you can use it yourself. It’s not very painful to use and the results can be permanent. It comes with different nozzles which enables you to target both small and large areas.

Cons: You might find that takes a little longer to start seeing results compared to other methods and to see the longer-term benefits, so you’ll need to use it several times to see long-lasting results. Even though the technology has advanced, always bare in mind that it can still sometimes be a little patchy – permanently reducing the amount of hair you have in some places, rather than eliminating it altogether.