Are you tired of having to shave every other day or even everyday? Well so am I! So I took that determination and turned it into courage to brave... The Wax!!
... OUCH...
Yes, I waxed my legs! Lets just say the key to waxing is determination, good technique, and a "Just Do It" attitude.
Is at home waxing right for you? If you are tired of having to shave 3 or more times a week, and you are okay with having not "completely" smooth legs... then at home waxing is the option for you. At home waxing was right for me because I wanted to minimize the frequency of shaving and achieve the removal of at least 90% of hair on my legs. If you want to have completely smooth legs for 2-6 weeks then this might not be the option for you. With the time, effort and certain level of pain, at home waxing can be, you need to be okay with having not "completely" smooth legs and the possible need to run a razor over your legs once every two weeks until you have to wax again to get the completely smooth legs your looking for.
I chose the Nair Milk & Honey formula mainly because of it's convenient roll on applicator. Later while doing research for this blog I found that there were even more benefits to my choice in product. The Nair Milk & Honey formula is a sugar based wax so when it came time for clean up of the extra wax it just washed right off my legs without the help of oil which is needed for removing other non-sugar based waxing products.
Before braving the wax, you must brave growing out the hair you intend to remove. This is going to SUCK! The hair needs to be about 1/4" long in order for the wax to grab a hold of it. This took me two excruciating weeks. This made wearing leggings or jeans almost unbearable by rubbing and irritating the skin and hair.
Total time to wax both legs, have pizza, and take a couple breaks... 2 hours. No Advil, numbing creams, or illegal substances were taken before hand!
7 steps to waxing with the easy to use Nair Milk & Honey hair removal waxing kit.
1. Warm up wax in microwave for 15 seconds.
2. Apply talc powder to area intended to be waxed.
3. Apply wax to a small area in the same direction of hair growth.
4. Firmly apply cloth/ paper strip to the wax rubbing in the same direction as hair growth.
5. Firmly grip the cloth/ paper strip and remove QUICKLY in the opposite direction of hair growth keeping your hand close to the skin.
6. Repeat steps 3-5 SEVERAL times!
7. Rinse excess wax with warm water and exfoliate with a gentle exfoliating cleanser.
8. Pluck stray hairs that you missed.
**Important**
If you decide to buy the same thing I did, you will need to pick up a separate pack of cloth strips or else you will run out of them mid-waxing and might just say screw it at that point. haha
Now for a more in-depth look at these steps.
Follow the directions on the package for warming the wax. Too hot can burn your skin and change the dynamic of how well the wax works. Too cold and it won't apply well and will tug on hairs as you apply it. 15 seconds was good for me and to warm it up during the procedure 5 seconds is enough. If you get it too hot set aside for 10 mins to cool. Apply baby powder to the area intended to be waxed with a dry clean dish cloth. This will aid in a less painful removal of hair from the skin by limiting the cohesion between skin and wax. Applying the wax to a larger area will remove more hair obviously but will also hurt more. Your pain tolerance will determine the size of area you apply the wax to. Start with smaller strips and work your way up to your comfort level. Applying the wax and cloth strip in the direction of hair growth helps to pull the hair taut in preparation for removal in the opposite direction. Holding firmly onto the cloth strip when removing gives you something to hold on to when you feel the sting after removal (ha ha) and prevents your hand from slipping off the cloth during removal which can cause unnecessary pain midway through the removal, which can cause you to miss hairs or have ingrown hairs later on.
Why pull quickly? To get it done quicker, Duh! ha ha. Pulling quickly in the opposite direction keeping your hand close to your skin all help to prevent the wax slipping off the hair causing ingrown hairs and unnecessary pain. Hold the skin taut during application of wax, cloth, and removal. This helps you remove the hair and keeps skin from moving and preventing maximum hair removal. Depending on your coverage area and size of area wax is applied to each time will determine how many times you will have to repeat steps 3-5. I used at least 50 and I only removed hair from the knees down. I know that seems like a LOT, and it is! I feel the outcome was worth it. After washing off the excess wax with warm water I used an exfoliating cleanser to wash my legs which will help prevent ingrown hairs. I waxed about two weeks ago and I have experienced one ingrown hair, which I removed immediately with clean tweezers and applied alcohol to prevent infection.
No, my legs were not completely smooth after I waxed. No, I was not able to remove all hair from my legs. Yes, I have at least 95% less hair on my legs right now. Yes, I have had to shave once in the past two weeks! Mission accomplished!
A couple things the package won't tell you.
~ To remove Knee hair, bend knee while sitting down. Apply and remove wax in smaller patches.
~ To remove hair from the back of the calf, rest foot on something solid, toes facing the ground and twist your torso as if you were trying to check out your own butt.
~ DO NOT shave right after waxing. Pulling the hair out of your skin can cause damage to the skin surrounding the hair follicle, so shaving right after will cut any raised skin cells and cause ingrown hairs.
~ If you must have completely smooth skin wait at least two days for your skin to recover before shaving. There will be redness and heightened sensitivity for a couple hours after waxing, this is normal.
~ Applying a little bit of baby oil to the skin will help sooth and repair the damaged skin.
~DO NOT use oils or lotions that have a fragrance in them for at least 24 hours. Both can cause irritation and ingrown hairs.
~DO NOT use oils or lotions that have a fragrance in them for at least 24 hours. Both can cause irritation and ingrown hairs.
Before picture
ha ha ha (I really didn't want a picture of my fuzzy legs online so I thought this was comparable to the fuzziness on my legs before... and way cuter too!)
After Picture
After Picture
After waxing and before plucking. Notice that I didn't remove all the hair with the wax, but is drastically less fuzzy then the before picture.
Does waxing hurt? Yes, but it is more of a sting rather than blunt force ouch. If you have a tattoo I can compare it with getting a tattoo just on a larger faster scale. Some places do hurt more than others. ( I'll let you find those out on your own) I can also compare the sting to a dogs nails scratching your bare legs for a second. The sting goes away within 3-5 seconds, but instead of thinking about the sting factor each time you go to pull that strip, don't think, don't count, just apply and pull. Take a few 5 min breaks in there. Inspect what you have already done during your breaks. This will encourage you to continue on. Being able to see the difference between fuzzy and not so fuzzy is great encouragement.
I hope this helped will you in your quest to become fuzz-less.
Your American Cutie Beauty
**No dogs were waxed or harmed in the process**
