Ladies and possibly gentleman ~
If you wax or shave do you have any tips or tricks?
Waxing - do you go to a professional? or do you do it yourself?
- What should I look for in a salon for a professional treatment? If you do it yourself what products might you recommend? When is the best time to do it, before you shower? just after you shower? How long should your stubble be when you wax? If you wax yourself, what position do you do this in? How often should waxing be done? How about aftercare?
Shaving - electric razor or manual?
- what products might you recommend for this - any particular electric razor? or manual razor? Shaving cream? Wet or dry - in the shower? Aftershave? What position do you find works best? How often? Aftercare?
For either
-- how do you prevent mishaps? accidental ripped skin, or shaving nicks? what do you do about them? How do you prevent ingrown hairs? What do you do if you get one?
What about anal bleaching? Any thoughts?
I am thankful for any thoughts and/or comments you have, they are very much appreciated!
~Hidden
I tried every way possible to shave (both electric and blade razor) and no matter what I did I got dreadful razor rash. That lasted until way past the time when I needed to shave again so I just got more and more raw until I gave it up as a bad job.
I already waxed my own legs and pits so I knew it was no great shakes in the pain stakes but I couldn't work out how I could wax all round my bikini line and genitalia without at least several mirrors, so I booked into my local salon for waxing, once the hair had grown long enough (and the razor rash had healed).
For waxing you need anything from about 3mm of hair to about 7 or 8mm. Any longer and the little hairs are missed, any shorter and there's not enough hair to grip on to. The least damage is done by getting as much done in a single pass as possible so you never wax the same surface more than once in one session. A good professional will know this and will remove any stray hairs left over with a pair of tweezers rather than go over the area again and risk causing bruises.
Any good waxing technician can do a bikini line wax with very few problems. If you want a Brazilian or Hollywood (or whatever your local area calls 'just rip it all out') look for someone who advertises that they offer this- not all will. Check on local social media for any horror stories, but most professionals who work in a salon are pretty good. Approach people who visit your home with caution unless you've got really good reports from others- it is my experience that to keep their job in a reputable salon they need to at least be competent and salons won't keep on someone who screws it up (if you then have the same person come to your home clearly that's different).
Before you are waxed have a shower, but don't apply body creams. Your skin needs to be properly dry for the wax to stick to the hairs but to stick to the skin as little as possible. It's very likely that your lady with the wax will spray or wipe your skin with an alcohol solution before starting, partly to remove as many bacteria as possible and partly to remove any residual skin oils.
As for products, I have never really got on with water based wax, and I'd urge you to look for someone who has really good hygiene. If there's a bath of wax then the spatula should be thrown away every time it's touched your skin and not returned to the bath to use again. The wax is not hot enough to be sure to kill all bacteria and the same pot can be used for many different clients through the day, so hygiene is important.
The most effective movement for waxing is to apply the wax in the direction of the hair growth, followed by applying the cloth in the same direction, and then removing it in a fast flicking motion in the opposite direction with one hand, whilst holding the skin taut with the other hand. If you're going to have skin damage or bruising that's most likely to happen with movements that are too slow and put too much tugging pressure on the skin, so if you don't trust yourself to actually remove the wax in a swift movement practice on legs before you try either bikini line or armpits, and get good with both of them before you try Brazilian on yourself.
After your waxing is finished, you'll be left with lots of tiny bits of wax that you didn't notice before you got dressed but then pick up fluff from your clothing so become obvious. You can remove these with a piece of kitchen towel soaked in baby oil. Don't try toilet roll (too soft and falls apart) or alcohol products (unless you want your screams to be heard in the next town).
In between waxing apply plenty of moisturiser, look after your skin and prevent/reduce ingrown hairs by exfoliating gently at least twice a week. Repetition for waxing is every 4-6 weeks if you naturally have strong body hair, but every 8-10 weeks if you're like me and your body hair is naturally fine and blonde.
Sorry for the essay.
