Re: The Epilator!
i’ve been using epilator’s for the past 12 years. in those days they were slow and the hair had to be pretty long but they did pull the hairs out from the root, so it was as effective as waxing. the new ones are a whole different thing, so if you can bear with me i’ll explain.
mostly they work on the principle of having a tweezer like mechanism on the rotating discs. so as you move the epilator along your skin, the hairs should get caught in the tweezers and pulled out. here is the problem and the root of ingrown hairs for most people. what actually happens is that many (most) of the hairs aren’t pulled out but they are broken, usually just below the surface of the skin. this causes pretty crazy ingrown hairs and no matter how much you exfoliate they will be ingrown and cause scars. Also, the results do not last as long as waxing would as they are not being pulled from the root; probably just a little longer than shaving.
however, i still use one but in combination with waxing. i stopped completely on my legs and bikini a while back as the ingrown hairs were ruining my skin. and it also tends to leave your skin bumpy afterwards. i used to use it in between waxing but last year i bought a professional waxing kit that allows me to wax when my hair is really short, so i just shave in between. my legs are always so smooth now and i hardly ever get any ingrowns.
also, the same as midnighteyes, i always use it on my underarms. for some reason i never get ingrown hairs with the epilator here, i think the reason is because it does manage to pull the hairs from the root, i can see the bulbs on the hairs when they come out. i also used to use it on my arms all the time with no probs. although i’ve recently started the waxing/shaving combo on my arms too as waxing lasts longer. my younger sister gets ingrown hairs everywhere when she uses hers, so do my cousins.
all in all, it has it’s uses but i would never use it to replace waxing.
btw, i have used both braun and philips epilators and i recommend the philips ones.
this is an excellent forum for all things hair removal (linked straight to the epiliating one) → http://www.hairtell.com/forum/ubbthreads.php/ubb/postlist/Board/5/page/1