Raw: The pain-free way to a smoother body

Waxing; beloved of the more hirsute amongst us, and is considered a fairly essential part of one’s grooming regime for no longer is it priced out of everyday reach and there’s definitely a waxing salon on every high street, mobile therapist.  From the Brazilian to the Hollywood and Eyebrows to Legs and even the male “BSC” technique, there is definitely a wax option for everyone. However, despite it’s long term benefits of slower hair regrowth, it still has that ‘ouch’ association. Some might say, leaving you feeling a little ‘raw’ depending where you’ve been waxed…

We’ve been looking into a new contender on the market that has been wowing fans and taking the pain out of the game. We think you’ll find they’re pretty interesting:

Outback Gold Organic Wax is a recent breakthrough in the waxing world thanks to its combination of natural Australian ingredients as well as a clever polymer technology which effectively “shrink wraps” each hair to remove it from the root. As a waxing technique the application goes on as a very fine layer and dries in under 30 seconds ready to be peeled (by hand, no need for wax papers) straight back off and reveal that smooth hair-free body part.

With a lovely mix of Australian Mountain Pepper (full of antioxidants and known to relieve aches and pains), Bergamot Orange Oil (an uplifting and antiseptic essential oil) and Lemon Myrtle Oil (used by indigenous people as a tonic and stimulant) the hot wax has been something of a breakthrough both at home and in salons across the UK. Outback Gold is currently being used as the wax in the Urban Retreat salon in Harrods.  Here’s a quick shot of it in action at Outback HQ:

If you already wax, or feel confident to do this at home, and there’s really no reason why you shouldn’t be able to with the numerous options on our high street including wax strips, cream and hot waxes from long time depilatory experts such as Veet and Nair, here are some very useful hints from the experts to help you get the best out of your hairy area removal…

Chloe, Head of Training at the Ministry of Waxing  told us that the most common mistakes in waxing include:

1. Waxing when the hair is too short – Chloe confirms hair needs to be at least 6mm in length.  So try to contain your enthusiasm for at least 10 days after you’ve shaved!

2. Trying to wax after heat (sunbathing or sunbeds) – a total no-no because the skin is already sensitised and wax can cause unnecessary pain, and potentially take off layers of the skin.

3. Using the wrong type of wax on the wrong areas: “… you need soft wax for the vellus hair on your arms and legs but you would usually have hard wax for the terminal hair on your bikini line and underarms,”

Whilst Rebecca Dowdeswell from Nkd waxing salons advises to “…ensure the wax isn’t too hot, and therefore more likely to burn you.  Waxing should not be an ordeal!   Test the temperature first on your wrist for safety.” 

Rebecca also informed us one of their most common findings at Nkd was that home waxers had not been as methodical as therapists, so clients had lots of stray hairs everywhere and were disappointed.  Practice makes perfect – as does attention to detail!

The Ministry of Waxing team reminded us about those other little blighters – the Ingrown Hair. Ouch.  “These are generally caused by bacteria and dead skin cells that get trapped in the open hair follicles, causing the hair to either grow along the skin’s surface or grow back down the hair follicle creating a small spot.  It is very important to follow after-care wax instructions, no further heat treatments, no perfumed products and physical exercise for 24hours.”

To avoid those nasty and painful ingrown hairs, Nkd’s Rebecca also gave us this imperative tip:  “At-home maintenance between waxes is SO important.  Scrub and rub is nkd’s mantra, which means regular exfoliation for example, every other day as well as daily moisturising of the waxed area so that the skin is kept supple. Ingrown hairs can occur when the skin is dry/old skin is not removed, which therefore prevents the regrowth from breaking through the skin.”.

If after reading all of this you feel perhaps you’d rather leave it to the therapists to tend to your hair removal, make sure you follow Nkd’s helpful tips on how to get the most from your salon:

Watch out for the skill level and techniques used in the salon – are they double dipping? (a big no-no health and safety wise, and professionally!)  Turns out there is a correct way to wax – but it depends which area you are waxing; so for different bits there are different products AND techniques.

Or, you could just go raw and go au naturel… (or not – we prefer groomed really)