Removing hair: epilation techniques

Removing hairs from legs, arms and other parts of the body can be quite a complicated task for some people. What makes it harder is choosing the correct epilation method for removing hairs as there are numerous techniques available including tweezing, waxing, sugaring, and rotary epilators.

Epilation is the term used to describe techniques of removing hair from the root follicle. Although all these methods allow people to enjoy short to medium term effects, most of these techniques leave people with varying degrees of discomfort. For this reason selecting the right method is even more important and trial and error is usually the only way to know which method is right for you.

Tweezing is a technique used to remove hairs from small areas such as on the eyebrows and the odd stray facial hair. To perform tweezing you need to purchase small metal forceps called tweezers which can be obtained from most chemists, pharmacies and supermarkets. With each tweezing action you typically remove a few hairs at once.

Waxing is a technique that is typically used to remove hair from large areas such as the legs, arms and back. In this method, hot wax is applied to the skin and a cloth is laid into the wax before it sets. Once the wax has hardened the cloth is pulled away, taking the wax and hairs with it. This process can be quite painful, especially for those who have higher hair growth rate as they may require waxing 2 or 3 times per month. However, the best part is that this method is not expensive and can also be carried out at home.

Sugaring is more or less the same as waxing. The main difference is in the compound used to remove the hair. A sugar solution is made from natural ingredients and is therefore kinder to the skin. It is also a lot easy to clean up afterwards. Like waxing, the technique can be performed at home and you can even make your own sugar solution.

Rotary epilators are devises that remove unwanted hair in an automated way. Some people can use these devices with little discomfort, whereas others find them too painful; it all depends on each person's pain threshold. These devices look like electric shavers but rather than having cutters they have multiple sets of tweezers. You simply run the device of the skin and it plucks out the hairs as it goes. Rotary epilators can be used on all areas of the body. As with all devices, they vary in quality. The better quality ones tend to have more powerful motors, grab the hairs firmer, are quieter, and have protective mechanisms to stop the device from nipping the skin.

With all epilating techniques, the more they are used the less likely the hair is to grow again. Or if it does grow back then at least they become less dense and finer. The biggest issue with epliation for removing hair is the level of discomfort they can cause. However, unless you give them a go you'll never know how good or bad that experience will be.