happy Tuesday all! today we'll be discussing my newest experiment, the Emjoi Optima Epilator. as you all may or may not know, an epilator is an electronic device (either corded or cordless) that looks like an electric razor but instead of shaving the hair off at the skins surface, tweezes the hair out from the root to give you smooth, hairless skin that lasts several weeks. it's sort of like waxing with a little electric device! i have never tried an epilator before, but, like all of you i'm sure, hate to be a slave to the razor every other day, all summer long, so i thought hey, it's worth a shot! i'd heard a lot of positive feedback on epilators in general (thanks to Pursebuzz for her helpful advice!) regarding the hair removal, but the opinions on the pain factor varied. i don't consider myself to be a person with a low pain tolerance at all (hello, tattoos and piercings that i ENJOYED having done!) so i have to admit, i wasn't the least bit worried about it. then the package arrived and i tried it out, and EEEEEEEEEEEK!!!ok, YES, it is VERY painful at first, but supposedly the pain lessens each time you use it until it's
relatively nothing. i have only tried it on my legs so far but i will say this, if you plan on testing out an epilator, make SURE you hold your skin taut (almost the same as you do when you're about to pull off hot wax or cloth strips) when you're running the device up and down your legs. this significantly lessens the pain AND helps the machine to remove the hair from the root. as for hair removal? i would say it removed 90% of the hair from my lower legs, and since hairs grow at different speeds and are all different lengths, this seems ok. when you first start epilating it's advised that you use your epilator everyday for a while until you achieve total smoothness and then you can just use it to touch up every so often. the pros of epilating (much like waxing) are that removing the hair by the root damages the hair follicle and causes the hair to grow back finer and more slowly as time goes on. and, of course, you stay smoother much longer than shaving, which only removes the hair at the skin's surface.here are some valuable tips to take into consideration if you're planning on trying out an epilator:
work in small sections and take breaks if the pain gets too severe. taking an Ibuprofen or Advil
35 minutes beforehand is supposed to help lessen your sensitivity to the plucking, and also some
people like to use a bit of Benzocaine to numb the skin, especially the first time you're epilating.
some say taking a hot shower and exfoliating beforehand helps to get the hair in prime position to be removed (although, i must add, i find this tip to be contradictory because i would think that taking a shower, which softens the hair, would make it more likely to break off mid-shaft instead of coming out by the root? your mileage on this tip may vary).
after you've epilated, moisturize the area daily (try Jergens Naturally Smooth Shave Minimizing Lotion) and when showering make sure to exfoliate thoroughly to avoid ingrown hairs (i seem to read that people have the most luck with sugar scrubs for this particular purpose). if ingrowns are a problem, try TendSkin (available online or at Ulta and Sephora) which contains salicylic acid and helps to exfoliate the blocked hair follicle from the inside out.
some people also think that it's a good idea to get the area you're planning on epilating waxed first and then using the epilator as a maintenance method, because epilating full grown hair is much much more difficult and painful. i didn't get waxed first, but i made it through (but not without some pain!).
interested in the Emjoi Optima? check it out here. the $100 pricetag is pretty heavy but consider all the money you'd be saving on shaving gels, razors, waxing, etc. and also that of the reviews i've read, most people have had their epilators for 5+ years and they're still going strong! other companies that make epilators are Braun, Remington, and Panasonic (weird, huh?) and you can find these at their websites or your local Target-type stores. good luck, and lmk what you think of epilating in the comments!
work in small sections and take breaks if the pain gets too severe. taking an Ibuprofen or Advil
35 minutes beforehand is supposed to help lessen your sensitivity to the plucking, and also some
people like to use a bit of Benzocaine to numb the skin, especially the first time you're epilating.
some say taking a hot shower and exfoliating beforehand helps to get the hair in prime position to be removed (although, i must add, i find this tip to be contradictory because i would think that taking a shower, which softens the hair, would make it more likely to break off mid-shaft instead of coming out by the root? your mileage on this tip may vary).
after you've epilated, moisturize the area daily (try Jergens Naturally Smooth Shave Minimizing Lotion) and when showering make sure to exfoliate thoroughly to avoid ingrown hairs (i seem to read that people have the most luck with sugar scrubs for this particular purpose). if ingrowns are a problem, try TendSkin (available online or at Ulta and Sephora) which contains salicylic acid and helps to exfoliate the blocked hair follicle from the inside out.
some people also think that it's a good idea to get the area you're planning on epilating waxed first and then using the epilator as a maintenance method, because epilating full grown hair is much much more difficult and painful. i didn't get waxed first, but i made it through (but not without some pain!).
interested in the Emjoi Optima? check it out here. the $100 pricetag is pretty heavy but consider all the money you'd be saving on shaving gels, razors, waxing, etc. and also that of the reviews i've read, most people have had their epilators for 5+ years and they're still going strong! other companies that make epilators are Braun, Remington, and Panasonic (weird, huh?) and you can find these at their websites or your local Target-type stores. good luck, and lmk what you think of epilating in the comments!
1 comment:
Yes, let's add each other!! I think we even started our blogs roughly around the same time. I ripped off your counter, so I can start seeing if anyone other than 5 friends reads mine.
On a more relevant comment subject, I used to epilate for years and loved it until the ingrown monster took over. Then, I did laser removal...but am back to my faithful epilator for the strays.
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