Finding your wax style is something we take seriously. Whether you’ve got home waxing down or you prefer lashings of warm wax in the salon - there is something satisfying about being smoother for longer. Of course, we aren’t excluding our shavers or ‘free the fur’ kinda people, it’s just we are dedicating this post to our waxologists.
So, turns out the Egyptians were big into body hair removal too…In around 1150 BC, they’d remove every last snippet of hair from pit to pubes using an ancient technique called sugaring. This is still a firm favourite with a lot of people today. It’s made up of lemon, sugar and water, heated to make a sticky syrup that sticks to the hair and is ripped off like waxing.
In this expert guide, we’ll walk you through our 4 steps to stunningly smooth legs using our Comfort Complex soft gel-wax strips at home.
So firstly, why are these face and body hair removal strips any different from your regular drugstore brands?
At Estrid we spend our days perfecting and engineering the art form of hair removal. Designing intuitive tools and techniques is our bag. Not to brag…but we’d say we know a thing or two about achieving truly smooth skin. It’s all in our vegan, comfort complex formulation.
“Yeah but waxing is so painful,” they said…
Ok hear us out…waxing is a super personal experience and your pain tolerance will differ from your friends. However, we have really thought about how best to mitigate as much pain as possible. Our Comfort Complex has been specifically formulated to tackle the pain element of waxing. The vegan resin base offers a smooth glide yet active grip and the soft-gel wax strips hugs your body, resulting in precise and efficient hair removal in one swipe. We also know that your skin loves nourishing ingredients, so we enrolled a powerful duo into the mix; Squalene and Aloe. Squalane has the unique ability to lock in hydration and Aloe is the super-healer made of 96% water, leaving your skin soothed and quenched after use.
How do you avoid ingrown hair?
Remember to regularly exfoliate the areas you get waxed this will help slay away dead skin and prevent clogged pores and ingrown hair. Ideally, you should try to exfoliate the skin you are waxing at least 24 hours before and three days after.
“How do you get the wax off the skin”
Once you’ve waxed using our 4-step guide, your skin after-care is paramount. We’ve included 6 comfort wipes in the face and body kit which are made from 99.9% natural ingredients, replenishing and repairing delicate skin post-wax. They also double as a way to pick up excess sticky wax.
Let’s dive into achieving the smoothest at-home wax for your legs
Before you get started check the length of hair you are waxing - our wax strips work best on hair about 2mm grow out or more - that’s the thickness of a penny. If you have recently shaved, however, the wax strip won’t pick the hair up.
Step 1: Get prepped
Gently exfoliate the area you wish to wax 24 hours before with something like our Essential Exfoliant to remove dead skin cells, this will actively help the wax better grip the hair and help hugely to avoid ingrown hair.
Step 2: Do your skin a favour and dry it off
Wash your body of any lotion or products and gently dry the skin before use. Wait 10-20 minutes if you’ve just showered, moisturised, or exercised. Basically, any moisture or sweat on the body will make the wax less effective.
Step 3: Application style
Pro tip: Avoid warming up the wax in your hands, it actually makes the grip less effective. When applying the wax strip, use the heel of your hand to rub it in the direction of hair growth, removing any air bubbles. Pull the skin taught with one hand and with the other hand, pull the strip quickly against the hair growth direction. Ensure to pull as close to the skin as possible as this can help reduce irritation.
To note: The face wax stripes are designed to be used on sideburns, upper lip, brow area, and chin. Read our guide on how to wax your face to learn more. Or if you fancy it, they are a great size for the toes. The body wax strips are bigger and designed to be used on the arms, thighs, legs, and any larger area where you want to remove hair. Avoid intimate areas like your bikini line.
Step 4: Watch out for repeating yourself
If you find yourself going over the same spot more than twice, stop to avoid irritation and come back to that spot the next day. It’s normal for your skin to be a bit red for up to 24 hours after waxing, the post-wax wipes work hard to help soothe any irritation. Freshly waxed skin opens up your pores making them super susceptible to bacteria and dirt, so try not to touch it too much to prevent flare-ups.
Abracadabra! Waxing from home is definitely worth the hype, be consistent with it and use the right tools and techniques. Our soft-gel wax strips seriously offer a comfortable, gentle and efficient hair removal experience promoting skin healing. With these expert tips, you can achieve dolphin skin from the comfort of your own home.
3 top tips to avoid post-wax
Skip the steamy baths
After waxing, it may be tempting to take a warm bath, dip in a hot tub or go swimming, however, try not to for at least 24 hours as there is a higher risk of bacteria build-up. Extreme heat like a sauna or steam room can also exacerbate redness, and inflammation causing breakouts. One more thing and sorry to be the skin police, but sun exposure is also a no-go for newly waxed skin, as it may be more vulnerable to damage.
Avoid tight clothing
One of the most effective ways to avoid ingrown hair is to avoid tight clothing for at least 48 hours. The tight materials add friction to the newly waxed skin pressing in the fine hairs that are attempting to regrow and are more likely to curve back into the skin.
Stop exercising for a little bit
Ok, so getting sweaty is a bugger for clogging your pores, especially with freshly open ones post-wax. Give your skin a couple of days of breathing space before you get back to Barry’s.
We hope this waxing-from-home guide has helped even the keenest of waxers perfect their style. Remember it’s just two seconds of “ouch” for 28 days of smoothness.
It’s a skin win-win.
