Epilator experts - how do you prevent stubbles?
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free skin care · Fri Aug 08, 2008 10:37 am

Do you girls get silky smooth skin after epilating? Please help!

I have been epilating on a daily basis to combat the feel of the stubbles. My bf even asked me if i've been shaving right after an epilating session... What am i doing wrong?

IF I leave the leg to grow out for 1 month (frustrating month) and then epilate, my leg will feel smooth for about 2 to 3 days. It's silly to have hairy legs for 27 days and smooth legs for 3 days...

free skin care · Fri Aug 08, 2008 10:44 am

I dunno but after many years of epilating, the hair finally gets finer and softer and less stubbly. If I want absolutely smooth legs, I have to do it every day, just like shaving. But at least if I want to skip a few days, with epilating it's not as rough or visible.
Hope this helps. Maybe someone else has a better answer though.

free skin care · Fri Aug 08, 2008 12:11 pm

After more than 15 years of use, I only have to use the epilator on my legs about once per month. As fawnie said, the hair gets finer + softer over time. In my case, I now have literally a handful of fine blonde hairs to contend with, and the rest is gone for good. (Before epilating I shaved my legs everday, and had stubble by that night.. Shock

)

If your experiencing stubble within a day or two of epilating, I'm thinking that your 'ripping' the hair and causing it to break, rather than getting it from the root.

I have found that going at a nice easy pace, against the grain, while holding the skin very taut, allows for complete removal right down to the root.

It also helps to exfoliate first, and dry your legs thoroughly before use...And of course no cream or lotion prior..

HTH

free skin care · Sat Aug 09, 2008 12:37 pm

thanks fawnie and kassy Very Happy

kassy, does "going against the grain" mean epilating in the opposite direction of the hair growth? just like waxing?

i think u're right to say that many of my hair breaks instead of being pulled out by the roots. i'll try to slow down the pace and go in circular motions.

thanks!

free skin care · Sat Aug 09, 2008 3:24 pm

I;ve been using an epilator for maybe 2 years now and I still get stubbles and my hair isnt any finer, even though I exfoliate and use hair minimising lotions Mad

. I'm thinking of getting tendskin, but that would most probably til next year as other than that, I dont have anything I want from EDS.
Just wondering how should I know when to buy a new epilator...would it work less effectively as time goes by?

free skin care · Sat Aug 09, 2008 3:31 pm

snowstar wrote:

thanks fawnie and kassy Very Happy

kassy, does "going against the grain" mean epilating in the opposite direction of the hair growth? just like waxing?

i think u're right to say that many of my hair breaks instead of being pulled out by the roots. i'll try to slow down the pace and go in circular motions.

thanks!

Yes, just like waxing. Start at the bottom of your leg and come straight up, while holding the skin taut. NO circular moion!

yeahyeah, I've had the same Braun Silk Epil for 15 years, and it's working just as well as when it was new.

free skin care · Sat Aug 09, 2008 5:51 pm

Thanks Kassy. I've held some of the newer models and they're so sleek and small, which makes me want to buy another one Embarassed

cos mines so old!
I think I should start saving up so I can treat myself to one for Christmas Smile

free skin care · Sun Aug 10, 2008 4:23 am

I was epilating my legs for 15 years before removing the hair permanently, and never ever did I have perfectly smooth legs during that period. It's likely because the hair grows in different cycles, and it's difficult to grasp all the small stubbles with the epilator. I believe that those of us who struggle with coarse, thick hairs often feel some stubbles even when the area is freshly epilated. It's not necessarily anything wrong with the epilator.

free skin care · Sun Aug 10, 2008 10:56 am

Septembergirl wrote:

I was epilating my legs for 15 years before removing the hair permanently, and never ever did I have perfectly smooth legs during that period. It's likely because the hair grows in different cycles, and it's difficult to grasp all the small stubbles with the epilator. I believe that those of us who struggle with coarse, thick hairs often feel some stubbles even when the area is freshly epilated. It's not necessarily anything wrong with the epilator.

Other than removing the hairs permanently, what other methods can those with dark hair use???
I wonder how the celebs especially Asian celebs remove their hairs- arms, legs, underarms, all over body!
I've seen some cloths that you just rub over the skin and will remove all the hairs, planning on buying some to try Wink

free skin care · Sun Aug 10, 2008 11:03 am

kassy, i'll try straight up. i read a tip from somewhere that we should epilate in small circular motions Razz

free skin care · Sun Aug 10, 2008 11:12 am

snowstar wrote:

kassy, i'll try straight up. i read a tip from somewhere that we should epilate in small circular motions Razz

I never heard of doing it that way, but I guess whatever works is the important thing..

What works for me is straight up the leg against the grain.

For the dreaded upper lip hair I do the opposite, and go straight down with the grain. (I can't do that thoroughly though, because I find the pain excruciating). Luckily it's just very fine and blond, so not really noticable.

HTH!

free skin care · Sun Aug 10, 2008 11:15 am

yeahyeah wrote:

I wonder how the celebs especially Asian celebs remove their hairs- arms, legs, underarms, all over body!
I've seen some cloths that you just rub over the skin and will remove all the hairs, planning on buying some to try Wink

I'm asian

Some lucky asian girls have very fine body hair that don't require shaving, yet have gorgeous flowing hair. My sis is one of them.

For home care, we either
1) shave
2) wax
3) bleach
4) epilate

For prof services,
1) wax
2) permanent hair removal via various lasers like IPL, PPX etc

i think shaving and permanent hair removal are the 2 most popular methods here. I've tried PPX myself and it works to a certain extent for ne, On some gfs, it's heaven - next to zero regrowth.

I've stopped using lasers as I heard it may cause cancer later in life. Our underarms and lip areas are filled with lymph nodes....

Here in Asia, dermatologist, GPs and even beauticians can use lasers to treat for hair removal or skin rejuvenation. A beauty salon will offer 5 sessions of underarm hair removal for ~$250 usd. Derms normally charge about $100usd per treatment. Either way, it's affordable!

free skin care · Sun Aug 10, 2008 11:17 am

thanks Kassy Very Happy

i'll try your method and update everyone ^_^

Sun Aug 10, 2008 4:30 pm

Kassy_A wrote:

snowstar wrote:

thanks fawnie and kassy Very Happy

kassy, does "going against the grain" mean epilating in the opposite direction of the hair growth? just like waxing?

i think u're right to say that many of my hair breaks instead of being pulled out by the roots. i'll try to slow down the pace and go in circular motions.

thanks!

Yes, just like waxing. Start at the bottom of your leg and come straight up, while holding the skin taut. NO circular moion!

yeahyeah, I've had the same Braun Silk Epil for 15 years, and it's working just as well as when it was new.

I find that if I don't epilate in circular motion, my leg hair won't come out...so I kinda have to do it. Just moving the epilator up my legs against the grain doesn't work for me!

I think exfoliating on a regular basis is suppose to help reduce the amount of small bumps you get...well, at least for me it does. I'm talking about exfoliation with those rough clothes you can purchase from any drugstore...not the cleansers with beads in them.

free skin care · Sun Aug 10, 2008 5:19 pm

Man oh man. I just posted a message for another question that involved using an epilator. I despise the epilator. After using the epilator my legs accumulated horrible spots. Spots that wouldn't go away! It makes the hair thicker so that when it grows it is like needles pricking you from the inside, which is why it leaves horrible red marks. The red marks then turn brown. I would advise to stay away from the epilator, especially if you are male. Some women have extremely fine hair and using the epilator may not cause any issues. But for those who have thick hair, waxing is 100 times better or if you have the money laser works well too. Sad

free skin care · Mon Aug 11, 2008 1:29 am

Sophias1920 wrote:

Man oh man. I just posted a message for another question that involved using an epilator. I despise the epilator. After using the epilator my legs accumulated horrible spots. Spots that wouldn't go away! It makes the hair thicker so that when it grows it is like needles pricking you from the inside, which is why it leaves horrible red marks. The red marks then turn brown. I would advise to stay away from the epilator, especially if you are male. Some women have extremely fine hair and using the epilator may not cause any issues. But for those who have thick hair, waxing is 100 times better or if you have the money laser works well too. Sad

I ended up with terrible ingrowns, too, through using an epilator. My legs got into such a bad state. In the end, I had laser hair removal and now the scars have almost all cleared up, although it took a long time for then to do so.

free skin care · Mon Aug 11, 2008 4:56 am

majorb wrote:

I ended up with terrible ingrowns, too, through using an epilator. My legs got into such a bad state. In the end, I had laser hair removal and now the scars have almost all cleared up, although it took a long time for then to do so.

You took the words right out of my mouth. I got ugly ingrowns, wounds and infections from epilating. Sometimes I think I would have looked better with my hairy orangutan legs. Permanent hair removal is the way to go!

free skin care · Mon Aug 11, 2008 3:06 pm

Although I was a hairy monkey, my legs looked great after shaving. The epilator ruined them! However, my legs are nice again because I got laser hair removal. Like majorb, I got laser hair removal, which removed the ugly spots. YAY! Very Happy

Fri Oct 24, 2008 5:22 am

Sophias1920 wrote:

Although I was a hairy monkey, my legs looked great after shaving. The epilator ruined them! However, my legs are nice again because I got laser hair removal. Like majorb, I got laser hair removal, which removed the ugly spots. YAY! Very Happy

hi
can i ask how long it took the scars to fade after you got the laser done? im in the same position.
i dont have a clue how to get rid of the scars because theres always ingrown hair and i pluck it out but once the hair starts growing again, the follicle gets infected so ive got these massive scars all down my leg. its sooooooo horrible.
its summer now so people are starting to wear shorts and skirts while im stuck in my pants. =(=(
im thinking about getting laser done but just wondering how long it would take for the scars to fade and go away.

free skin care · Sat Oct 25, 2008 3:47 am

kkrus60 wrote:

Sophias1920 wrote:

Although I was a hairy monkey, my legs looked great after shaving. The epilator ruined them! However, my legs are nice again because I got laser hair removal. Like majorb, I got laser hair removal, which removed the ugly spots. YAY! Very Happy

hi
can i ask how long it took the scars to fade after you got the laser done? im in the same position.
i dont have a clue how to get rid of the scars because theres always ingrown hair and i pluck it out but once the hair starts growing again, the follicle gets infected so ive got these massive scars all down my leg. its sooooooo horrible.
its summer now so people are starting to wear shorts and skirts while im stuck in my pants. =(=(
im thinking about getting laser done but just wondering how long it would take for the scars to fade and go away.

I had scarring and red marks all over my lower legs, thanks to epilating and shaving. After I had my laser treatment, I noticed a big difference after a few months.

free skin care · Sat Oct 25, 2008 4:10 am

I`ve given up epilating and waxing my legs because of ingrown hairs, inflamed follicules, and scars. So I`m shaving them now. It`s also very frustrating as my hair grows back the very next day and touching my legs is like touching sand paper. I`m considering permanent laser hair removal, but I have some enlarged varicose veins on my legs and concerned wether it can be done with such a problem? Confused

has anybody such an experince?

free skin care · Sat Oct 25, 2008 6:11 am

I've had the same problem with my epilator. I thought the reason why I wasn't getting smooth legs after using it was because I had an old model and so I purchased a new one. No matter what I do, how religious I am about exfoliating and so on, my lower legs at least always feel stubbly. I don't know if it's because I have thicker hair on my lower legs, but it's so annoying!
I get good results using it under my arms, but it leaves my legs feeling awful Confused

but I hate shaving too...

Fri Oct 31, 2008 9:54 am

The longer I go between epilations, the smoother my legs feel afterward. The hairs have to be a certain length for the coils to pull them out cleanly by the roots rather than break them off or miss them entirely.
For me, once a week is plenty to keep my legs free of noticeable hair, which is my primary goal. If a silky-smooth feel is important to you, and you're willing to do something daily, you're probably better off shaving.
On the direction, I generally go "against the grain", but some hairs grow left to right, or vice versa, so I do have to move in other directions to get them all. And always holding the skin taut, and after exfoliating.

Fri Oct 31, 2008 11:22 am

I actually combine shaving and epilating. I epilate my lower legs and underarms, tweezing any strays that remain, then I hop into the shower and shave those areas with a good razor and a hair conditioner to lubricate (only done once following the epilation). This really helps to exfoliate the skin. I then apply a hair retarding lotion (from France) which contains Azulene oil for the following 5 days. Not sure if this product works as suggested but at the very least it keeps the area moisturised and soothed.

Thu Jan 01, 2009 9:19 pm

Hi! I've been epilating my arm pits and it helps to apply talcum powder prior to epilating such that the region will be smooth and will pick up the hairs more easily. Yeah, there will be stubble, so what I do is to use a tweezer and pluck out whatever fine remaining hairs are still there.

As for my legs, I just use Veet and apply it to my legs when I'm showering. Works just as well.

I guess it's tough to be ladies ey... Laughing

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