Tuesday, September 25, 2012

WAXING VS. SHAVING

While, there are many methods out there for hair removal, I want to talk about the two most common.  Waxing and Shaving. Which do you prefer? 

Waxing.  Well first, what is waxing? Waxing is a semi-permanent form of hair removal that is either hard or soft and can be used on just about any part of the body including: eyebrows, cheeks, lip, chin, legs, arms, underarms, abdomens, bikini, and feet just to name a few.  
  • When using soft wax you will take a wooden (disposable) stick, spreading a thin layer of wax over the area with the unwanted hair going in the direction with the hair growth.  A paper or cloth strip is then pressed down and taken off in the direction against the hair growth.  
  • Unlike soft wax, hard wax utilizes itself.  Meaning, there are no strips needed in order to remove hair.  YOUR WAX IS YOUR STRIP. You will spread a thick layer of wax over the area with the unwanted hair and let it cool down so that it can harden.  Once the wax has harden the wax is easily removed by pulling the wax off the skin.
Pros
  1. Waxing can last anywhere between 4-6 weeks depending on hair growth.
  2. Reduces chances of getting ingrown hair bumps
  3. Over a period of time frequent waxing will weaken or completely damage the hair follicle causing the hair to soften, thin, or stop growing. 
Cons
  1. In order to have a successful wax application you need at least a quarter of inch of hair (which means you have to walk around a little hairy in between waxes)
  2. Waxing can be painful slightly or very painful depending on a persons pain tolerance. 
  3. Expensive
  4. If your being waxed at a salon or spa your putting yourself at a higher risk to being susceptible to skin infections or possibly disease if the place is not sanitary.  
  5. Unlike shaving you can't keep going over the same are until the hair is gone.  With waxing you have once, maybe twice to get a clean hair removal otherwise you may cause irritation, redness, bruising, and swelling. 
Shaving.  What is shaving? Shaving is the easiest and most common temporary method for hair removal, used with a razor or any other kind of blade implement.

Pros
  1. Pain-free
  2. Shaving is easy, convenient, and can be done at anytime.  All you need is some shaving cream or body wash.
  3. Inexpensive and doesn't take a lot of time.  You can shave your legs or any other body par in about 5mins or less. 
Cons
  1. Shaving means simply cutting the hair off the surface of the skin, and because your only cutting the hair and not removing it from the follicle it causes rapid re-growth.  Unlike waxing, shaving only last for a few hours-day before hair stubble begins to form. 
  2. If your not careful when shaving or using a dull blade (which makes it harder to glide across the skin) you can easily cut yourself and cause bleeding and scarring. 
  3. Shaving causes uncomfortable itching when the hair begins to grow back and puts you at a higher risk of ingrown hair bumps.
  4. Compared to other hair removal techniques like waxing, shaving actually causes the hair to grow back stronger, thicker, and more dense.
  5. Frequently shaving can also cause ingrown hairs as well as irritation and redness. 

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