Best Leg Hair Removal Method - Epilating

Okay maybe this title should actually be Second Best Hair Removal Method. I plan to get laser hair removal one day, but as I save for that this is the best solution I have found. I have always struggled with being too hairy? lol. Just a lot of body hair and it's very dark and course. I have found shaving isn't the best as it leaves me prickly soon after and my skin gets irritated by the blade, not to mention all the ingrown hairs. Waxing is expensive and very painful and while it lasts longer than shaving, it still only lasts about 2 weeks and then you have to wait for it to growth back a certain length before waxing again. Depilatory creams are better for ingrown hairs, but are also unfortunately too harsh on my sensitive skin and skin is only smooth for a few days. I felt like I was running out of options until I came across epilating. There it is, my best option for leg hair removal is epilating. If you don't know what an epilator is, it's essentially an electric tweezer that you run across your skin to pluck out multiple hairs at once. I will say it is not painless, but I do find it better than waxing and the results are worth it and the pain decreases over time.

I epilate usually once a week, and the hairs do grow in a little bit in that week but it's honestly not noticeable unless you're looking up close at my legs. I have far less ingrown hairs using this method and my skin is also just less irritated overall. The epilator I use is the Braun Epilator Silk-épil 9 which costs about $100 and has held up just fine for over a year now. If you end up epilating instead of shaving/waxing, it can actually save you money as the epilator is a one time investment.

My best tips:

Exfoliate beforehand - I usually exfoliate using an exfoliator mitt I bought off Amazon. I do think you need one that's a bit harsher to really exfoliate your skin as this will help you prevent ingrown hairs and to just have healthier smoother skin in general. I exfoliate the night before I epilate as I don't want my skin too freshly sensitive while epilating.

For your first time, shave beforehand and take your time - The first time is the absolute worst. This is because your hair grows in cycles and unless you wax regularly, your hairs will all be long at this point. I recommend shaving 2-3 days before you epilate so longer hairs don't get caught and make it more painful. I also recommend spreading out the epilating sessions. Maybe do one lower leg one night, then the other the next night and an upper leg the next night and so on. This is how I started out, but once my hair was growing in cycles, there was less to epilate each week which made the pain a lot more manageable. Now it only takes me about 15-20 minutes once a week to do both full legs (I do it while I rewatch an episode of New Girl - any other enjoyable distraction will do though).

Pull your skin taut - This is tip is crucial. There will certainly be parts of your leg that are more sensitive than others, but generally pulling your skin taut in the area you are epilating will make it less painful.

Leave your legs alone for 12 hours after epilating - When you epilate you will most likely get small red bumps over your legs (similar to waxing). This is why I recommend epilating before you go to bed because by the time you wake up they will look normal again. I also do not put anything on my legs after epilating (ex. lotion, aloe, oil) because I find it more irritating. I simply let the bumps go away on their own.

Use Tend Skin but only after a day or two - I started using Tend Skin to help prevent ingrown hairs and let me tell you this stuff works and has significantly reduced the amount of ingrown hairs I have. I use it daily before applying lotion to my legs. I do however, wait a day or two after epilating to apply again because my skin can still be a bit sensitive.

And those are my tips for epilating! Epilating has really helped me to feel confident with my legs again and with 15-20 each week of just a little discomfort, I find it very much worth the investment. I will note that I do still shave my armpits as they were way to sensitive to me to epilate although some women do it. I also get bikini waxes in the summer as it's difficult to epilate any curves/creases in my body. Hopefully this was helpful if you struggle the same ways I do and want to give epilating a try!