Deforestation! (Immac Perfect Roll-On Warm Wax)

Member Name: skittle

Product:	Immac Perfect Roll-On Warm Wax
Date:	01/07/02 (603 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: None

Disadvantages: Expensive, Inneffective, Worthless

I'd like to think that I'm not the kind of person who's normally seduced by TV advertising, I really would, but it's patently not true... Not only can I sing along to even the most annoying advertising jingle, I can tell you exactly which car Papa and Nicole drive, I know which cat food eight out of ten of the countries moggies prefer, not to mention the name of the company that likes to think of itself as the fourth emergency service. You'd only need to say the first few words of an advertising slogan to me and I'd probably be able to finish it for you... Sad, I know, and it's not even as if I'm a telly addict, or anything, advertising slogans, jingles, etc are invented to worm their way into your subconscious so that we, the buying public, spend our money on expensive named brands we "trust" which are constantly reinvented and repackaged to make them more appealing to us. We NEED to buy this product, life can't be perfect until it's ours...

You see (yes, I am getting to the point) I'd managed to get to the ripe old age of 28 without ever once thinking that the shaving gel and razors I'd been using for years might not be the best way of removing the old "rain forest" from my legs, underarms, and other areas that I tend not to mention in public! However, I recently succumbed to the constant bombardment of advertising telling me that I should be waxing my legs not shaving. As a complete novice to the world of waxing I was pleased and, though I shudder to admit it, strangely excited at the thought of Immac (soon to be called Veet, I'm reliably informed by the packaging!) Warm Wax Aquasystem. The advertising for this particular product lulled me into a complete sense of security. This product was exactly what I needed... Easy to use (I'm clumsy) and practically painless (I'm a coward) and with great results (because you can never get your legs REALLY smooth with the old
razor, can you) which would last for weeks (because shaved legs, let's face it, are stubbly again the day after shaving!)

So, there I was in Superdrug, tempted, but not really sure that I would be leaving with the Warm Wax, until I spied the little red label underneath, £2 off, bargain! Well, not really, at £6.99 instead of the usual £8.99 this product is not exactly what I would refer to as cheap. Still, if it did what it said on the box I would be a happy bunny, so I decided just this once to splash out and give it a try (lucky for you I did, or this wouldn't be much of an opinion!)

So, at home later that evening clutching the attractive box in my grubby little paw I decamped to the bathroom leaving the hubby with strict instructions to just ignore any screaming, wailing or general yelling he might hear.

Once settled on the loo (lid down, of course!) I proceeded to read the instructions. First thing to note is that the hairs need to be at least 5mm long, looking down at my legs I realised that this was not going to be a problem, I could easily pass as a rather hirsute gentleman! Secondly, the wax must be heated using hot tap water, it should not be heated in a saucepan or microwave. Looking around the bathroom I was relieved not to see any kitchen appliances I might be tempted to use, and carried on! First thing on the list was dismantling the whole thing so that I could fill the "reservoir" with hot water from the tap. The instructions state that the water should be too hot for the hand to bear for any length of time, but not boiling. Once the reservoir was filled to the max line, I promptly reinserted the wax refill, as instructed, and attempted to press firmly to click it into place. Now, I'm no weakling, but this really wasn't a particularly easy thing to do, considering the reservoir has by now heated up to the temperature of the water within (remember? Too hot for the hand to bear for any length
of time!) I finally solves this by sitting the reservoir on a towel on my leg and literally bashing the top of the wax refill until it clicked into place. Still following the instructions I removed the foil seal from the wax and, first ensuring that the applicator was totally dry, clicked it into place. Sounds easy, doesn't it? Unfortunately, the foil didn't want to leave the wax, and took several attempts to remove. Once it was removed the applicator didn't want to click onto the reservoir. I would get one side clicked in place, but then couldn't get the other side to click down...

OK, by now you're thinking that I'm just a complete spud and couldn't put together anything more complicated than a junior jigsaw puzzle without assistance, but that isn't normally the case! Still, I soldiered on, and once the thing was correctly put together I moved on to the next instruction. "Wait 3 - 4 minutes until the wax is ready" which I totally ignored, as I had just easily spent 3 - 4 minutes trying to put the blasted thing together.

The instruction leaflet informed me in no uncertain terms that "OVERHEATING WAX CAN CAUSE BURNS" it even advised me that if the bottle was too hot to hold I shouldn't use it, but should put it in a safe place until it cools... Luckily, mine was already more than cool enough, so I moved onto the next step. Now, you might have noticed that I haven't at any point done a patch test yet to make sure that I don't have any kind of reaction to the Warm Wax. This was very lax of me, and I, and Immac, recommend that anybody using this product should test first twenty four hours before use. I, however, am far too impatient to wait, so took the risk!

Carefully reading through the next part of the process first, I gingerly applied a small patch of wax to my rather large and hairy leg to test the heat. The non-sadist's among you will be glad to hear tha
t it didn't burn, so I continued with a grand swipe from my knee almost down to my ankle. It wasn't necessary to squeeze the bottle, in fact, the instructions advise you not to. The wax should, when warm, simply flow towards the roll-on applicator ready for you to roll onto your hairy bits in the direction of hair growth!

Once the wax was on I quickly slapped on one of the white strips provided (making sure that the bottle was kept upside down, balanced in the lid, as described in the instructions) and smoothed in the direction of hair growth (from knee to ankle). Plucking up every ounce of courage I possess (about three ounces, at the last count!) I grabbed the very bottom of the strip, pulled the skin taut with the other hand and ripped the strip from my leg in one swift and decisive movement, keeping it parallel and as close to the skin as possible... At least, that was what I intended to do... What actually happened is somewhat different. Yes, I did grab at my leg and make some attempt to pull the skin taut, unfortunately, there seemed to be far too much leg for one little hand, so only half of my skin actually resembled anything like tautness. Also, the swift and decisive removal movement was rather abruptly halted about halfway up, when my hand bumped directly into my face, that'll teach me to try to see what I'm doing, won't it! The result was about four and a half inches of perfectly hair-free leg, followed by several more inches or thick, gloopy, rapidly cooling wax and a mass of hairs a gorilla would've been proud of. No wonder I had been pleasantly surprised that it hadn't particularly hurt!

Still, not one to be put off easily, I reapplied the strip to the wax and made another attempt at swift and decisive hair removal to no avail... The strip wouldn't stick to the wax properly... Back to the drawing board.

A quick, easy rub with a damp flannel was enough to remove the wax from my l
eg, no real scrubbing or baby oil required, it came off very easily with just a gentle rub. And so I moved onto the next strip, and the next, and the next...

One very uncomfortable problem I found with the roll-on applicator was that keeping it upside down in the lid resulted in a little bleeding of the wax around the roller. I found that then as I attempted to roll the wax down my leg for the next strip the globules of wax that had leaked stopped the roller from rolling effectively and got caught up in the hairs on my leg. Not, unfortunately, pulling them out, just pulling them enough to make the eyes water profusely!

Now, I think you're definitely going to think I'm some kind of a plank when you read this next paragraph, but I will present the evidence and hope that you can see where the misunderstanding arose! The instructions go thus: "Each strip may be used to remove a layer of wax up to three times... After use, strips may be rinsed with water in order to reuse for the next hair removal session" You see, I read this as you remove a layer of wax with your strip, then wash it to use it again up to three times before throwing it away, which is exactly what I attempted to do. Imagine my disgust, then, when the ten strips provided in the kit only allowed me to remove the hair from one leg, leaving the other distinctly un-waxed! It's only when I came to write this opinion that I've actually realised my mistake, that I should have used each strip to remove three layers of wax from my legs, which would have enabled me to wax both legs, before washing the strips for use next time... I think the instructions are poorly worded and unclear in this case, well, they weren't clear to me, anyway!

After the whole palaver detailed above I checked my watch to see I'd spent a good three quarters of an hour doing a job that normally takes under five minutes. Added to that I was left with one very hairy leg to
tally untouched by wax or strip, one leg with some admittedly very smooth areas, but others which were just as hairy as when I began, ten sticky, waxy, hairy strips requiring washing and the added bonus of knowing that before I can dare to leave the house again I'm going to have to get in the bath and shave my legs anyway...

I hate to be a pessimist but I can't helping thinking that I shouldn't have bothered!

I don't remember the last time I felt so cheated by what is, in my mind, an overpriced, over hyped, generally worthless product. As I readily admitted at the beginning of this opinion I am a novice when it comes to waxing, but that is exactly why this product appealed to me in the first place, because it is sold as simple, easy to use and effective. I certainly did not find this to be the case.

The last note on the instruction leaflet tells you exactly how to look after your Immac Warm Wax Aquasystem. Apparently you should empty the water from the reservoir, rinse the applicator with warm water then dry it thoroughly, storing any leftover wax upright to avoid leakage. Personally, however, I'd recommend that you scoop the whole lot up in your hands, keeping any left over wax upright to avoid leakage, and toss it all into the nearest bin.

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