Waxing and Waning. (Veet Ready to Use Cold Wax Strips for Face)

Member Name: cyberem78

Product:	Veet Ready to Use Cold Wax Strips for Face
Date:	26/08/09 (115 review reads)
Rating:

Advantages: Quick to use.

Disadvantages: Painful,may not remove all hair. Takes practice to use.

Until recently I had always used hair removal cream on all target areas of my body including my upper lip. However, on my latest trip to buy a replacement product I was unable to find any cream and instead came away with these Veet (formerly Immac) 'Ready to use facial wax strips'. I had never used a waxing product before and although I've been using these for a month I still feel like a bit of a novice. I feel that practice of the waxing technique is definately necessary to obtain the best results and that this should be taken into account when choosing this product.

The product comes packaged in a small box which contains 20 (10 stuck back to back) re-useable wax strips (infused with mint extracts) and 4 'perfect finish' wipes. The box I have is bright yellow and has a red marker stating this is especially for the face area. The strips are made of a thick waxy paper. There are two strips and inbetween a smudge of green wax. The wax area measures approximately 3 inches long and 2 centimetres wide. The strips can be cut to size for areas smaller than this, for instance the strip of skin above the bridge of the nose between eyebrows. The wipes are contained in plastic packets which can be ripped open with your fingers. There is also an instruction leaflet.

As a first time user I found the instructions really easy to understand and follow. There is a big list of precautions which you need to read prior to use. This includes a part about conducting a skin reaction test to make sure you are not allergic - similar to the allergy tests in home hair dye kits.

There are also directions for use. Hair should be ideally between 2 and 5 mm long. Skin should be dry and free of moisturisers and oil. Using talc to dry skin prior to use is given as a helpful hint. To use the strips you have to place one between your hands and warm the wax using your body heat. After this pull the two sides of the strip open, apply one half to the area to be waxed and smooth down in the direction of the hair for ten seconds. You need to then hold the skin taut and pull the wax strip off in a quick motion.

I use the strips on the hair on my upper lip and also my bikini kine. The strips can also be used on underarms and on other parts of the face - chin and brow. On the upper lip I find the level of pain on removing the wax strip to be quite intense and obviously way more extreme than using a cream. I find that the fine hairs rip out easily but coarser hair seems to be more difficult to remove. As the skin is so sensitive in this area I do not really want to have to repeat the waxing process but I have found this to be necessary. When I pull off the wax strips a lot of the wax remains on my face. The instructions state that to remove this dab with a wax paper strip but I have found this barely helps to remove the wax. Using a supplied finishing wipe, which is an oily thick tissue, helps though.

The bikini line is the only other place I have used the wax strips on so far. I found the extent of hair removal to be the same as on my upper lip - some of the hair is removed but not all. Repeat applications are needed and a lot of wax is left behind on the skin. The fact that wax remains on the skin is a problem because the wax strips are meant to be re-useable. Less wax on each strip means they will be less effective.

After pulling off the wax strips my skin tends to be extremely sensitive, red raw and stinging! The finishing wipes don't seem to help to soothe the skin at all but they clean the skin well. The amount of oily liquid in the wipes is a little too much and the wipes tend to drip. I recommend having a towel underneath you or doing this in the bathroom as it gets quite messy.

Since there are only four finishing wipes in the kit you will run out of them before you run out of wax strips. It is not really possible to retain the wipes and return them to their packets after use! I have found that using a bit of baby oil on a piece of cotton wool has a similar effect to the wipes though.

After using the wax strips for a month now I am ready to return to a cream hair remover! I feel that the only benefit of these wax strips is the time it takes to use. A cream might take 5 minutes to remove hair whereas these may take less than a minute. In theory this sounds great but after using the wax strips your skin is so red that you have to wait before presenting yourself anyway! Plus you can not use perfumed products including deodorant and lotions for 24 hours after use. I also feel that people buying this product should be aware that they will have to invest a lot of time and effort in learning how best to use the strips. It does take practice and skill to be able to effectively remove hair as quickly and as painlessly as possible.

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www.veet.com

for full product range and information.

Summary: Worth trying but difficult to use, messy and painful.