I've tried numerous products in my quest for silky smooth, hair-free legs; dilapatory creams and gels are too messy, epilation too painful, electric shavers don't leave my legs smooth enough, salon waxing is too expensive and home waxing too messy. It's therefore no surprise that I always seem to return to wet shaving, which I seem to need to do at least every other day. That doesn't mean that my search for a cheap, convenient and long term method of removing those little blighters. I'm still hunting the High Street for the perfect hair-removal product and was tempted to buy the Veet Express Roll-on waxing system for the simple reason that it was in the local Pound shop for the princely sum of, yes you've guessed it, £1. What a bargain, even if it didn't work it wasn't costing the earth, so I bought a pack to try it out.

Once I returned home I opened up the box to see what I got for my quid, and in the pack there was the roll-on applicator filled with 100ml of a sugar based wax, 12 strips for removing the wax and a very clear instruction sheet. Everything appeared to be hygienically sealed; perhaps the strips (and instructions) were too well sealed as I found myself having to use my teeth to open them.

Once I'd torn my way to the instructions, I followed them and unsealed the top of the applicator which was a simple case of lifting a foil tab which then revealed a gloop that looked a bit like treacle. It was then time to click the roller into place, which is an easy enough task as long as you place the base on the firm surface. Continuing as a slave to the instructions I then turned the applicator upside down and left it to stand for two minutes while I made myself a quick cuppa. On my return I tested the roller on one of the strips to ensure the wax was flowing freely and then prepared to transform my legs to silky smooth perfection.

Before I began to apply the wax, I dusted my legs with a very thin layer of talc, which soaks up any moisture and from my experience with a salon makes waxing a lot more effective and less painful. I then applied a strip of the wax, I can't say that it was comfortable to apply; it pulled at the hairs as it was applied in the direction of hair growth but it wasn't painful. As I'd made sure that the strip of wax was at least 2cm shorter than the strip, I found it easy to get a firm hold of the strip after I'd smoothed it over the wax. A quick pull later and I had a rectangle of perfectly hair-free skin that was soon joined by two more rectangles as I reused the strip on a new area until it lost it's stickiness. Once I'd used another strip in the same way I stuck the two strips together meaning that I had an extra use out of the strip.

After I had finished waxing my legs were hair-free, red and a little bit sticky, so I had a quick shower to rinse off the water-soluble remains of the wax from my legs and then moisturised. Half an hour later the redness had gone down and my legs were smooth and virtually hair-free, there were a couple of hairs that the wax missed, but these were easily removed with a pair of tweezers. Happy with the results it was time to clear up, due to this being a sugar based wax the strips could be rinsed in warm water then dried for re-use, very economical. It is similarly easy to clean any spillage using warm water, and the actually applicator can be quickly wiped clean. One important point is not to allow the actual wax to come into contact with water as it will dissolve and become unusable.

Although the packaging states that this wax can be used on the underarm and bikini line area, I haven't actually tried it as I'm a bit of a wimp. I did have a try on my arms though and it worked perfectly well. There are a couple of places you can't use the wax, it's not suitable for the face, breast or genital areas, so I'll still need to buy different wax for my eyebrows.

So I guess the final question is whether I think that this wax is worth the money I spent on it, and guess what? The answer is a definite yes, after all I only paid a pound, it did the job and I reckon I still have enough left for at least one more application (if not two). Not only this but depending on how fast my hair grows it could be four to six weeks before I need to re-wax and after multiple waxing my leg hairs will start to get thinner and weaker making the process less painful. Yes that's right I did find the process a tad painful, but it wasn't too bad, nothing like as bad as epilation, and it only lasted a few seconds. So I'm recommending that if you happen to see this wax for a quid (or even a little bit more) then pick a few packs up, I know I will be next time I'm in town.