DIY underarm waxing - do I need hot wax? Recs please

[Littlemiss74]

I have very sensitive skin when it comes to hair removal. In the past I have had infections caused by shaving my underarms and so I always get them waxed at the salon.
As I’m not able to go now I need to try and do them myself at home. Starting to compete with DH in the underarm stakes!!

I haven’t done this before and looking online there are so many options; hot wax, cold wax, strips.

Can anyone help please and tell me what would be the best thing to order? Thanks

Have you thought about getting an epilator instead?

No i haven’t @Tinkletwat how do they work?

It's like electric tweezers I guess! Has a rotating head that plucks the hairs. I've tried a few different kinds of home waxing, had some success, some damaged skin, lots of hair left behind so a real mixed bag. I keep going back to my epilator as it's really quick and not messy at all. You don't need anything fancy, I have a basic Braun one from years ago and it's still going strong. I use it maybe once every 2 weeks, if you're used to waxing I doubt you'd find it too sore.

What does your salon use? I use hot wax and find it less painful than epilating. It’s over much quicker. Takes a bit of practice When not using your dominant hand but YouTube tutorials help. Hot wax is quite cheap on amazon and lasts ages.

She uses hot wax and it is very quick and effective. My worry is damaging myself so that I get an hair follicle infection as has one once that got really bad and had to be cut out as I left it too long for antibiotics to work.
With the warm weather I want to wear vest tops but not like this!

Re the epilator, pain doesn’t bother me but how successful are they and do they increase risk of ingrown hairs?

@Wigglegiggle0520 so how would I heat the hot wax, microwave? I’m guessing that would be more effective than normal wax strips? I might have to get DH to help, that’s true love for you

I don't find I get ingrown hairs with the epilator. I make sure I exfoliate every now and again though.

For sensitive skin I think shaving is best diy hair removal. If you use a new pack of razors and do it in the shower after a wash it should be fine.

I've got an epilator too, it's ace. Use it for those fine hairs on my face and my legs also. Never had any ingrowing hairs and only find it slightly painful around fronts of my ankles for sone reason. I'd suggest spending about £80 on one as my more expensive one was a rechargeable wet dry one and the £50 one I replaced it with is one you need to plug in so I need to use an extension lead to be near mirror.

I use Nads Sugaring ( use at room temperature )
I use epilator on my legs but I haven't the balls to use it on my pits .

Only downside with wax is you have The Point Of No Return.!

With sugaring , it can pull at bit applying , so I try to make sure my hairs aren't too long .
Exfoliate
Dry well, dust of talc.
You need to stretch the skin, I put my arm behind my head !
Apply in the direction of growth apply the strip rub really well and remove against the growth. Keep it parallel to your skin.
You might need to do half at a time depending on the direction of growth.

I can do mine with one decent application, and deft whisking off of the strip. Count to 5 and done faff about

The "Nads" range was invented by a Mum for her daughter . Many years ago they did a tub of green solid wax that was good , just rolled across the skin.
But the Sugaring is the best I've found since The Body Shop sugaring kit .

I’ve never tried the microwaveable stuff and I think it’s quite tricky to keep at the right temperature.
I bought a wax heater and wax beads off amazon. Heater was about £15 and the beads £10 maybe?

I used hot wax for the first time ever today on my armpits (I’m just about to start a thread actually about getting rid of the stuff from the pot), and as above I bought a heater and beads.

I tried my right side first (dominant hand) - it was a disaster. Didn’t put a thick enough layer, couldn’t pull it away properly and kind of chipped away for about 10 minutes. Really painful, but the result was smooth.

Moved to intimate area with the hard wax - hard, but gave me a better area to practice with. Then went back to the other pit and did it one smooth motion.

Have a heater - it’s so much easier as the wax can stay hot for as long as you need it. You can take the middle pot out with you to the bathroom then put it back in the heater in between.

Let the wax cool for a couple of minutes from the heater before spreading. It makes it thicker and easier to spread. Layer up if it’s still translucent. Go over a bit to hairless skin, as it’s easier to pull enough away to get a better hold.

Then just grimace and pull. It really works.

Have something like baby oil to hand afterwards to soothe the area.

I used the Mylee heater and beads and had not problem with them. I tried with soft wax 4 weeks ago and whilst it was on the whole easier, I had severe bruising on armpits and bikini line. After hot wax just a bit red then cooled down after 30 mins.

I bought this a month ago with the soft wax a month ago (great for legs) www.mylee.co.uk/waxing/mylee-white-wax-heater-rose-creme-wax-450g-tub.html?gclid=CjwKCAjwwMn1BRAUEiwAZ_jnEnSLvWxYmAH6_mR7Y-aj7OOO-22q6B5DWk5H5jgvzRAs-XzuF9MiIxoC6dAQAvD_BwE

I bought the Mylee hard wax beads this week to try that way and I’m happy with the result! It is hard by yourself though and armpits and intimate area took me 90 mins alone.

Thanks @LatenightSleeper that looks good, like the one my salon lady uses. I’m not sure what you mean by soft & hard wax - could you explain please? I think I would get my husband as I have arthritis in my hands which although not painful makes them weak. Having seen me in childbirth twice I’m sure he could cope with a bit of underarm waxing!😄

Soft wax is wax that’s used with strips - so usually on legs or other large surface areas. It stays sticky and attaches to the whole skin.

Hard wax is the type that’s used on sensitive areas. It binds to the hairs, and then be ripped off once it’s hardened. It’s much better for anything delicate. I’ve had no problems with bruising on or ongoing soreness, which I do with soft wax in those kind of areas (even bruising along the hard, boney areas near my knee)!

If someone else can do it for you - that’s brilliant! It’s really hard with hard wax to brace yourself to rip it away. I spent a lot of time today slowly pulling it (still worked but infinitely more painful)! Just hopefully he doesn’t get squeamish about causing pain 😆

Thank you so it would still be called hard wax even if I am heating it?

I get great results with bog-standard cold wax strips - the leg ones. I heat them with a hairdryer until they are all floppy and quickly pull the two sides apart. I prepare the area, apply and remove exactly as 70 says, including the talc. It's even easier if you can get someone to yank the strip off for you. You probably already know about taking 2 ibuprofen half an hour before you do it and not doing it in the week before your period.