To go back to shaving? [sad]

[Kat8919]

Hey, I am looking for some advice.

After shaving my legs for about 10 years, I decided 2 years ago to take up waxing instead.

For context: I am very pale with very dark hair. I would shave in the morning and the hair would be back by night.

After finding the whole process of heating up wax (and the mess!) a bit of a hassle and not seeing any improvement in my hair re-growth I decided a year ago to instead buy an epilator.

A year later and I have not noticed any difference in my hair growth. If I am lucky I might get a week of being hair-free. By week 2 my leg hairs are incredibly dark and long again I have tried sticking to a solid routine of using my epilator every 3 weeks to ensure the hairs have all grown back but it isn't making a difference!?

I would hate to go back to shaving everyday (time consuming) but I don't see any benefits to torturing myself every 3 weeks (still not any less painful).

Does anyone have any advice?

I've briefly looked into a Philips Lumea Prestige but the price is putting me off (especially as nothing has seemed to work so far!) - unless anyone has had a miracle with it?

Thanks

100% laser. It’s life changing.

I felt like I was in a constant battle and even when I shaved, you’d still see the hair under the skin.

Post laser I can go weeks without changing and it’s just a couple of small patches.

I paid for professional (they normally have deals on if you keep an eye out) and I do ‘maintenance’ with the lumea.

The Lumea will work wonderfully on you if you've pale skin and dark hair.

My leg sound similar to yours so lumea all the way I bought mine off ebay and I just wiped it over with antibacterial wipes before use.

I have the Braun Pro 5 IPL and it is worth every extortionate penny! After doing it weekly for the first 12 weeks I now just go over once a month to keep on top. No pain or fuss, and excellent results.

I’ve got the basic Lumea. Think it was about £130? I don’t know how the prestige differs but honestly this has changed my life. Worth every last penny. It took a few months of doing it every other week to really notice a difference but now I just do it once a month or so and I’m virtually hair free. And what does grow is soft and pale.

Honestly if you can afford one I’d give it a go. Now so it’s got time to work before the summer!

I’ve got this one but think I must have bought it on offer.

Philips Lumea Essential IPL Hair Removal Device for Body - BRI861/00 www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B01HRKJDGC/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_fabc_GDGJHQCKP9GHPE76VMDP?tag=mumsnetforu03-21

Oohh that’s good to know about the Braun, I’m on week 3 but not noticed a reduction so far.

OP if laser is out of your price range I really recommend an epilator. The hairs grow back much slower than with shaving and they also tend to be a lot softer. Now I’m shaving again once a week in preparation for using the Braun I remember how much I used to hate shaving, with the spiky sharp hairs that seem to come back less than a day later

Lumea. 100%.

It’s fantastic and you’re the idea skin/hair colour combo for it.

I have one of these - I bought a home machine years ago when they first came out so ££££.
I have found it just as good as the more expensive one so it’s a good way to start before buying a Lumea or similar if you are wary of spending a lot more money. It is out of stock at the moment but Aldi tend to get them in a couple of times a year

My lumea changed my life.

Like you I have very pale skin and dark leg hair. The Lumea worked amazingly for me.
I wish it had been around 25 years ago.
I have very little hair growth on legs now and it greatly improved the appearance of my skin, as before you could permanently see the hairs just beneath the surface like little black dots (worse as so pale) and follicles looked huge.

I got a Lumea for xmas - have used it 4 times on my (incredibly hairy ) legs and haven't needed to shave for 2 weeks now. I've got a few little patches where I've obviously missed when zapping but even those are nowhere near as thick as usual.
Like you the price put me off, but I'm so glad I went for it.
I've got the mains plug in version, be careful if you get the cordless version as I don't believe you can replace the battery so it has to be thrown away once it gives up.

The plug in one is cheaper too, IIRC.

Just be aware - as it is not clearly stated in the manual - that you MUST charge the Lumea every 3 months, whether or not you have used it/are using it, otherwise the battery will die altogether and the unit cannot be used.

I'm pale skin with dark hair. Shaving made it worse for me as it would grow back within hours and the waxing caused bruises and would grow back in 5 days never mind the pain! I took laser 4 years ago and fell pregnant 3 years ago and despite the hormonal changes where I had to stop, it's made a huge difference.

Right now my hairs grow back a lot weaker. I would say 50% of my hairs have gone altogether. I shave right now due to still bf and laser salons are closed anyway and it takes about a week for them to grow back. It's a game changer and I recommended it to anyone who is sick of shaving and waxing. I wish I started it off before in my early twenties instead of late twenties.

I was never able to wear dresses unless I was tanned and never had nice smooth legs. I'm hairy right now and I will go and shave and it's smooth again for a week. The laser salons will be open in April so just sign up for one. Get a couple of sessions in before summer and start again in September and continue throughout winter. Right now, I am in the process of giving up bf and will go to my first ever session hopefully in April, probably will go for another one in late May early June and start again. After 2-3 sessions, I lost like 30-40% of hairs. It's really worth it.

My laser salon had pay monthly instalments and now I still have 7 sessions left after I paid for it for the first year before falling pregnant. Go for it, it's the best thing I have done.

Limes will be the best money you ever spend

Lumea not limes

I’ve got the plug in Lumea. It has worked really well, except on my legs... I saw some progress after 2-3 treatments (but not huge, just some bald patches whilst most of my legs were still so hairy) - and then I started to get horrible reactions, legs were super itchy and red for days after using it, so I had to stop.

It’s still so worth it for face, stomach and underarms, I will give it another go on my legs this spring but I’m not holding out much hope! My pain tolerance is 0, so wax, laser and epilators are out of the question (tried them). I’m assuming I’ll be shaving for the rest of my life

Wow thank you everyone that’s replied. That seems pretty unanimous!
So are you able to shave normally in between sessions? Will that prevent progress?
Thanks again everyone

Yes absolutely you can shave between sessions, when you use the Lumea you need to be freshly shaved (opposite of waxing) and no harm in shaving in between

Yes, just shave normally. Hair grows in cycles which is why it takes repeated treatments.
I was lucky to get great results first go so I could see it was going to work for me.

Does the lumea work on white / grey or ginger hair please?

I've grown a 'beard' at 52. Mostly dark, some ginger (weird!) and a few white sprouts? I'd like to kill them before they all turn white and I look like Dumbledore... (pale skin, mid brown hair on head, also going grey)

Won't work on white or grey as there need to be pigment in the hair.

Whilst working great on my body, it didn't do much for my face. Worked a little at first but then chin hairs came back white. 😭

Ok thanks @Whatsnewpussyhat
I was hoping to zap the beard before it goes grey/white.
Body hair I'm less fussed about.
I wonder if a cheaper brand would be as good?

Laser all the way.

sadly, I'm blonde, so it only gets the darker hair and leaves the lighter hair. Better than the alternatives though.

I’m like you, very dark hair but hairy genes too (thanks dad!). I’ve bought just after Xmas lumea, and not done legs but done side burns and chin with great effect. I’m going to do legs next. Buy it, save up if necessary; it’s great.
I had my legs waxed every 3-4 weeks for 2 years and the hair growth never slowed, so I have faith that this works.